With a heart for the lost and a passion for fellowship within the Christian community, Missouri natives Maywood released a full-length self-titled at the end of last year. They took a little pop rock, mixed it with some worshipful lyrics and composed twelve songs they're ready for the world to hear. The majority of Maywood is ready-for-radio pop rock music, with possible influences including artists like Jeremy Camp and Casting Crowns. The opening song, "Stereo Love," is an interesting track. The overall feel of the music is a little dry (mainly the guitars), though it has some pretty cool synth here and there. The interesting parts are really more in the vocals, which don't sound anything like what I expected after hearing the music of "Stereo Love." Scott Loring's voice can be described as an odd combination of Mark Hall from Casting Crowns and Ed Robertson from Barenaked Ladies. Most of the songs are vocally led by Joel Driskell and Scott Loring, though a few songs, like "Broken For You" and "So-Called Savior," feature leads by guitarist/keyboardist Sarah Sheldon, and there's even some vocal work from Jared Prindle and the band's drummer, Joshua Foreman. The singing isn't the best I've heard, but they all have some fairly good skill on the microphones. As far as the music is concerned, it has some pop rock and some contemporary thrown together, with some songs focusing more heavily on the pop rock side, and others focusing more on the contemporary nature, making it readily accessible for AC radio fans. Along with the aforementioned bands, you can also hear a little influence from Third Day in "Here By My Side." The main negative aspect of Maywood is that there's not enough of their own selves in the mix. The music seems to resemble other familiar artists and no so much their own. However, this makes it easier to move past the fact that what they're playing is standard contemporary material. Perhaps with a little refocusing on the music, maybe taking an edgier approach (which I feel wouldn't be a difficult thing for these guys), Maywood should have no problem grabbing attention.

- Review date: 8/23/11, written by Scott Fryberger of Jesusfreakhideout.com

Stereo Love (4:44) Alone in This World (3:42) Broken For You (4:59) Dance (3:53) Love Me (4:18) Draw Me Out (4:40) Here By My Side (5:49) I'll Run (4:35) So-Called Savior (4:41) Everything You Are (4:48) Immanuel (7:42) We Were Made (4:38)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jesus freak Hideout (Scott Fryberger): How long has Maywood been making music? Maywood: About 3 years. JFH (Scott): Is your self-titled album your first album? Maywood: Yes. It took a long time to finish because we were raising money one concert at a time, but eventually we found a few investors who helped speed up the process. Sarah wanted to name the album "See? It's REAL!" (with a picture of a unicorn on the front) for all our fans who waited so long for its arrival. JFH (Scott): Who does the majority of songwriting for the band? Maywood: That's hard to say, as each of us help tailor the songs to best suit our style. This album is heavy on Jared Prindle and collective "Driskell" material, but we anticipate a steady stream of contributions from all of our members in later projects. JFH (Scott): You've played at the Kansas City area festivals such as Rock The Light and Nehemiah Fest - have you played any other festivals? Maywood: Yeah! The 4th of July festival in Oak Grove, Missouri and the Santi-Cali-Gon Days festival in Independence, Missouri. JFH (Scott): What kind of bands do you listen to? Maywood: Our favorites are the David Crowder Band, Shane & Shane, Mae, Switchfoot, Anberlin, Hillsong, Flyleaf and many others from various genres. JFH (Scott): What are the goals of Maywood? Maywood: Some goals are material, like selling out of CDs, paying back investors, making music videos and going on tour with ... anyone! But our main goal is to stay in tune with the Holy Spirit, speaking what the Lord would have us say through song. We want to make a lasting impact on our listeners for the glory of Christ, pushing toward the next big change in mainstream Christian music to shape it into a better tool for outreach and for the Church. JFH (Scott): Do you ever take the show on the road? Maywood: We haven't been financially blessed yet to do that, but we really, really want to! JFH (Scott): What, if anything, inspires you to make music other than Jesus and other music? Maywood: Oh goodness, anything. Triumphs and failures, discovery and loss, sunshine, pizza and puppies. But lately, our hearts are turned toward the Church. The Lord has been speaking to us on this subject, so we believe our next batch of songs will come straight out of our daily devotions and experiences in the American church. JFH (Scott): What has God been teaching you about life lately? Maywood: He favors sacrifice that is deep and painful. And looking back from this side of it, so do we.