To embrace the future, we must first discover the past. Although Contemporary Christian Music as we know it is still on the rise, the Christian music industry has a deep and rich decades-long history. Whether you listened to Petra as a child or grew up on Chris Tomlin, Christian music has birthed many memorable artists and bands. Every week, we want to take you on a trip down memory lane as we reminisce about some of the most influential albums to have ever touched our ears.

BABY, GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE FUN
Relient K has always made a splash during the summer, but they've made a notable impact at the end of June and beginning of July. With a career spanning almost 20 years, the band has certainly been around the block, producing critical success after critical success with plenty of Christian and mainstream acclaim.

In 2002, the group released their Employee of the Month EP-- the third of ten EPs the band would release-- to preview their then-upcoming album Two Lefts Don't Make A Right... But Three Do (say that five times fast). The EP featured three exclusive songs along with two songs from Two Lefts and one from The Anatomy of the Tongue In Cheek, which released the year prior.

Relient K decided to stretch some creative muscles in June of 2011 with the ingeniously titled Is For Karaoke cover EP. Featuring tongue-in-cheek interpretations of popular songs such as Cyndi Lauper's 1983 hit "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" and "Baby" by Justin Bieber, the band clearly had fun playing with genre stereotypes and musical tropes to unleash one of the more memorable cover albums in Christian music history. A follow-up EP would release a few months later, along with a full-length album comprised of tracks from both albums.

Finally, Relient K proved once again that they were not content with playing it safe by releasing their most recent effort, Collapsible Lung, in 2013. Thiessen and Hoopes only wrote two of the eleven songs on the album, instead choosing to bring in decorated outside writers. The end result was a divisive pop-inspired outing that exhibited the softer side of the band while retaining the biting wit they were known for. Collapsible Lung may not go down in history as the best Relient K record, but at least we know they are not afraid to take chances.

TO BE CONTINUED: A STORY TOLD IN TWO PARTS
Relient K wasn't the only artist to release an album in two parts over the summer with their Is For Karaoke EP. Coming off their first ever remix album for The End Is Where We Begin in 2012, Thousand Foot Krutch followed up that momentum by releasing the second volume on July 3, 2013 in the form of Metamorphosiz: The End Remixes Vol. 2.

Chicago-based rapper Viktory experienced his first bit of breakout fame in 2011 upon the release of Birth Of A Legacy Vol. 1. The album saw Viktory nominated for his first Stellar Award against hip-hop giants Lecrae and Flame. Any time you find yourself in the same category as Lecrae-- in the Rehab era no less-- you know you are doing something right.

B. Reith treated us to another impeccable blend of hip-hop and soul when he released his first and only mixtape How The Story Continues Vol. 1. Although B. Reith has been out of the public spotlight the past few years, he recently teased new music coming out in July, so we may see the second volume sooner rather than later.

KING CRABB
The last thing I want to look at in this installment of This Week In Christian Music History is the continuation of a trend that we touched on last week.

They say all good things must come to an end, but that doesn't make goodbyes hurt any less. Easily one of the most influential southern gospel groups in Christian music history, The Crabb Family, left a huge hole in the genre when they disbanded in 2007. As the members went their separate ways, lead singer Jason Crabb became yet another former frontman to embark on a new journey when he released his first solo project in 2009. This long-awaited self-titled debut album allowed Crabb to spread his wings with an impressive week-one launch, reaching #62 on the Billboard 200, #2 on the Billboard Top Christian Albums chart and #1 on the Southern Gospel Albums chart. The album would go on to garner several Dove Award nominations while winning a Grammy. If you have any doubt about how great a performer Jason Crabb is, check out this incredible live performance of "Sometimes I Cry" from his self-titled record.