For any band that continues to record and tour at a non-stop rate, change is inevitable. Band members will come and go, the focus will evolve and the music will tighten and grow. So is the case with Christian music’s rock mainstay, Kutless, as they release their fifth full-length album, To Know That You’re Alive.

With a new band member, an unconventenial choice for producer (Pete Kipley who has worked with MercyMe and Phil Whickham) and a writing process that saw over 70 songs come and go (their previous record was 15), Kutless was ready to record one of their most challenging projects to date. Recording started in June of 2007 and for five months, they traveled to an oceanside studio in San Diego (another change) to lay down the tracks.

Jeff recorded drums until all he could do was lay on the floor in a pool of sweat. They didn’t sleep, they drank too much coffee, and they depended on each other. They pushed harder than they ever have, and somewhere in that process, they started to become a new band.

To Know That You’re Alive is the result. It represents the hardest music Kutless has ever recorded (songs “The Feeling,” “The Disease” and “The Cure”), the most experimental (“Dying To Become,” “Sleeping City”) and the most melodic (“Guiding Me Home,” “Broken Pieces”). The album is about feeling fully alive. It’s about that feeling that you get when you know that you are doing your very best with what God has given you, and that you’re doing it with your friends – everybody, together. It’s definitely not a standard Kutless record.

Recently, lead singer Jon Micah spoke with NRT’s Bill Lurwick about their new album, To Know That You’re Alive, along with an update on former bandmate Ryan and how the new project has transformed the Kutless sound that we’ve grown so familiar with.

Jon, thanks for joining us here at NRT. I want to jump right in and talk about the different line-up for the first time in Kutless’ ranks for a while. Recently, Ryan had to leave the group last year.

That’s correct.

How did you guys find Nick, who has stepped in recently for Ryan?

Nick worked for us for about a year as our guitar tech before Ryan left. He’s been playing guitar for us for over a year.

Let’s give everybody an update on Ryan: He left the group for a good reason. Let everybody know why.

His daughter has been dealing with some medical stuff. She’s legally blind, and they had tons of doctor appointments. He decided it was best to be with his family and to be able to take care of stuff.

Do you guys still remain in contact with him?

A little bit, not a lot. We see him in church every once in a while.

Of course, we’ll keep him in our prayers. Is it a different sound on To Know That You’re Alive without Ryan there?

Nick definitely brought a lot to the table on this record. He was really involved in the writing process. You can definitely hear his influence on the record, which I think is really cool. We also tried to change it in a lot of ways. We used a different producer, different studio, different everything! Up until this point everything has been done with Aaron Sprinkle and done up in Seattle. And this time we didn’t do any of that [laughter]. I think that helped freshen up the sound, and make it a little bit different.

Was it refreshing to work on this project?

Yeah, it was both refreshing and stressful. There were definitely some moments that were refreshing, and there were also some moments that were very stressful. That’s just a part of making records. It goes hand in hand, especially when you’re doing it professionally. You’ve got deadlines and so many things to do. It’s not as simple as just hanging out and making music for a couple of months. I’m definitely pleased. I think we accomplished what we set out to accomplish in creating a record that is fresh sounding, yet somehow familiar sounding at the same time.

From what I’ve heard, it’s definitely a different sound for you. I thought it sounded more raw and organic.

I think even the writing process was a little bit that way, too.

You have two singles going out to radio. Which one is going to Rock radio, and which one is going to AC radio?

“The Feeling” is a song that is going to Rock radio, and “Complete” is going to AC radio.

Tell us about “The Feeling.”

“The Feeling” is a fun song. It’s somewhat a newer version of our song “Tonight” off our first record. The song is basically a rockin’ out song. It’s about being at a show and having a good time. Ultimately, even though we’re jumping around and being crazy and everything, there’s more going on than just having fun and making music. We’re there to actually glorify our Creator.

Absolutely! What about “Complete”? I guess that title speaks for itself, is that right?

Yeah, somewhat. “Complete” touches on the topic of the irony of the fact that we can’t really understand who we are and what we were meant to do until we find Christ. Once we do, then we can begin to understand our purpose in this world.

James Meade, the other guitarist, and you are the only original members of Kutless who are left. Now that you’ve just released your fifth project in 2008, I wanted to know if you had a five or ten-year plan?

[Laughter.] We definitely have goals and aspirations. There have been quite a few goals that have been met, which is cool. We still have a lot of work to do and things we’d like to accomplish. We’re just trying to get our music out there to as many people who will listen to it. We’ll see what happens!

Tell us your tour plans for this fall?

We actually have a really cool tour coming up! We’re going to perform at Creation: The Tour. This will be a festival style tour that will last almost all day long! There are going to be a ton of a different artists. Since we’re the headlining bill, we’ll be the last artist on stage. The artists that go on before us are Thousand Foot Krutch, Pillar, FireFlight, KJ-52 as well as a handful of opening bands. It’s going to be an awesome, huge rock ‘n’ roll tour!

Yeah, it sure is! Sounds like it. That is quite an undertaking, and you guys are probably honored to be a part of it.

Definitely, it’s going to be cool. We’re headlining Creation West this year. It’s kind of funny, because we’re finding ourselves in love with the situation. It’s like “Man, we’re the headliner? This is kind of weird; I hope people will stick around!” We feel like the young kids on the block, but then we look around and we’re like, “I guess we have a bunch of records out now.”

Well, we’re stoked about the new project! You guys have covered the gamut musically over your brief five-year span. You’re getting back to a little roots-rock on this one. We’re excited about that and everything else you guys are doing. God’s blessing to you and the guys in Kutless. Is there anything specific that you would like us to pray about?

You can always pray for us and our families. Sometimes they’re with us and sometimes they’re not. It’s always tough when we’re not with them. Also, keep praying that we keep our focus right. We’re not able to get to church as consistently as most people, because we’re usually traveling on Sunday morning. It’s funny because when we get home from tour we’ll say, “We can drive to church today!” You kind of take for granted some of the simple things in life. Keep praying for us to stay focused.

Jon, thanks for hanging with us here at NewReleaseTuesday.com!

Awesome! Thank you so much.

Listen To Our Audio Interview With Jon Micah In Our Exclusive Video PodCast