"It all comes back down to intimacy with God

Here's what Casey has to say about the project and about worship in general.

Inside The Vineyard: Describe how this new album get started.

Casey: In December of 1998, I found out that my main drummer at the time, Michael Purcell, was moving to Juneau, Alaska. Mike had played on "Alabaster Boxes" (Casey's first solo album, released in the summer of 1997) and three of the Vineyard Music releases I've been a part of. He and I were joined at the hip musically. I always enjoyed our friendship and our musical relationship.

Anyway, when I found out he was moving, I said, "Hey, before you leave let's throw some songs down on tape for fun." I had been a part of four CD projects in the previous year, and I wasn't looking to do another project anytime soon. Around that same time, I had just written "Your Love is Amazing." Within a week's time, I had put together a song list and the album was fully funded. We were making another album.

ITV: Your music ranges from edgy rock songs like "End of Time" to mellow ballads like "I Love Your Ways" - when people ask you to describe your style, what do you tell them?

Casey: This is the question every songwriter/musician hates. What I usually tell people is "Vineyard worship with soul." I'm totally connected to the heart of what has been described as Vineyard worship. It all comes back down to intimacy with God. This is my default setting for my writing, especially my lyrics. Although I love so many styles of music, I especially love R&B, soul, funk - anything with a lot of rhythm and soulful vocals. This influence tends to come across in most of the songs I write, no matter what style I'm working in.

ITV: Who are your favorite songwriters & musicians - both worship and secular?

Casey: I'd have to say, from a worship angle, Brian Doerksen, Scott Underwood, Brenton Brown, Martin Smith, Matt Redman - it's hard to name just a few. As far as secular musicians are concerned - James Brown, the Beatles, U2, George Clinton, James Taylor, and others I probably shouldn't mention.

ITV: What musical styles are on the new project?

Casey: Wow, I think a number of styles are represented. "Better Than 2000" is like a modern rock/soul/pop song, a modern rock band arrangement with a hip-hop drum loop in the background. "Your Wonderful Love" is a bluesy rock/R&B/soul/funk tune. "The Righteousness of God" is a straight ahead rock song with some interesting production tricks. Some of the other songs float between rock and pop and blues and hymns. Although the songs seem to be pretty diverse, the album feels very consistent to me.

ITV: How does the new album compare to "Alabaster Boxes"?

Casey: Alabaster Boxes was the first project that I had my hands completely on. It was done on a shoestring budget, and it was done pretty quickly. I'm very happy with "Alabaster Boxes" in many ways. It's amazing that it came together so well considering how little time we spent overall on the project. My big goal with "Alabaster Boxes" was just to record an honest "live" worship album that captured the heart of worship and essence of the songs. I think I achieved and surpassed that goal - by the grace of God - and people seem to have enjoyed "Alabaster Boxes."

This time around, I wanted to shoot for a higher level of musical quality. When I began the production of "Offering," I had already been a part of a number of Vineyard Music projects. I wanted the new album to have the heart and passion of a worship album, but I also wanted to raise the bar musically. I wanted to make the best record I could make. 

I sat down with Rex (Bledsoe), my bass player and also a very experienced producer/arranger and worked through the arrangements. We put a lot more time and care and energy into every level of this project. "Alabaster Boxes" was recorded in a day and half. We must have spent close to a month in the studio on "Offering." I like both records. But, I'm extremely happy with "Offering." It's the best project I've done so far.

ITV: How do you think you've changed - both as a musician and as a worship leader - since "Alabaster Boxes" was released?

Casey: Could you ask me an easy question?

I've matured in my understanding of worship so much in the past couple of years since "Alabaster." I've been able to lead worship all over the U.S. and interact with many of the main worship leaders in the body of Christ. God has given me the opportunity to glean so much from interaction with people like Scott Underwood, Brian Doerksen and so many others.

I've also grown in my knowledge and expectation of myself as a producer/songwriter/arranger. I've become very aware of my strengths and my weaknesses. I've had to become very open to input and criticism about all areas of my musicianship and songwriting. This has been a little hard at times, but great things have come from being teachable and open.

ITV: Rumor has it that some of the drums on "Offering" were recorded in the men's bathroom at the Vineyard. What's up with that?

Casey: Hmmm ... Have you ever noticed how good your voice sounds in the bathroom? We thought we'd give it a shot. It worked very well on some songs. If we had to do it again, we might do something different. But, overall, the end product sounds great thanks to Scott Pergande, who engineered and mixed the project. And it makes an interesting story.

ITV: What song on "Offering" do you think best captures your songwriting?

Casey: I'd have to say "Your Love is Amazing" always stands above the rest for me. It's one of the only songs of mine that I wouldn't change anything on - lyrics and music. But I'm really happy with all of the songs. I'd have to say "The Righteousness of God" and "I Love Your Ways" deserve honorable mention. I love songs that focus on God's sufficiency rather than on our need. Not that our need isn't real, but when our attention is fixed on Him, we get the proper perspective on our need. And we find everything that we desire and need in Jesus.

ITV: It seems like worship music is really starting to embrace new musical styles, with more rock and techno worship projects being produced. "Better Than 2000" leans this direction. Does the new arrangement still feel like a worship song to you? And are these new projects - Sonicflood, Delirious, Matt Redman's new stuff - really worship, or are they more like contemporary Christian music?

Casey: Oh, it's still totally a worship song. Style is irrelevant. I think Brian Doerksen hit on something when he described the heart of what we are trying to achieve in worship with three simple words: intimacy, accessibility, and integrity.

Intimacy is not about style or how quiet or loud a song gets. Intimacy is about self-disclosure with God. I've had some of the most "intimate" moments with the Lord when the music is very loud and intense. Not that things can't get quiet, but we shouldn't limit intimacy to some kind of musical formula.

Accessibility is about keeping worship readily available to the average person. Again, style is irrelevant as long as our music remains accessible to people. When our melodies become too difficult to sing or our lyrics become too esoteric to relate to, we begin to leave people behind. But as long as these things stay in check, musical style is irrelevant.

Integrity is about offering to God what is real and honest. Not giving God lip service. Again, style is irrelevant. In fact, we could almost say that if our music doesn't reflect our own culture that we begin to lose integrity as worshipers.

You can contact Casey at casey@vineyardboise.org

You can purchase the CD online at WorshipMusic.com