08 February 2014

XXCMTE: 2013 in Review


"THE TWENTY COMMITEE are from New Jersey and are a fantastic new prog band.  Every song on... ‘A Lifeblood Psalm’ lulls you in, this is great album with old school prog references, gentle swaying vocals coupled with fantastic musical harmonies, even a little retro rag style going down... [It's] one of my favourite recent new releases..."
 - Nicky Baldrian, Fireworks Magazine



Put simply, 2013 was an incredible year for us.

Though we completed the bulk of the recording in October of 2012 (chronicled here), the end of that year and the first months of 2013 saw the finalization of the process: recording of the backing vocals, promotional legwork, and hundreds of minuscule tweaks to the mixes before they were finally sent to mastering.  The album officially hit the music world on April 1st, and we suddenly found ourselves with an online following and a growing list of professional contacts.  Reviews have been pouring in from all corners of the music world over the latter half of the year, and such an overwhelmingly positive response to our first release has been both an encouraging and a humbling experience.

Awkward selfie with Jerry @ the Starland Ballroom
Since releasing the album, we've had the opportunity to do a number of written and pre-recorded interviews for various music journals and online radio stations.  Each reviewer we've spoken to has been particularly interested in the concept of the album, which I've been refining through numerous re-tellings.

So sit tight.

At the most fundamental level, "A Lifeblood Psalm" is about belief: wading through the stifling bombardment of social, political, scientific, and philosophical babble that pollutes Western society, and choosing instead a faith that relies on something greater than the individual - something greater than intellect or reason.  The idea we tried to capture was that life is full of messy opinions, good and bad, and that filtering out the noise of modern philosophy has become the key to striving after the things which we believe God placed into the hearts of man so that we might seek after and understand Him.  For that reason, the story of the album is both intensely personal and simultaneously universal - a template into which every listener can insert him- or herself.  The protagonist of "A Lifeblood Psalm" tries to find his identity in love, the pursuit of knowledge, and gilded reputation, but ultimately finds himself enthralled with the one Voice which cuts through all the others.  Of course, that pathway will look different for everyone.  For us, it starts and ends with Jesus Christ, and that belief is ultimately what has informed the album's story.

Grove City College, PA
On the musical side, the project was very much a cohesive effort, though Geoff did all the preliminary writing.  In fact, "How Wonderful," "Airtight," and "Her Voice" were already complete songs when The Twenty Committee formed in the beginning of 2012, but each tune underwent significant transformation during the shaping of "A Lifeblood Psalm."  Geoff and I collaborated on some of the lyrics for "The Knowledge Enterprise," and the band worked on all the arrangements together, shaping the material into a singular piece of music - 9 tracks, 4 songs, all unified by the same overarching theme.  In short, we put a whole lot of ourselves into the project, and in that regard, we also surpassed all of our own expectations of what we could accomplish.  A huge part of that is due to Geoff challenging us to think differently, to be meticulous, and to strive for a professional level of excellence, as well as encouraging (n. supporting; edifying; see also: threatening) us to step up our musical game.  His leadership cannot be overstated.  The larger part of our success, however, is simply a blessing from God.  This is something we could never have achieved on our own, and we are all immensely grateful to Him for what He has allowed us to accomplish.

With Nasty Habit - rockers proving that hair metal lives
This "year in review" piece is certainly a little late in coming, considering we're already approaching the halfway point of February, but it isn't because we've been idle.  As far as our personal lives are concerned, Richmond is finishing his BA at Temple and interviewing at universities in New York and Virginia to continue his Master's studies in child psychology; Steve and Dana are expecting their second child - another boy - any day now, and Titus is becoming a renowned chef (specializing in plastic); Geoff has moved back to the Big Apple and is continuing to build his impressive résumé in the music theater industry; Joe is working for a refinery as a fixed equipment engineer and is still up to his elbows in car guts; Tara and I are buying our first house and celebrating our second anniversary.  In our downtime (rare though it may be), we like to get together as a band for Blood Sword, coffee and maple whiskey, and sometimes endless rounds of COD Zombies.  Of course, I'd be lying through my teeth if I were to claim that these things didn't sometimes steal time from regular practice...

