July 20 2010

Show opening and zoo banter

The show opens live with the hosts remarking on a crowded studio, then one host riffs on a recent trip to the Omaha zoo (Henry Doorly), joking that escaped animals go unreported and that the Lied Jungle 'lied' to you. Chat banter and a peanuts joke round out the cold open.

The homeless vet Bill: suspicion, confrontation, and five dollars

• What should you do when a homeless man asks you for money — help him, or check whether he's legitimate first?

A host recounts a follow-up to a story from a couple months earlier: suspicious of a homeless man ('Bill') panhandling first at the Euclid McDonald's and later at the Euclid Fairway, the host had planned a surveillance 'sting' but instead confronted him directly. Bill claimed to be an Air Force veteran (1977-81) living in a tent at 42nd and Williams; the host found the answers quick and plausible, gave him five dollars, and concludes that if you're going to question a man's motives you'd better interrogate more deeply.

Chicago panhandlers, hot dogs, and Jeopardy riffing

The hosts trade stories about homeless encounters in downtown Chicago (including a hot-dog bet riddle), then spiral into hot-dog brands (Hebrew National), an Alex Trebek tangent, and one host's complaint that answering Jeopardy in question form is irritating enough to never watch it.

Next Crossing introduced: Corey, Phil, and Paul

Next Crossing is introduced in-studio: Corey, Phil (the banjo player), and Paul, from Boone/Oskaloosa, who lead worship at Cornerstone Church in Boone and have played together since 2008. Interview covers their new Presonus soundboard, the 'Debbie' keyboard-player photo joke, and a CNN story about a modern evangelist whose mentor said of him, 'you will never love him as much as he loves you' — a line one host notes fits God better than people.

Next Crossing performs 'Hey Hey'

Next Crossing performs their original song 'Hey Hey' live in-studio (two guitars). The song, sung as God's voice, repeats the refrain 'I have made you for me' and 'all this beauty around is for you to see.' The tentative title comes with a caveat: another Christian artist already used the name, so a rename is under consideration.

Post-song banter: songwriting, rename-the-song, and a Swaggart bit

Phil explains 'Hey Hey' grew from a season of feeling distant from God into a reminder song of God's nearness. The chat throws out replacement titles ('Beauty', 'Can't You See', 'Shades of Gray'), the studio cameras get rearranged, one host recounts bombing as a bass vocalist and being 'compared to a walrus,' and the bit closes with a Jimmy Swaggart-as-Richard-Nixon impersonation.

Spirit Midwest, Bible camp, and prayer as conversation

• Is prayer a formal practice with a required format, or simply a conversation with God?

The interview continues: Next Crossing plays the Spirit Midwest Festival (Aug 6-7) on the main stage, is recording a demo at Riemann Music in Ames, and discusses sounding somewhere between Creed and 'not Demon Hunter.' The hosts recap their Bible-camp gig (the kids loved the Revelation Song), then pivot to the week's prayer theme: prayer as 'the great equalizer,' just a conversation with God stripped of formulas. One guest shares being raised LDS — with its address-thank-ask-close prayer format — and contrasts it with the relational prayer he found after coming to faith in December 2005. A host jokes about half-running funny thoughts by God in the car and then wondering if they're offensive.

The donkey-booth running joke

Continuing a multi-week donkey theme, the hosts pitch selling live donkeys (or, if unsold, donkey meat) from a booth at the Spirit Midwest Festival next to the turkey legs. By 'negative consent' they assume organizer Julie's approval and debate pricing ($3.50 with a payment plan) and donkey t-shirts.

Band wrap-up: website, Friday main stage, 'Grace Amazing' intro

The hosts plug nextcrossingband.com (built by friend Chris), confirm the band's Friday-night main-stage slot at Spirit Midwest (spiritmidwest.com, 40+ bands, free admission), and introduce the second song, 'Grace Amazing,' inspired by the guest's reading of Revelation's description of the New Jerusalem — streets of gold, jasper, and emerald.

Next Crossing performs 'Grace Amazing' and says goodbye

Next Crossing performs 'Grace Amazing,' a song about eternity with Christ ('My fears are gone, no more death, life eternally'). The hosts thank the band, wish them well at the festival, and begin switching the studio over for the next guests.

'Which Jesus are you following?' comedy sketch airs

• Which Jesus are you following — the real one, or a false caricature of him?

