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Christian rock band plans show at Augusta Civic Center
By LUCKY CLARK
Correspondent Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel 11/02/2007

By LUCKY CLARK

Correspondent

Saturday evening the Augusta Civic Center will host a Christian concert headlined by the newsboys -- a group formed in Australia in the mid-1980s and now based in Nashville, Tenn.

Made up of Phil Joel (bass/vocals), Jeff Frankenstein (keyboards/programming), Paul Colman (guitar/vocals), Peter Furler (vocals/guitar/drums) and Duncan Phillips (drums/percussion), this quintet is on the road supporting its 2006 Inpop Records release, "GO."

During a recent telephone interview from Pensacola, Fla., where they were performing the evening of Oct. 12, Phillips chatted about the tour and new album.

"This will be one of those tours that really gathers steam as it builds and builds and builds. We're using a lot of the newest technology on the visual elements of our show, and having been around as long as we have, we're very tight musically. People are telling us that this is the best show they've ever seen period!"

The drummer believes the group is more engaging live than recorded. "We've always been a band that excels or exceeds when putting records out," Phillips explained. "We work incredibly hard on our records but we are a live band -- that's our passion. Unfortunately, making a record is one of those things you have to do. We enjoy that process," he added, "but when you come see the band live, people are always pleasantly surprised. I think the songs actually get better live, if that makes sense."

Fans often come up to band members after shows and express real surprise at the energy level.

"When you write a record," he said, "you record the tracks, then you get on the road and you get the chance to play them 50 to 100 times, and they really get strong. The live versions are quite different than the record (and) I believe, actually, they're better!"

One of the special moments of their live show is "dueling drummers." Lead singer Peter Furler was the original drummer for the band (Phillips previously played keyboards and percussion) and at one point during the concert, Furler revisits his previous role.

"I think it's one of those great moments where the lead singer -- who they've been watching as he sings all night -- suddenly jumps on a drum kit and whales (it)," Phillips said.

They planned out and built an 8-foot aluminum disc and then motorized it and fixed it so it would rise, tilt and rotate -- both Furler and Phillips now wear seat-belts as they duel.

"There was no handbook for attaching drum kits to a spinning disk," Phillips laughed, "we looked, but we couldn't find it so we built this machine from scratch using electric motors and hydraulic motors -- it was a lot of work, and I don't think people who watch the show realize what we went through to put this thing together!"

After many years of using it on tour, the band decided on a three-year break leaving it home. Just recently, they decided to re-incorporate it back into the show.

"At the end of last year, we decided to dust the cobwebs off it and bring it out again," the drummer declared, "and it's as big a hit now as it ever has been."

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