Art of celebration

'Celebration, the practice of joy, is a choice,' says Rend Collective band leader Gareth Gilkeson. 'That doesn’t mean it’s always an easy choice to make. We know that we inevitably must navigate storms of sorrow and shadows, disappointment and doubt in this life.'

For the new album, Rend Collective made a recent theological breakthrough as a band that is changing everything about their approach to music and life: seriousness is not a fruit of the spirit, but joy is. The appropriate response to the heightened understanding led to a sonically innovative message on The Art of Celebration.

'This record is an attempt to reflect something of the irrepressible laughter in the heart of God,' continues Gareth. 'It’s a call to the cynical to once again choose celebration over condemnation and a reminder to the broken that ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength.'