After the farewell the hosts air a produced comedy sketch framed by the question 'Which Jesus are you following?' The sketch parodies false caricatures of Jesus — an aloof too-busy Jesus, a legalistic rule-book Jesus ('wear t-shirts with my face on it'), and a guilt-tripping Jesus who itemizes the disciples' sins — to contrast what people think about Jesus with what is actually true.

On This Rock introduced; jug band and studio banter

Back in the studio the hosts introduce the second band of the night, On This Rock, then stall with banter: Dan's would-be kazoo jug band, why 'XXX' became a symbol for booze (a Google search the hosts decline to run), and encouragement for Olsen, the building's real-estate man, whose security crew is on patrol.

Reacting to the sketch; Tilton, voyeur jokes, skateboards

The hosts react to the Jesus sketch (one admits his first viewing felt like mocking Jesus; most of the church audience laughed), compare it to the 'farting preacher' Robert Tilton videos, riff on the word 'voyeur' being ruined by naughtiness, debate whether anyone can still ride a skateboard, and read a chat user named James Dean repeatedly typing 'hey, Dan.'

On This Rock interview: Hard Rock stage, postal inspector, band history

On This Rock is interviewed: they open Friday on the Hard Rock stage at Spirit Midwest after a joke email 'from Dan Hudson' to Julie. Members hail from Urbandale, Winterset, and Ankeny (one a South Texas transplant); one member, Kevin, works as a U.S. postal inspector doing drug and mail investigations. They discuss their AC/DC-tinged hard rock sound, their Facebook presence (three copycat 'On This Rock' pages plus a Southern Gospel namesake and a Georgia band called 'Upon This Rock'), and their demo CD.

On This Rock performs 'Don't Watch the World Go By'

On This Rock performs their original song 'Don't Watch the World Go By' acoustically in-studio: a call not to stand by while 'all the pain in the world and the people that'll die' passes — 'put your trust in me' and take a leap of faith.

Fair gigs, the towed car, and the Tomb

Post-song discussion covers the band's four-song demo, their climb through Iowa State Fair stages (Channel 5/Lakeside to Channel 8 to the Susan Knapp stage), and a long anecdote: one host's oversized convertible was towed at the fair and he was nearly booked on concealed-weapons charges over a baseball bat and shish kebabs in the trunk. They explain 'the Tomb' — a downtown Des Moines (6th Avenue) venue hosting Christian bands Friday nights — and its famously late-running lineups.

Band-name history (A-T-I-K), Skateboard Taxi, and shoes

• What is 'the Tomb'?

The band explains their earlier name 'The Attic,' spelled A-T-I-K as an acronym of members Alan, Tim, Isaac, and Kevin, abandoned when Isaac left (taking, apparently, his shoes). The hosts coin the joke band 'Skateboard Taxi' — skateboard taxi rides for hire — and roast the absent Isaac's barefoot habits.

Toenails, hotels, sideburns, and action movies

• How long is a reasonable length to grow your sideburns?

Pure studio banter: one host let his 13-year-old daughter paint a Hawkeye logo on his big toenail and debuted it at Cold Stone Creamery; Next Crossing's Phil is reported to have a monstrous 'king toe'; the bands compare hotel preferences (Marriott vs. Embassy Suites); Olsen's three security men get their sideburns judged; and the table debates 'Over the Top' (Bull Hurley), 'Speed,' and 'Roadhouse' while one host admits owning two copies of Over the Top.

Show close: recap, newsletter, and 'New Walk' intro

The hosts close out: archived shows at livefromthepath.org and the YouTube channel, a newsletter with five subscribers (including the hosts' wives), the podcast as the sane way to consume the two-hour late show, and Pathway Church's Sunday service at Wallace Elementary. They plug onthisrockband.com (site built by the bass player's junior-high son), recap the Hard Rock stage Friday slot, and introduce On This Rock's salvation song 'New Walk.'

On This Rock performs 'New Walk'; sign-off

On This Rock performs 'New Walk,' a song about salvation: reaching out to take Christ's hand, being washed clean, and never forgetting 'the price that he paid to save you on that cross.' The hosts thank Austin, Tim, Kevin, and Jeremy by name, plug the festival one last time, and sign off until next week's show with more Spirit Midwest bands.