Artist Spotlight: Least of These

By Ryan Mulkowsky  

I had the pleasure of seeing this group in concert a couple of years ago, and right away I knew I was in for a time of great music with a Christ-centered message. Least of These is a Southern Rock band hailing from Knoxville, Tennessee, with Mark Smith on lead vocals, Daniel Byrd on guitar and vocals, Larry Byrge on bass and vocals, Robert Fritts on drums, and Jared Meredith on keyboard and vocals. The group formed in 2005.  Their goal was to travel and play mainly outside of the church. They call themselves a “ministry-based” band and they want to spread the love of Jesus Christ to those who don’t know him.

Their album ‘Purple Cross’ was produced by Travis Wyrick who has done work for well-known Christian rock bands such as P.O.D., Pillar, and Disciple and was released in 2006; not bad for a band that just formed a year earlier. Purple Cross is not just a catchy name, but a significant illustration of God’s grace and mercy on a little boy named Jake Wallace. The story of Jake begins when he was diagnosed with cancer at just five years old. For over a year the lead singer in the band, Mark Smith, watched this little boy as he struggled with cancer and saw how he and his family handled this situation with such maturity that only came through the comfort that Jesus brings.

At eight, Jake was healed of his cancer and Mark saw a miracle happen right before his eyes. The interesting spin on the story is that Mark was not a Christian at the time and had been struggling with a drug addiction going on for almost thirty years. Mark was so touched by Jake’s amazing miracle that another miracle happened; Mark gave his life to Christ and subsequently was freed from the bondage of addiction.

Their album ‘Purple Cross’ is not just another Christian album; it’s not your typical worship album or catchy rock album that you find from most artists. This album’s lyrics are so deep and personal that they come off more like confessions than songs.  

The first song “Use Me” is a great opening song about how anyone can be used through the power of Jesus Christ no matter what their past was like. Mark himself came out of addiction and he is being used to spread God’s love to all he sings to. “Grace Covered Me” is basically Mark’s testimony about how he was messed up on drugs and going down life’s destructive path until he and his teenage daughter went to church one day and how both of them got saved and changed through the grace of Jesus. “Forgiven” is their one and only high-energy, heavy rockin’ tribute to the classic Southern Rock sound.  It is about how if we just run into the open arms of Jesus, He will always accept and forgive us no matter how many times we fail.

Songs “Miracle” and “Purple Cross,” the title track, is about the aforementioned boy named Jake who was miraculously saved from cancer and how Mark so desperately wanted to see Jake get his miracle like Mark would later get his. The purple cross was when Jake painted a cross on the wall and he wanted Mark to come and see it one day. Mark thought that this little boy could have asked for anything but for him to just paint a purple cross showed great maturity and how we all should keep Jesus on our minds and hearts first and foremost in our lives.
    
I would have to say that it is very uncommon to find a band that is clearly not playing for the fame, fortune, popularity, and other worldly reasons why most bands play in the first place. The members of Least of These are one of those uncommon bands. Right when I saw them on stage I knew they were not concerned about how they looked, or how many people were there, or how many albums they could sell. No, what they were only concerned about was being a shining example of the love, grace, and mercy of Jesus Christ.

You can hear the passion on their CD Purple Cross as Mark Smith sings with his deep, gravely, baritone voice and the wonderful compliment of the background vocals with the excellent Southern Rock/Soft Rock sound.

Now you do not have to be a Southern Rock fan to love this album because this album will appeal to anyone who is into deep, substantial lyrics, an excellent guitar-driven sound, and passionate vocals.

If you want more information on Least of These, check them out at http://www.myspace.com/leastoftheseonline or http://www.shoutlife.com/leastoftheseonline

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