Music festivals. 5-course meals. Fireworks shows. With many things in life, sometimes the best is saved for last. Since we rarely repeat a song on UTR, we are careful about what we play and when we play it. Sometimes we want to play the best song(s) by that artist right away.  In the case of today's show, sometimes a song WOWed us so much, that we decided to "save" it for a rainy day down …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Arthur Alligood, Cindy Morgan, Green River Ordinance, Brooke Fraser, Jason Gray, Gary Chapman, Caedmon’s Call, Guardian, Giants & Pilgrims, Griffin House, More Than Rubies

Little know fact: On our production schedule, this week was supposed to be a rerun.  Last month the idea dawned on me to do a show previewing some of the amazing artists coming to ETTL 2016, something that we've never really done in the past.  One of the self-indulgent reasons why I wanted to produce this show was to feature a new (1-wk-old) song from The Gray Havens' new stellar album Ghost of a King, as …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Joy Ike, Nick Flora, Jess Ray, 6’10, The Gray Havens, Joel Ansett, Sara Groves, Giants & Pilgrims, Christopher Williams, Chris & Jenna

In May 2014, I had the privilege of hosting Judah & The Lion in the UTR Studios for a private concert and exclusive interview.  Our special feature episode released in September of that same year, just as their first full length project Kids These Days was released.  Their popularity took off, including touring with Mat Kearney, Ben Rector, and playing on The Late Show with David Letterman.  I found Judah, Nate, and Brian completely down-to-earth and not shy …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Christopher Williams, Judah & the Lion, Melanie Penn, Judah & the Lion, Ellie Holcomb, Judah & the Lion , Giants & Pilgrims, Judah & the Lion, Jillian Edwards, Susan Ashton, Judah & the Lion

As I thought about what show to plug into this week, which is the final week of our holiday haitus, I had to look no further than the show that released on 12/4/15, which very appropriately was an episode all about appreciating some of the amazing gourmet music that came our way in the year 2015.  That will lead us perfectly into next week, when we return with an all-new episode, and we countdown the …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Dave Barnes, Giants & Pilgrims, Gracie Schram, Nick Flora, The Banner Days, 77s, Matthew Clark, The Oh Hellos, Jess Ray, Jon Troast, Mat Kearny, Jessi McNeal, Zach Vinson

This year has been an incredible one for the world of gourmet music.  It's not every year that you get a new studio project by Andrew Peterson, Josh Garrels, Sara Groves, Jenny & Tyler, JJ Heller, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors, and The Vespers - all in the same year.  And that only scratches the surface.  We will still be compiling votes from our UTR Panel of Critics to countdown the Top 11 Gourmet Albums …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Dave Barnes, Giants & Pilgrims, Gracie Schram, Nick Flora, The Banner Days, 77s, Matthew Clark, The Oh Hellos, Jess Ray, Jon Troast, Mat Kearny, Jessi McNeal, Zach Vinson

I'm very excited to share the interview I did with Judah & The Lion on today's show.  They are on the launching pad poised to have their career take off.  Their latest album Kids These Days just released days ago, and it's one of the best releases I've heard in 2014!  This band has a unique trajectory, because they started as a full-on worship band, and have been developing more into a mainstream-friendly Americana outfit... so …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Christopher Williams, Judah & the Lion, Judah & the Lion, Melanie Penn, Judah & the Lion, Ellie Holcomb, Judah & the Lion, Giants & Pilgrims, Jillian Edwards, Susan Ashton, Judah & the Lion

While it's impossible to sum up Escape To The Lake in a 1-hour show, it's fun to produce an overview episode each year.  The interview clips are substantial - I love what Micah Dalton said about how some artists caught in the in-between, not fully embraced by the club scene and not fully embraced by the church scene, can find a home at ETTL.  And I also love how Justin McRoberts took time to praise …Read More »
Episode Artists:
Giants & Pilgrims, Jason Gray, Tanya Godsey, Son of Laughter, Sara Groves, Waterdeep, Justin McRoberts, Micah Dalton, Caroline Cobb, Burlap to Cashmere

Episode Artists:
Green River Ordinance, Enter the Worship Circle, Giants & Pilgrims, Brooke Waggoner, Tim Coons, Sarah Hart, Giants & Pilgrims, Ron Block, Brady Toops, Caedmon's Call, Giants & Pilgrims

Episode Artists:
Son of Laughter, Rend Collective Experiment, Eric Peters, Strahan, Deas Vail, The Autumn Film, The Choir, Caleb Carruth, Ben Shive, Vanita Joines, Giants & Pilgrims, Chris Haines, The Vespers