Gungor with Bellarive & Built To Be Broken
Plaza Theatre, Orlando Florida - March 18, 2010
I discovered Gungor last year via a friend’s Facebook status which linked to this video from the band that was fun, catchy, and really hit a bunch of nails on the head regarding what certain Christians have tried to turn God into.
Being a person who enjoys challenging the norm (and growing up in a very conservative church), I immediately identified with the band (who was then known as The Michael Gungor Band) and looked up the rest of their music. I quickly discovered that they weren’t just some band who made cutesy-but-challenging music. These people had real talent.
So when I saw they were coming to Orlando on their tour, I figured it was definitely worth the drive, even if it was my second trip to Orlando within a week. I wasn’t wrong :-)
The first opener was Built To Be Broken, and these guys had a surprising amount of energy.
Next up was the surprise of the night - Bellarive. I didn’t realize it at first, but I’d seen these guys (and gal) play before. They do the music for Status, the Sunday night service at Discovery Church, where I’ve visited a few times.
As they performed, they mesmerized the crowd with their unique blend of atmospheric/indie/worship/experimental music.
Here’s a clip shot by Justin Mezzell of their final song from the night. Seriously, give this a watch. It’s not at all what you’d expect from “church music.” :-)
Then lastly came Gungor. Other than Michael having problems with his acoustic guitar (something to do with the sound system, not the guitar), they played through their set beautifully and with passion. You can tell that they really believe in what they’re doing.
They closed the show with their version of the Doxology. This is not the version I remember singing out of the hymnal when I was growing up! Here’s a video of him playing it at a bookstore:
The challenge that I had at this show was the lighting. I’m planning on doing a whole separate post to address this issue, but for now let’s just say that there’s a reason some of the images in this post are black and white ;-)
Gungor:
Website
Beautiful Things on Amazon
Ancient Skies on Amazon
