There has not been much activity ’round the ol’ CST compound lately. After our show in October with Buddy Mondlock we sort of went into hibernation, and we’ve pretty much stayed there since.

Considering the early onset of winter, I’d say hibernation has been appropriate. I was not prepared for temperatures so low so early on, and I hadn’t yet dragged out the snow shovel and ice melt when that first big snowstorm hit. But they’re out now, and looking at the forecast for next week, it’s a good thing. Christmas travel might be interesting this year…

About this time every year Charlie and I start to talk about whether or not we should record a CST Christmas CD. It seems like a good idea (though one we’d need to consider much earlier in the year in order to have it ready when it’s seasonally appropriate), but we just can’t ever seem to arrive at what sort of recording it might be. We’ve talked about doing all instrumental versions of Christmas songs. We’ve talked about vocals. We’ve talked about a combination of instrumentals and vocals. The one thing we seem to have decided for sure is that if we ever do record a Christmas CD, it will be a collection of traditional Christmas hymns and carols. I’ll be surprised if we ever do a CST version of “The Happiest Christmas Tree” or “Santa Baby” or “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer.”

We still have other projects in mind and/or in the works, too. A re-recording of Lord, Look Down will still happen sometime; in fact, we’ve started on it a couple different times. We’ve both written a few new songs, so we’ll be looking at possibly recording an all-new CST CD sometime in the not-too-distant future.

For now, though, we’re looking at filling some dates in late winter and spring, so keep an eye on the calendar for a show near you (or one at a location to which you’re willing to travel).

We hope you have a blessed Christmas season.

If I remember right, there were 77 car accidents reported in Cedar Rapids on Friday night. I know there was at least one minor accident in Iowa City, too… Considering the fact it took many folks about two hours to get across town on Friday evening, I’d say the cancellation was a good idea!

We both had the day off yesterday, so we spent some time recording for the new CD. It wasn’t the most productive studio day we’ve had, but we got a little done. As Charlie mentioned in an earlier post, we’re focusing on a four-song demo first, so any progress is good progress.

Check back often for further updates on the CD and on more shows. ‘Bye.

You may have noticed things have been pretty quiet of late, at least concerning CST goings-on. Well, that’s true. Our next show currently on the books is not until February (though we may well add at least one or two between now and then). So what exactly is happening around the CST compound?

Glad you asked. Right now we’re mostly focused on our next studio project. A few years ago we released a CD called Lord, Look Down, which was a compilation of our more obviously Christian music. All of our music is informed and influenced by our Christian faith, and we are Christians, obviously, but we’ve never really labeled ourselves a Christian band; we’re Christians who play music for everyone. But that’s not the point of this post. The point is that we’re working on a re-release of Lord, Look Down with all-new recordings, a slightly different set of songs than on the first version, and some brand new material.

For this new CD we are focusing on our Christian music and our music ministry. Many of the songs are ones we’ve written as singalong, camp-style worship stuff. Others are more typical performance numbers. All of them are intentionally Christian, praise and worship-oriented songs we hope will catch on at camps, campus ministries, etc.

We’re really excited about the new project. Right now we’re sorting out which songs will be on the CD, working out arrangements for those songs, and practicing as much as we can. Our intent is for the new CD to be essentially a full-band project, so many of the songs will feature drums, percussion, bass, keyboard and electric guitar, along with the acoustic guitar sound and vocal harmonies that have always been the foundation of our music.

So when should you look for the new CD? I dunno. We’ll be in the studio over the winter, and hopefully will have something to show for it by early 2009. You can be sure we’ll let you know when it’s done.

In the meantime, try to stay warm, enjoy the lower gas prices, and have a happy Thanksgiving.

2007 was a good year around the CST compound (and I don’t know why Charlie keeps saying the CST compound doesn’t exist; I’m hanging out there right now). I will now present some highlights, as best as I can recall them, in no particular order other than that in which I recall them. Should be some good reading.

In the early part of the year we were focused on finishing up the new CD, which we did. We released our third full-length, all original CD, called What I Know Now, in March. Following its release, we played a bunch of shows to promote it, including some at old favorite venues and some at new places. We returned to the airwaves on KUNI’s Live From Studio One and played our first show at Luther College, where we also played on their radio interview show.

We also threw a CD release party in the lodge at Palisades Kepler State Park, just outside of Cedar Rapids. We grilled, ate, played some frisbee, ate some more, and then settled in for some music. Our friend Aaron Schutte played an opening set, and then Charlie and I played two sets, the first of our older stuff and the second all songs off the new CD. It was a really fun night. We have some photos posted on here if you’d like to take a look.

We also debuted our completely redesigned web site this year. We owe many thanks to Greg, who is an absolute genius when it comes to this kind of stuff. He did all the design, etc., and we think it looks pretty sharp.

We expanded our other web presence as well, by creating our MySpace page and an artist profile on iLike.

At the end of May we traveled up to Camp Courageous, just outside of Monticello, Iowa, and performed for the campers and staff there. It was a great time! First of all, the setting was beautiful. They have a stage out in the middle of a pine forest, and it made for a very pretty place to play (alliteration… that’s genius!). It was incredibly rewarding to see the joy on the campers’ faces as we played for them and they danced in front of the stage. I don’t think we’ve ever played for a more genuinely appreciative audience. They seemed especially appreciative of our efforts to play their requests, though I don’t think we did justice to Elvis’ “Hound Dog” or John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High.” Didn’t seem to bother the campers, though. We have photos of this show up on the site, too.

