Building 429

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, Building 429 have ridden Christian radio charts to record-breaking success. Their debut single, “Glory Defined,” is one of the classics of Christian pop music. Three records and a handful of awards later, it’s clear to see that Building 429 have become one of the staple rock bands in the industry.

Soul-Audio correspondent John Wofford got the opportunity to chat it up with front man Jason Roy about the pressures of success, pushing the envelope of the band’s talents and ministry vision, and their new home and endeavors at INO Records.

Soul-Audio: You are one busy man. The Truth, Hope & Love Tour has started, correct?

Jason Roy: Yep, I’m watching the stuff load onto the bus as we speak. We’re staying at it—mostly hitting the eastern and mid states. Up and down the east coast, actually. We won’t do much in the west through this tour. We’re working with two bands: Addison Road and After Edmund. They are amazing young bands. If you get a chance to watch their shows—the experience is so awesome.

SA: So the new album, self-titled, is dropping on the 24th. Space in Between Us was a pop/rock project, Rise was grungier, and Iris to Iris was a worship album. What can we expect this time around? What kind of album is it?

Jason: That is the question, isn’t it? [laughter] Man, I can tell you that we wrote about 65 songs for this record, but we worked it down to 10. We made an intentional effort to write songs that were relevant to pop culture but were spiritual as well. I know that it has rock and roll, and I definitely hear the pop, but I think that if anyone has enjoyed even just a piece of our previous material, there will be something to enjoy on this record—regardless of whether or not you were into our heavier stuff, our radio material, or our worship songs. A lot of people who’ve heard the record—several of which I’ve gotten to talk to myself—have said that they weren’t fans of any of our previous work, but they seemed to love this one. That’s really encouraging.

SA: When writing this record, what approach did you take? With Iris to Iris, you claimed that your style was more “vertical”—as if between you and God alone. What’s the focus here?

Jason: This was one of those efforts where we said, “May the best song win.” That means you have to sacrifice some great songs and maybe even an overall theme to the record, because you just want it to have one great single after another. One way or another, we wanted this record to be the best that Building 429 had ever been capable of.

One of our biggest strengths has always been writing about life topics, y’know? So with this one, we feature a lot of songs that are about ourselves or people we know—the places we’ve been, the things that we’ve seen.

The song “Always”? It’s a true story: the first and second verses are actual stories that belong to people I’ve met and talked to. The song “End of Me” is all about being a control freak… and why? Because I am a control freak! I understand what it means to think that way, and I know there are others of us out there. This record isn’t just about Building 429 being the best and putting ourselves first; it’s about the community of people who all need God. It’s a CD for everybody, fans or no.

SA: Is there a particular song that stands out for you as B429 at their best?

Jason: Actually there is. It’s the first track on the record, “Not Gonna Let You Down.” We rolled up somewhere in Nebraska last year, while we were on tour. Jesse plugged in and just started strumming. He came up with the riff, and I just started singing. I think, first off, that it’s an excellent musical statement. I sing higher than I’ve ever sung before on that track. I didn’t think it was physically possible, man! [laughter]

On top of that, it’s a song about the importance of the church as a place of grace. If our church can’t be the first place people run to when they’re in need, a place where God’s throne is easily reached, then what’s the point of it all? We need to make an impact! That’s our core statement as a band, too. We want to be all about relevance and honesty. We want to musically present the truths of Jesus. We’re broken, man. There are so many broken people and we’re hungry for help and love. The church is for those people—for me and for you. If you’re jacked up, the church is for you. No matter what your deal is, the church is for you, because God himself is for you.

SA: Building 429 is well-known. You’re famous, to be frank. How does that help or hurt you achieve the goals you just mentioned? Is all the attention a mind-job?

Jason: There are a lot of perceptions as to who we are. A lot of eyes are on us; people know our names. The biggest thing we want is to continue to grow—both spiritually and musically, regardless of all the industry stuff or people’s expectations. To the people in places where we are known: that’s great, and we’re so glad you love the music and its message. But it’s on the folks who don’t know the gospel, to the guys and ladies who have no clue who we are—we want those people to take this awesome walk with us.

That’s the thing we as a band love about INO Records. They recognize that we are well-known, but they keep pushing us to stretch our expectations of what we can do and where God can take our music. They respect the success that we’ve had, but they want to challenge us to improve every aspect of our work. “We know that you can do better, we know that you can be more—as ministers and musicians.” That’s the weight the band wears, that we become more and more effective in every way.

SA: Okay, I’m gonna hop back to your statement: “the church is for you.” How do you feel about the place the American church is in?

Jason: I personally think we’re in a much better place than we were when I was a kid, at least when it comes to accepting people. To be honest, I remember growing up and feeling like I had nothing in common with the church. I was bored to death with it. Now, though, there are a lot of people realizing that the younger generation is where it’s at—that one day they’re gonna be the elders and leaders.

The leaders we have right now are challenging our thought processes, making us look at things differently. Not only that, but when core church members (our elders and teachers) stumble, when they make mistakes: that’s when we are challenged in our faith. That’s when we have to stop relying on tradition and just trust God. God is all about love, and when we get away from love then we get away from Him. We find out a lot about human nature when we see people fall. But we also find out a lot about God and how he takes care of us even though we don’t deserve it.

And another thing, we’re learning to work together with other churches—not as competitive rivals, but as brothers and sisters who are all loved by God. This is the way things are going, and I love that, man! It’s so inviting!

The only thing I feel is missing from churches these days is that, because of the mega-church phenomenon, there are fewer small churches and we can lose that familiar fellowship. Even there, though, people are working harder to reach out to one another. It’s just so incredible to see brotherhood.

SA: Last question. Is it premature, considering the album’s so new and the tour isn’t over, to ask what’s next? Have you thought that far ahead?

Jason: We’re concentrating on taking our live show to the next level, but we’re also trying to be more humble. It’s really hard to be a servant when people come up to you before a show and ask you if they can get you anything: food, water, drinks, whatever. When you get to live on the road, with all its frills, it’s hard not to get cocky. Our biggest plans for the future revolve around breaking down our pride and becoming more servant-minded again.

This also means spending more time with our families. When we’re home, our first priority isn’t practice; it’s time with our wives and kids. We want to have the best of both worlds—to be in a successful band, but to be fathers and husbands too. Our families have been so amazing. They know how much we love doing this, and their love and sacrifices make this happen record after record.

SA: Well, let me say on behalf of Soul-Audio that we wish you all the best. You’re in our prayers and our stereo speakers!

• www.building429.com
• www.myspace.com/building429

↓ One comment

#1 Matt on October 28th, 2008 at 2:42 am

John, nice work on this article! Love the varied questions and coming back to certain points.

Does it Resonate with you?

Name (required)

Email (will not be published) (required)

URL