Interview With Josh Bramlett of The Christian Metal Band
“The Protest”
New Castle, Indiana’s band The Protest is on a mission — a divine musical metal-driven mission to make a major impact! Their plans consist of taking the music industry by storm by spreading the word of God through the band’s high energy music and live shows. The band name comes from the group’s beliefs that as Christians we should “Protest” for God’s truth.
Ultimately, beyond the metal guitar riffs and spear-headed chugs of the bass guitar and thundering anvil pounds of the drum kit, The Protest wants to bring hope to people truly in need — especially those who might be struggling with difficult issues such as suicide, drug and substance abuse, addictions, bullying or depression. By sharing their own personal experiences as band members, their music ministry captures and cultivates the audiences by providing a positive message every song, every performance, every time — with an average of 150+ shows a year! The Protest have headlined stages at Ichthus Festival, Rockfest, Agape Fest, Cornerstone, and LiFest, and they have also performed in front of more than 20,000 students with Bill Ballenger on the “Break The Grey” tour across the midwest. In the studio, they’re presently recording an independent album completely funded by Kickstarter! Fans wait eagerly for new music and new performances from The Protest; however, in the mean time, I suppose an interview will have to suffice.
Tell us about the single “Pull Me Away”?
Pull Me Away is a very special song for us for many reasons. On the album we wanted a big sounding anthem to which people could really relate. We all have stumbling blocks and setbacks. This song is a fight song that’s meant to inspire listeners to keep pressing on no matter what the enemy throws at them. When we wrote this song the band was going through a lot. We were tired, stressed out, and we were beginning to wonder if what we were trying to do was in vain. So what came out was Pull Me Away. We prayed for God to use the song to break through to people and we hope that it does that.
Are you still looking for a bass player? How does one apply for the position? [this question was asked several weeks prior to publication; according to their website as of today — 2/19/14 — the search is still happening]
As many know, we are still looking for a bass player. We opened the audition floor up a couple weeks ago [in December, 2013]. We aren’t looking for just a fill in guy. We want a brother in Christ. Someone who believes in making a difference in other people’s lives through God. We will wait as long as we have to until we find the right fit. Until then we have had a lot of people offer to temporarily fill the void and with today’s technology bass tracks have been our guardian angel. For those interested in auditioning for the band we are accepting videos to theprotestvideos@gmail.com. We are asking that applicants play one of our songs as well as a song of their choosing.
How is the new album coming along?
The new record is going great so far! We are tracking for it as we speak. For this album we chose Letter Black guitarist and producer Mark Anthony. We have had a good relationship with him for years and he has really taken the time to help us out in more ways than one. We are very blessed to add his creative mind to the mix. Making an album can be a long and grueling task, but we are really taking our time and enjoying the process. It’s too early to tell when the album will be released, but we do want to get new music out so we will be working hard to make it happen sooner than later. This album would not have been possible if it wasn’t for the fans. We did a Kickstarter project for the record and it was met with overwhelming support. Protest fans can expect a more mature sound. We are really honing in to who we really are on this record and we are very excited to share with fans.
What are the band’s main objectives as a Christian metal group?
Being in a “Christian” metal band does carry a lot of weight. We decided years ago that God’s will comes first however that might be. We want to share what God has done for us with others. We don’t want to shove the Gospel down anyone’s throat, so we really try to show God’s love in a manner that people can relate to. It’s very hard doing what we do. We have a responsibility and it doesn’t matter if we are playing a bar, club, or church; we are there for a purpose and the listeners need to know that. It’s not easy to tell someone that they are a sinner and that Christ is their only hope, but someone has to. We believe that a lot of the ministry happens off the stage as well. We want to hear the stories of the people that come to the shows and believe me we have heard some amazing testimonies as well as some heart wrenching tales. We want people to feel like they can talk to us. After all we are just guys.
What is in store for 2014 for The Protest touring schedule?
We plan on touring a lot in 2014. We have a few standing offers that we are working out the details on and outside of that we do plan on booking a CD release tour for the summer. We have recently had time off after a year of heavy touring and its been nice to relax and write music but we are all itching to get back out there. Playing live is where we thrive.
