Rita Hutchinson
July 31, 2008
Helen Ann Hebert Martin
August 4, 2008
A few words of praise over a rock ‘n’ roll/contemporary beat made Victory Christian Center’s first citywide evangelistic outreach concert a success last year.
“Why should this year be any different?” said Andre Badeaux, the church’s community outreach coordinator and mission’s pastor.
Victory Fest 2007 drew more than 1,800 worshipers – representing nearly 80 different churches from around the Tri-parishes – to the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center. At the end of the show, more than 100 lost souls rededicated their lives to Christ.
According to Badeaux, the church is on track to have an even larger turnout Aug. 30 at the same venue.
“The reception at last year’s event was amazing. We have got a lot of churches that want to be a part of God’s work for this year,” he said. “Our goal is to fill the civic center to capacity. There should be standing-room only in the building.”
Sticking with last year’s theme, “Christ is the Way,” Badeaux believes the best way to reach sinners in the community is to exhibit continuity in the church by giving worshipers a strong foundation.
“Our message has been clear from the beginning,” he said. “We want to show the people that Jesus Christ is the way.”
Concert-goers will receive the total package: revved-up rock ‘n’ roll/contemporary Christian music, a multimedia light show and a message of salvation from the Rev. Brian Comeaux, pastor of Victory Christian.
This year’s concert headliners are up-and-coming vocalist Phil Wickham and rock band After Edmund.
Wickham, a native of Orange County, Calif., is coming into his own as a solo artist. His hit song “After Your Heart” made Christian Community Music’s top 25 charts in R&R magazine in December 2007.
Fans and critics have lauded Wickham’s work with a lofty set of adjectives – calling his songs “mesmerizing,” “atmospheric,” “captivating,” “stunning,” “lavish” and “poetic.”
More to the point, the California artist sees his music as an outlet to worship and praise God.
“If people just took time to look at the trees outside, the rain that’s falling, these bodies that are walking around … life is not just evidence that God exists, but more like the world acting as worship leader, inspiring us, but much louder than any concert you could ever imagine,” he explained. “Ultimately, I hope that by listening [to his latest release, “Cannons”], people will find the same inspiration to look outside of themselves and their circumstance to the world around them and truly worship God.”
In 2003, at age 19, Wickham released “Give You My World,” which includes hit songs “Jesus, Lord of Heaven” and “Shining.” Surprised by its reception, he began working on 12 new songs for his self-titled album, which was released in 2006. “Cannons,” came out in 2007.
“I don’t ever want to leave the stage without giving people something to chew on, something to respond to,” Wickham said of the 12 tunes on “Cannons.” “The most important question is, ‘What are you going to do with Jesus?'”
After Edmund, in the meantime, is also gaining attention with its new album release, “Hello,” which hit the airwaves in February.
The GMA ’07 issue of CCM Magazine said, “The LaGrange, Ga.-bred quintet literally came from out of nowhere with the modestly titled ‘Hello’ that conflates alternative, indie and electronic sensibilities into a hypnotic, bohemian mix … After Edmund is all things to all people without sacrificing cohesion.”
Initially, the classically-trained musicians were virtually unknown because their early releases were all independent. “Taken” was the first “known” recording.
In 2006, the group changed its name and signed with Slanted Records. The band’s new name is a reference to Edmund Pevensie, a character from C.S. Lewis’ “Chronicles of Narnia” series.
“We grew up listening to all kinds of music – classical and classic rock to jazz and experimental stuff,” said bassist Matt McFadden. “We’re kind of a melting pot, a unique fingerprint for Christian music, combining so many of our individual musical influences into one sound.”
“Our musical backgrounds are so diverse, and it’s interesting to see how we pull it all together,” he added. “But more than just sounding strong, we hope and pray our varied backgrounds will open us up to a larger audience – one not subject to the same three chords over and over.”
And that the music emphasizes After Edmund members’ core values … all the better, he said.
Victory Fest 2008 is set for 7 p.m. on Aug. 30 at the Houma-Terrebonne Civic Center. For more information, call Comeaux or Badeaux at (985) 868-3153.
