The Breath Before the Plunge
By Marissa McCormick
Looking out into James Madison University’s TDU, one would never guess it was the week before finals. The usual coffee shop atmosphere is replaced by a plethora students bouncing in anticipation for the Nashville based trio, Judah and the Lion.
It’s 6:09 pm and already the front floor packed. Students call to friends and inch forward in the hopes of getting just that bit closer.
The show doesn’t start until eight but as Judah and the Lion does their sound check you can’t help but feel like the concert has started. Fans sit with hearts in their eyes and clap for almost any motion a band member makes. Typically sound checking isn’t clap worthy. Microphones screech uncomfortable feedback noises, and artists spend about 30 minutes playing with the knobs on their guitars. But these fans are relentless.
Judah Akers, the band’s front man, cracks his knuckles, smiles, and says the line every lead singer has been saying for years: “How’re y’all doing tonight?”
The fans answer in a collective roar of admiration as Judah smiles wider.
Changes
“Don’t tell anyone this, but we’re huge One Direction fans.” Judah whispers as he explains his guilty pleasure on his iPod. The rest of Judah and the Lion turn red as he reveals this, embarrassed by their love for the British boy band.
Sitting with the three members, Nate, Brian, and Judah, one can’t help but feel like you’re sitting with a group of brothers. They tease each other, quarrel, and as cliché as it sounds, finish each other’s sentences. You would think they’ve known each other their entire lives.
Meeting at Belmont University, the three 25 year olds come from diverse backgrounds. Brian MacDonald, a Chicago native, Nate Zuercher, a Colorado native, and Judah Akers a Nashville native.
Judah explains, “We all come from different places, highs and lows, mountains and valleys. It helps us come together.” Their unique backgrounds help contribute to their unlikely sound.
“We’re sort of a blue grassy electronic Americana Christian band.” Nate Zuercher, the bands guitarist, shakes his head as he tries to put a label on the band’s genre.
His frustration is understandable; it’s hard to put a concrete description on Judah and the Lion. For example, they started their hour long set with their album headliner “Kickin Da Leaves.” A passionate track balanced with perfectly harmonized vocals and twangs with folk influences. Next in their set? They covered R. Kelly’s “Ignition” complete with synchronized dance moves and an impressive rap by their mandolin player, Brian MacDonald.
They continued their set with four new songs off of their newest album, “Kids these days.” Unlike their two previous albums, Kids these Days is their first non-Christian album. The trio explained, that although God leads them everyday, they were ready to take their music in a different direction.
The songs on “Kids These Days” are experimental, gutsy, and definitely a change from their previously Christian albums. Their usual folk instruments, a mandolin and a guitar, are paired with accordions and synthesizers to create a truly unique sound.
Next, an acoustic cover of Eminem’s “Lose Control.” Whether it’s hi-hop or folky, it’s obvious that the trio went to one of the top music schools in the country. Their covers are orchestrated and organized, something only possible by a musician classically trained.
It’s also obvious to see how much fun they’re having on stage. Drenched in sweat the three jump and dance around, smiles painted on their faces. Throughout their set they would give each other little gestures. A handgun here, a wink there, their type of inside joke.
Their last song of the night, “Everything Changes” is an accurate depiction of the band and what they’ve been through. Performed in a wonderfully deconstructed acoustic style, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
“Our story is hope” Judah explains to the crowd, “We’re all going through something, and we’re just trying to help you through it.”
Something that makes Judah and the Lion unlike other band is their connection with their fans. It could be their passion or their heart-wrenching lyrics, but the listener feels like you’re experiencing everything with them.
For most bands, there’s an a-ha moment. A sort of brief minute where they have it all figured out. The stars align and in that moment they realize this is what they’re supposed to do, they were put on this Earth to make music for people.
When asked if they have had an a-ha moment, Brian immediately answered. “It was in Athens, Georgia. It was one of our first shows outside of Nashville, and we really didn’t expect too many fans. I looked out into the crowd and the fans were singing our lyrics back to us. I couldn’t believe it, I was star struck.”
Judah and Nate nod their head in agreement. The fans at JMU were no different. Each song was echoed by the students, and the end of their set was accompanied by an encore chant begging for them to come back out.
The trio has an energy that is undeniable. After watching them you can’t help but get the feeling that they are just excited to be there as the fans are.
What’s in Store
This past September Judah and the Lion announced their 21 date tour with singer-songwriter Matt Kearney.
Nate comments, “We kind of don’t know what to expect, it all seems so surreal, Matt’s a great guy, so it should be fun.”
From New York to San Francisco, over two months the trio will have their share of a-ha moments.
Judah and Lion is at a pivotal point in their career. With their change of music style and rapidly growing fan base, this time period feels like the calm before the storm, the breath before the plunge.
As the trio left the stage and the lights turned back on, the listener got the sense that this band is destined for something great. It would be no surprise if within the next two years Judah and the Lion will be headlining their own tour, or hearing their own song on the radio.
Judah explains, “I really don’t know what the future could bring, I mean sure we’d love to make it big, but as long as we’re still doing what we love to do, which is making music.”