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April 7, 2007
By Linda LaFianza
Music to wake the dead is the perfect accompaniment to those long, dark days before Easter. A small, three-year-old intentional Christian community in historic Gettysburg, Pennsylvania took an innovative approach to the Easter Eve vigil by staging a four-band show of locals aptly titled Easter Core in a venue so solid none of its downtown neighbors complained.
One by one, young bands Juvenescent Beat, An Early Ending, Aneirin, and Cease the White Horse took the stage in order from newest to most experienced with the skill and "core" levels similarly increasing as the night wore on. The crowd loved every growl power chord and clash of symbols. It's impossible to predict which musician or band will be the breakout stars, but they were surely there.
Shows like this in supportive venues are the heartbeat of new talent development. As much of a star as any of the bands was the venue, a recently retired Elks club re-purposed to God's glory by the dozen or so members of the Emmaus Community. The impressive building that houses the group is steps away from the center of historic Gettysburg, a popular destination for tourists only 80 miles from Washington D.C. It's 10,000+ square feet include a dizzying succession of banquet rooms sectioned off by folding doors, a full-service (coffee) bar, an equally spacious second-floor meeting room and bathrooms galore--everything a dream venue needs. This one also houses half the community and the monetary engine of the venue, a thrift store, that was conveniently opened between bands for an appreciative audience that easily spent as much on serviceable used clothing, household items, books and music.
The three-year-old community of "twenty-somethings" only took up residency in its current digs a few months ago, and is already setting out an ambitious lineup of shows including Page France, Rock for Life shows, Becoming the Archetype, Psalters, and Derek Webb. Their upcoming shows are set up for RSS, some are podcast, and all are within reasonable driving distance of a large portion of mid-Atlantic cities.
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