Speaking of camp, the summer months were a bit of a break for us with Charlie back at EWALU. We did, however, play for the summer staff there, which has become an annual event for us. Hopefully the staff enjoy it at least half as much as we do. It’s always nice to be back at camp, and lots of fun to play for the staff.

Charlie played solo (Charlie Standard Time) for EWALU’s annual alumni weekend over Labor Day, as I was on vacation. I wish I could have been there, too…

In the fall we picked up a few more shows, and again got to try out some new venues. We played in Des Moines for the first time, at a little coffee shop called Mars Cafe. It was a nice place, and we had a surprisingly good turnout. Hopefully we’ll get back over to that area soon.

We also provided the music for a friend’s wedding in October. We’ve both played in weddings before (together and individually), but it had been a while. Playing in a wedding is a completely different experience than playing a regular show. It’s much more nerve-wracking! I was really nervous when we first began playing, though I did manage to calm down pretty well by the second and third songs we played. Overall I was really pleased with how it went, and we got many, many very nice compliments from guests and from the wedding party.

2007 was a banner year for CST in terms of the number of shows we played. I think there were 20 gigs on the calendar, which is a pretty modest number for most bands, but a pretty good number for us.

As the year has drawn to a close, we’ve again been playing fewer shows, choosing instead to spend time with our family and whatnot. We’re also thinking about what might lie ahead for Central Standard Time (see Charlie’s earlier post below). And as 2008 quickly approaches, we’re working on filling up the calendar with more shows, in both familiar and new places. Hopefully we’ll see many of you at our shows in the coming year.

And that is the 2007 Year in Review. I’m sure there are things I’ve omitted… Maybe Charlie will fill in any blanks I’ve left.

We hope the new year finds you richly blessed. Thanks again for your support and for listening to our music, and we’ll see you again soon.

Matt & Charlie

Last night’s show at Uptown Bill’s was a lot of fun. We had funky moving lights and the room was fun to play in, as always. Plus we got to hear the full story of Bill himself (here it is, if you’re curious) in more detail than I’d ever heard before. And, contrary to Matt’s un-loyal prediction, watching the end of the Iowa/Wisconsin game after the show was plenty exciting. Thanks to everyone who came out to listen; there were quite a few new faces at the show.

We’re coming up on the six-month anniversary of the new CD (!), so I thought I’d offer some Probably-Uninteresting Fun Facts about What I Know Now for your reading enjoyment.

• WIKN is tied with Folksinging for most guitars used on a CST album with 4. Second Whisper and Whisper of Wind both only feature two guitars (no overlap between the albums, though).
• WIKN is the first CST album with only Matt Hibbard/Charlie Rod compositions. It’s also our third album (as we generally count them - Whisper of Wind was… practice). Interestingly (I realize I’m probably being a little liberal in using that word), the Beatles’ third album, A Hard Day’s Night, was the first to contain only Lennon/McCartney tunes.
• WIKN is the first album we’ve done completely track-at-a-time. For our other CD’s, we recorded multiple parts together (Whisper of Wind was essentially recorded live) and did some overdubbing; WIKN was one part at a time on every song.
• “Long Way Home” was originally titled “I Shouldn’t Speak For You,” but since Matt and I spent a great deal of our time in college making jokes built around replacing the word “ewe” for “you,” we found ourselves unable to sing the tune - we’d just baaa and giggle.

Uninteresting as promised, I hope. Go Hawks!

Big day in the CST administrative compound today. Matt and I played a “CD release show” at the Mill, which was interesting (as shows at the Mill generally are) and a lot of fun. It was our first chance to play a couple of the new tunes on the CD for our Iowa City fans and the band after us (if I may borrow a Barney-ism) suited up. Fun night.

Also, today we got notice from CD Baby that What I Know Now’s online store is up and running. To wit:

Come on down to the Mill in Iowa City this Friday evening (April 13th) to catch some of the tunes off our new CD. Enjoy some music, good food and beverages, and help us celebrate the release of What I Know Now. Cover is $6, and CST hits the stage at 9:00 p.m. Following our set will be a performance by Patrick Bloom and the Ghosts of Radio, another of Iowa City’s fine local acts.

It’s not the Storyhill discography yet by any means, but on the other hand we’re still at a point where we can expand our catalog by 25% in a single morning. There is much rejoicing around the CST complex this morning.

EDIT - click here for the first review of the new disc.

The CD is in production. Oh, excitement is mounting! Keep checking back for exciting news about CD release shows and other fun stuff.

Here is what I know now:

• Central Standard Time’s third full-length, all-original CD is finished and set for production to begin.
• The new CD should be (cross your fingers, knock on wood, etc.) in our hands in time for our March 29th show at Luther College.
• The new CD has been a long time coming. We’ve been working on it in one way or another for about… four years (?). I think that’s right.
• The title of the CD is What I Know Now.

Whew… more to come soon!