Steve pours sweat and blood during shows.
As far as the band's upcoming schedule for 2014, we won't be gigging during the month of February, but will resume in March with shows at the NJ Proghouse and the M Room.  In the meantime, we will continue working on new material with the intention of returning to the studio in 2015.  Without giving anything away, we have some big thematic ideas for our sophomore effort, with focus once again on story and album-oriented songwriting.  It will definitely be a much more collaborative endeavor this time around, as we have all rolled up our sleeves to get dirty during the writing process.  You can look forward to some new and different orchestrations, more emphasis on guitar passages and extended instrumental sections, as well as more opportunities for our resident harpist to put his talent to good use.


In sum, 2013 was an incredible year for us.  Here's to what is yet to come.


We owe many, many special thanks to the following people:

  • Jerry Guidroz, producer of "A Lifeblood Psalm"; we couldn't have done it without you, Pepe.
  • Dan Shike, Tone & Volume Mastering
  • MyStringSection.com, for recording cello parts in 7/8 (sorry, guys)
  • Stephen Wise (StepWise), whose home and studio we invaded to record backing vocals
  • Lauren Garcia and Nick Kulick, for photography and album design respectively
  • OUR FAMILIES - Tara, Dana, Titus, and all Moms, Dads, and siblings for their loving support and God-given patience with us
  • Jason Spencer (The PROG Mind), for discovering, supporting, and believing in our music
  • ITPOW for being awesomely supportive, awesome dudes, and for writing awesome music
  • Dan "Tenacious" MacDonald and the guys from Elephants of Scotland
  • Marty Dorfman, Rick Henry and everyone from the House of Prog, for their incredible enthusiasm
  • Richard Thresh for his quality support and for awarding us "Equal 4th" in his top 15 of 2013 along with The Tangent
  • Any and all online radio DJs or podcast hosts who have featured our music on their programs, including Kyle Fish, Gregg Kovach, Rick Henry & Marty Dorfman, Shaun Geraghty, Diego Camargo, David "Wilf" Elliott, Kind Stranger, Cliff Pearson, André Steijns, and of course Michael "The Lurker"
  • Jon Yarger, Staci Lorrie, Joey Crumb, Pat Cunningham, and anyone else who hooked us up with gigs we otherwise wouldn't have landed
  • Randy and Justine Greene & Amazing Grace for providing us a stage for 5+ years
  • Alan Jones of Get Ready to Rock for one stellar critique of our worldview and photogenic qualities (here's hoping for a review of our music next time, Alan!).
There are many, many others whom we could mention, but couldn't possibly name everyone.  You know who you are!

Reviews of "A Lifeblood Psalm"

Ad and writeup in Progression magazine
on the Prog Archives

on Sonic Abuse

by Athos Enriles (mat2020.com)

by Martin Hutchinson ("Progradar") on Lady Obscure

by Jason Spencer ("The PROG Mind")

also by Jason Spencer (Progulator)

by Jordan Blum on Rebel Noise

by G. W. Hill on Music Street Journal


Writeup in Prog Magazine
by Jon Davis of Exposé


by Ryan Calorel of Lamplighter Magazine






We also received....


A Lifeblood Psalm on sale at a local bookstore.
#2 in Lamplighter's "Best of 2013 (from NJ)"

#18 in Progshine's "Best of 2013"

#8 in La Caja de Pandora's "Best 2013 Independent Releases"






I'll close with a Facebook status from our fearless leader, late in 2013:
"I was reading an article today, where a guitarist described his band's "meteoric rise from total obscurity to underground micro-niche internet fame." I would just like to thank all 271 of you who like us for powering our own rise to "underground micro-niche internet fame."
Seriously, though.  From the bottom of our hearts.

Thank you, all.






Post by The Twenty Committee.




Post by Stephen Kostas.


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Location: West Deptford, NJ

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