Following Grammy and Dove Award nominations, a trio of best-selling major label albums and seven chart-topping singles alongside viral videos, Decyfer Down returns with the April 1 release of The Other Side Of Darkness through The Fuel Music. After more than a two-year hiatus from recording and touring, the band, collectively Brandon Mills and Chris Clonts (guitars), TJ Harris (vocals/guitar), Benjamin Millhouse (drums) and Chris Furr (bass), is reveling in its newfound freedom as an independent band to write, record, release and perform new music.
Making a conscious decision to shatter comfort zones, whether they be artistically or thematically, the band held a no-holds-barred approach to The Other Side Of Darkness.
“I know every artist says ‘this is the best album we’ve ever done,’ but there is definitely some of the best sounding stuff we’ve done in a long time just because there are no limits,” says Clonts. “We can write about whatever we want to write, and we’re not in a box.”
Already resonating with radio programmers, the lead single from the album, “Nothing More,” is No. 15 and climbing after nine weeks on the on the Billboard Christian Rock chart, while hitting No. 5 and heading toward the top of the Christian Music Weekly (CMW) chart. The song is a fists-in-the-air anthem meant to encourage fans to move forward with God regardless of what might try to stand in the way.
“Darkness is a valley, but there’s the light of God’s love on the other side,” says Clonts. “A lot of people we talk to say ‘man, I’ve done too much bad stuff to get to heaven and there’s no way God could love me,’ but that’s not true. With all the subject matter we’ve talked about [on this album], we just want people to know on the other side of darkness is God’s love.”
Taking the new music from The Other Side Of Darkness, as well as its growing list of fan favorites, on the road, Decyfer Down plans to tour heavily in 2016. Beginning today, the band embarks on a massive 39-date run on the City Rock Fest 2016 tour with Disciple, Seventh Day Slumber, Spoken and Children 18:3. (See tour itinerary below.) This tour follows Decyfer Down’s own successful headline tour last fall, as well as 32 packed events on the 2015 winter/spring leg of the City Rock Fest tour.
While on tour, Decyfer Down will play a diverse mixture of venues, including clubs, theaters, churches and arenas, which is representative of the band’s widely diverse fan base.
“People are people no matter what four walls surround them,” suggests Clonts before Mills expands. “That’s always been the heart of our band. We want to sing about the struggles we go through as Christians, but chances are there are those who are going through the exact same struggles and trials. We’ve never set out to be a mainstream band or a Christian band. Whatever doors open, we just walk through them. We love playing everywhere, and we love meeting people.”
“Ten years plus of doing this has been a crazy trip, but it’s been awesome,” adds Harris. “After taking time off and going back out, it’s been great to see some familiar faces and hearing how they’ve grown as people and in their relationship with Christ, plus we still hear from people who heard us on mainstream radio and how a song changed their life. Everyone’s from all different backgrounds and situations, but hopefully we’re all growing.”
“We definitely hope people are encouraged and challenged through this record,” sums up Mills. “We are just enjoying the whole process again.”
For all the latest Decyfer Down tour dates and other news, go to www.decyferdown.com, @DecyferDown and www.facebook.com/decyferdown.
City Rock Fest 2016 Tour:
17-Feb Carthage Civic Center, Carthage, TX
18-Feb Fiesta Latina Ballroom, Corpus Christi, TX
19-Feb First Baptist Church, Rio Vista, TX
20-Feb M.K. Brown Memorial Auditorium & Civic Center, Pampa, TX
21-Feb Crossroads Church of Denver, Wheat Ridge, CO
24-Feb Sunnyside Baptist Church, Cheyenne, WY
27-Feb Alamogordo Civic Center, Alamogordo, NM
28-Feb Nile Theater, Mesa, AZ
4-Mar Long Beach 1st Church of the Nazarene, Long Beach, CA
5-Mar San Bernardino Co. Fairgrounds and Event Center, Victorville, CA
9-Mar Civic Auditorium, Idaho Falls, ID
10-Mar Idaho State University – Frazier Hall, Pocatello, ID
11-Mar Mansfield Convention Center, Great Falls, MT
13-Mar Holiday Inn Convention Center, Minot, ND
16-Mar NFAA Easton Yankton Archery Complex, Yankton, SD
17-Mar Mercy Hill Church, Rochester, MN
18-Mar River lawn Christian Church, Wichita, KS
19-Mar Pace Events Center, Perry, IA
20-Mar Waldorf College Auditorium, Forest City, IA
31-Mar Jackson Friends Church, Massillon, OH
1-Apr The Underground, Cincinnati, OH
3-Apr Larry’s Pizza, Fort Smith, AR
4-Apr Firepoint Baptist Church, Nixa, MO
5-Apr Christpoint Church, Galena, KS
8-Apr Downtown, Wilmington, NC
9-Apr Genxaret, Columbia, MD
15-Apr Twin City Baptist Church, Lunenburg, MA
16-Apr TBA, Presque Isle, ME
17-Apr Lincoln Center, Rockland, ME
20-Apr Chemung County Family Fitness Center, Elmira, NY
21-Apr ALTAR, Pittsburgh, PA
22-Apr McMorran Place Sports & Entertainment Center, Port Huron, MI
23-Apr Battle Creek Friends Church, Battle Creek, MI
24-Apr Midland Nazarene, Midland, MI
26-Apr Church At The Depot, Scott Depot, WV
27-Apr Whitley County Middle School Gym, Williamsburg, KY
28-Apr Set Free Church of Dawsonville, Dawsonville, GA
29-Apr Lifepoint Community Church, De Land, FL
30-Apr OpenWater Church, Odessa, FL
* Tour dates subject to change.
About Decyfer Down:
North Carolina-based rock band Decyfer Down has released three best-selling albums over the last decade that have gathered seven No. 1 radio hits, a Grammy and Dove Award nomination, and song placement on major sporting events and promotional videos that have garnered millions of views. Along with its own headline tours, the band has co-headlined with Korn’s Brian “Head” Welch and toured with Breaking Benjamin, Theory of a Dead Man, Thousand Foot Krutch, Skillet, Red, Disciple, Puddle of Mudd and many others.
About The Fuel Music:
Established in 2008, The Fuel Music & Management, LLC, is one of the leading independent distributors of music though all physical and digital channels internationally and enjoys a growing base in artist merchandise sales. Based in Tennessee, the Fuel team brings nearly 70 years of combined music industry experience in record label operations, major label distribution and marketing, and artist management for artists ranging from upstart bands to GRAMMY Award nominated, multi-platinum artists. More information on the company can be found at www.thefuelmusic.com.