10 Years Later - Pillar, 'Fireproof'
I became a Christian in the year 2000. Before that, I didn't know that Christians had their own music. My favorite band at the time was (don't judge me) Limp Bizkit. Yes, rapcore was cool once (honestly, I'd be down for some right now). As I became introduced to this whole new world of Christian music, one band that caught my ear was a western Kansas band called Pillar. And this happened: "Wow, these guys are like the Christian Limp Bizkit!" I've since realized that we don't need that kinda stuff, but at the time, I was new to this thing.
ANYWAY, two years later, Pillar released what is easily their best album: Fireproof. Who can forget the anthemic chorus of the title track? "I know where I stand and what'll happen if you try it, I AM FIREPROOF!" (Apparently I did, cause I had to look up the lyrics just now) And how about the repeating of "In God we trust! In God we trust!" in "Indivisible." And of course, the album's ballads were something to write home about; "A Shame" and "Further From Myself" were highlights that made you think and worship in the middle of a rock fest. Yes, these guys had what my rapcore-loving, new Christian heart longed for. Fireproof even tied with P.O.D. for most number of weeks for a Christian rock single to be at number one on Christian rock radio (eleven weeks; not sure if that record has been broken since then). This is also the album that first got Pillar mainstream exposure, with a re-release of Fireproof on Geffen Records and mainstream servicing with their next album, Where Do We Go From Here. While that album had some good songs and plenty of solid moments, it's safe to say that Fireproof, while pretty dated by today's standards, was the best work of their career. With the band currently on an indefinite hiatus, and lead vocalist Rob Beckley working on a solo project and a new label called idefimusic, it's unknown whether they'll ever attempt to best themselves. But as the band had changed dramatically since Fireproof, I suppose anything is possible! Go listen to this again for a fun blast from the past. You know you want to.....right?
-- Scott Fryberger
2. Drew Tilley said...
Some good news for any Pillar fan past/present; The Facebook page has had some life in the past month. Rob (I'm assuming) is putting up Bible verses daily and a picture of Noah out in Cali with POD recently showed up. Before Rob posted about the whole hiatus they had stated they had songs written or were writing. They're not on Essential anymore and apparently have an album ready or that will be recorded to be released independently. (Wikipedia has this last part. Caution on the validity obviously.) Only Rob and Noah are now listed as members. I think they're gonna rev it up again to a lesser degree (probably to the extent of your more recent Project 86 pre WFTS). I wouldn't be surprised if they can get Kalel and Lester back if doing things on a lesser scale. That was the magic lineup.
Imo what did them in was The Reckoning way back in 06. They put so much stock and hype into that album and it just wasn't that great. They flirted with various genres and while the heavier sound imo worked, the soft radio friendly sound was what they seemed to try and rally around and it just wasn't good. Cause that's not who they were. Imo For the Love of the Game was such a highly underated album because of how bad the Reckoning flopped. Confessions just wasn't good either. I'll always love these guys though. I remember living it up on the message boards while in HS on their website. They were the first hard rocking band on the Christian end to get me pumped about Christian music again as I had been on the Limp Bizkit Linkin Park train like Scott haha. I credit Pillar with opening the door to me liking metal/hardcore music even though they are not any of those genres. The heaviness made me crave more heaviness. So I kept pushing the boundries. Eventually found another underated band, Staple, got into Project (who ultimately I should have went to first haha), Disciple back when they actually rocked, and then Demon Hunter before going all out and diving into Living Sacrifice, Norma Jean, and ABR haha. Thanks for the stroll down memory lane!
10/16/2012