Sons of Korah
Sons of Korah performing in 2017
Background information
Origin	Geelong, Victoria, Australia
Genres	Acoustic Folk CCM Christian rock Latin
Years active	1994–present
Labels	5ive
Members	Matthew Jacoby Mike (Spike) Avery Mike Follent Rod Wilson Anna Waters
Past members	Richard Beechey Jason Coghill Marcus Hayden Jayden Lee Mike McCarthy Ann-Maree Keefe Rod Gear Bruce Walker
Website	sonsofkorah.com

Sons of Korah is a Christian band founded in 1994 in Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The band's name references the biblical family of the same name. They put Psalms to music,^[1] with the lyrics taken almost verbatim from that Old Testament book.^[2] As of 2014, the band has interpreted over 50 of the 150 Psalms into songs. Founding mainstay, Matthew Jacoby explained, "the psalms are important today because we tend to romanticise spirituality a lot and these songs present biblical spirituality in its original form, very real and yet present in such stunning poetic form. It is a perfect blend of spiritual realism with aesthetic and artistic integrity."^[3]

History

Sons of Korah formed in 1994 while founding members Matthew Jacoby, Jason Coghill and Rod Gear attended the Reformed Theological College in Geelong. In 1996 the band recorded their first album Hand to the Plough. After this release, Coghill left the band, however he returned briefly to help record their second album, Light of Life in 1998. It was recorded live-in-the-studio on analogue reel-to-reel.^[4][5] As a solo artist, Coghill has continued to record music based on the Psalms.^[6] Redemption Songs, their third album, was released in November 2000. It is often cited^{[by whom?]} as the band's most popular album.^[7]

2001 saw the release of a box set of their recorded albums. The box set included a re-recorded EP version of their first album Hand to the Plough.^[8] In 2002 Marcus Hayden left the band to pursue a solo career.^[9] Jayden Lee joined in 2004 and helped write many of the songs for their next album, Resurrection. Gear did not participate in its or the subsequent tour, while he worked on his solo album.^[10] Lee left the band in 2008 and moved to the United States. Mike McCarthy then joined as the group's lead guitarist. Gear also returned to the band after recording a solo album Barak. After appearing on a number of albums as a backing vocalist, Ann-Maree Keefe joined Sons of Korah on tour and often opens their concerts as a solo artist.^{[citation needed]}

Rain, their sixth album, was released in 2008. Justin Michael for Sight Magazine commented on the "amount of light and shade" in the album,^[11] while William Chong called it "An enthralling musical journey through some of the Bible's most enduring psalms."^[12] Cross Rhythms' Andrew Coe rated it at 9-out-of-10, and explained, "Using the words of the psalms pretty much as they are, rather than simply as an inspiration, is a bold move and really focuses the listener on the Scripture. Rain is a beautiful album which will have you reaching for your Bible."^[13] Bruce Walker joined the band after the release of Rain, replacing McCarthy as the group's lead guitarist. The band's next album Wait was released in 2011 while Refuge was released in 2014. In 2016, Keefe left the band to pursue a solo career. Anna Waters replaced her as backing vocalist. Fractures is their newest album released in February 2017.^{[citation needed]}

On a few occasions past members of the band have had a chance to join again on stage. In 2012, Hayden played a few songs at a concert in Melbourne.^[14] Lee also played with the band again while they toured the United States in 2013.^[15] Sons of Korah tour regularly in their home country Australia often appearing at Christian festivals such as Easterfest^[16] and Black Stump.^[17] They have also toured the United Kingdom,^[18] The Netherlands^[19] and the United States. They appeared on ABC Radio National's The Rhythm Divine promoting their album, Wait^[20] and BBC Radio York radio shows to support their tours.

Members

• Jason Coghill – drums, backing vocals
• Rod Gear – double bass, lead guitar, solo nylon guitar, backing vocals, cello, keyboards, piano
• Matthew Jacoby – lead vocals, guitar, backing vocals
• Richard Beechey – drums, percussion
• Marcus Hayden – backing vocals
• Mike Avery – acoustic bass guitar, sampling, programming, sound design, keyboards
• Jayden Lee – acoustic fretless guitar, guitar, mandolin, nylon guitar, piano accordion, resonator guitar, backing vocals, lead vocals
• Rod Wilson – drums, percussion
• Mike McCarthy – resonator guitar, mandolin
• Ann-Maree Keefe – backing vocals

Discography

Studio albums

• Hand to the Plough (Limited Independent release, 1996)
• Light of Life (Wordsong Artists, 1999) (MRCD002)^[21]
• Redemption Songs (Wordsong Artists, 2000)
• Shelter (Wordsong Artists, 2002)
• Resurrection (Wordsong Artists, 2005)
• Rain (Wordsong Artists, 2008)
• Wait (Wordsong Artists, 2011)
• Light of Life: 20th Anniversary Re-Release (Wordsong Artists, 2014)
• Refuge (5ive, 2014)
• Fractures (5ive, 2017)

Extended plays

• Hand to the Plough – (Wordsong Artists, 2001) (WACD001HP)^[22]

Live albums

• Live Recordings Vol.1 (Wordsong Artists, 2010)
• Live Recordings Vol.2 (Wordsong Artists, 2013)

Video albums

• Sons of Korah: Live (Wordsong Artists, 2010)
• Sons of Korah: Live in the Netherlands (Wordsong Artists, 2013)

References

External links

• Official website