Seeing Red

Grammy nominated band plays Lakewood

By Matt Driscoll on December 6, 2007

Quick, how many Grammy nominated bands are playing Maggie O’Toole’s this week?

If you said “None, Matt Driscoll is obviously high,” you’re only half right.



As it turns out, Red, a Nashville-based alternative Christian band, does have a Grammy nomination under their God-fearing belt. And they’ll be plugging in at Maggie’s this Friday, Dec. 7. Cross breeding industrial, classical and hard rock influences with a zeal Jesus himself would put up some devil horns for, Red earned a passionate legion of fans and a Grammy nomination in the “Best Rock or Rap Gospel Album” category thanks to their 2005 debut record, End of Silence. Though it appears Red came up short at the Grammys, as I assume the band’s bio would refer to Red as a “Grammy winning” band had they taken home the statue of debatable importance, one thing is certain — fans of Red are about as rabid as they come, and the band shows no signs of slowing up. By the time things are said and done, Red will have played nearly 250 shows in 2007.



Naturally, the gentlemen in Red take themselves fairly seriously.



“There are things that people are struggling with that they have the power to overcome,” says singer Michael Barnes in the band’s press release. “Halfway through (the song) ‘Let Go’ there’s the lyric, You can’t have me anymore, you can’t have me anymore, let go. A girl on MySpace said she was dealing with bulimia and just hearing that song really helped her. It can’t consume her anymore; it can’t have her anymore. It was really empowering.”

Red will play Maggie O’Toole’s Friday along with Lurid and Voices Lost.



[Maggie O’Toole’s, with Lurid and Voices Lost, Friday, Dec. 7, 8 p.m., all ages, $7, 6006 100th St. S.W., Lakewood, 253.584.3278]