In their acclaimed career spanning nearly three decades, veteran hard rockers DISCIPLE have recorded 13 studio albums, earned 18 #1 singles, and sold hundreds of thousands of records. Their music has been featured on ESPN's NFL Live, WWE, Fox Sports, as well as in commercials for CBS' CSI: Miami and Criminal Minds. They've received multiple Dove Awards and played thousands of shows worldwide, including a 2023 stint in 40 arenas on the Winter Jam Tour. This year saw the band's first Grammy nomination, receiving a nomination for Best Contemporary/Christian Performance Song of the Year for the track "Firm Foundation (He Won't)". A career first for DISCIPLE, who has been a mainstay in the heavy Christian music genre, this distinction adds to a list of accolades and pays homage to the duality DISCIPLE has always reconciled in their music: a high-adrenaline rock sound with a worshipful, gospel-first heart.
Now, hot off the heels of this historical accolade, DISCIPLE is back with a new single "Sound the Alarm" ahead of the deluxe version of their 2023 album Skeleton Psalms, releasing April 25th. The deluxe album includes several unreleased singles, acoustic renditions, and studio mixes.
Premiered on Metal Insider, the new single "may be seen through the eyes of a survivor in a post-apocalyptic landscape, but it's really about the dangers that surround our soul on a daily basis. The thief who comes to kill, steal, and destroy...and our rally call to stay vigilant while alerting those around us to do the same. We wrote it with our friend Kellen McGregor (MEMPHIS MAY FIRE) and we think our listeners are going to love it," describes the band.
Listen to "Sound the Alarm" now streaming BELOW.
Skeleton Psalms was created in-house: produced by guitarist Josiah Prince at his studio The Ranch, written by Kevin Young, Andrew Stanton (guitar) and Josiah Prince, with drums from Joey West and additional backing vocal support from touring bassist Marco Pera. For additional support on instrumentation, Mark "Traa" Daniels (P.O.D.) played bass. The band called on mix engineer Nick Rad (SKILLET), mastering engineer Sam Moses (TENTH AVENUE NORTH) and the drum recording skills of Lester Estelle (PILLAR, Kelly Clarkson) to round out the creative team. The album has spawned three #1 singles ("Executioner", "Promise to Live" and "Bad Words") and was a 2023 Dove Award nominee.
The veteran Christian rock band was originally formed by high school friends in Maryville, Tennessee in 1992. Just a teenager at the time, founder and frontman Kevin Young was inspired to follow in the footsteps of bands who shaped his own belief - acts like PETRA, STRYPER and WHITECROSS, Christian bands who were scandalizing listeners of the time even as secular acts like PANTERA, SKID ROW and DEF LEPPARD easily ruled the mainstream airwaves.
"The Christian music scene was completely different back then," Young recalls. "Most of what was played on the radio seemed tame in comparison to the influences of my childhood, particularly punk and hard rock. I wanted to write and sing music that sounded like my culture but that also carried a message and reflected my values."
The result was DISCIPLE, a name chosen initially as a simple placeholder to represent the band's core mission to be followers of Jesus Christ in all things. That commitment drove them through early independent records and across the South, playing concerts as a three-piece band. By 1997, their dedication had landed them their first record deal. By 2001, they were releasing their third album and navigating the harrowing challenges of road life as their following grew.
Looking back on the band's history, Young reflects, "It's the call and the cost of being a disciple of Jesus: sometimes you're going to have a lot, and sometimes you're going to have a little. That doesn't matter; we're on a mission. I feel like that has been our life as a band."
Currently, the band is a collective of musicians who have held the ferocious hard rock sound steady for over 10 years: Young on vocals, Josiah Prince on guitar, Andrew Stanton on guitar and Joey West on drums. The growth of their tightly knit musical cohesion is evident on their most recent album, Skeleton Psalms. From scorching riffs to thunderous drum fills to alternately melodic and searing vocals, DISCIPLE is a band intimately familiar with their own toolkit while unafraid to push their own limits.
Every one of the longstanding members shares a sense of urgent calling that allows them to weather the storms of a changeable music landscape. In DISCIPLE's eyes, their mission of evangelism and hope eclipse any accolades that the band could earn. But their chronic drivenness prompted by adherence to the Gospel has consistently turned heads - and impacted lives.
In 2020, the band launched a second musical project as an outlet for their impulse to worship, a band titled HONOR & GLORY. That band would ultimately secure their first career Grammy nomination for "Firm Foundation (He Won't)".
But beyond those quantifiable milestones, DISCIPLE's music has made its deepest mark through resonance with listeners struggling with anxiety, depression, addiction, suicidality and self-harm. Their songs' message of unconditional love meeting each of us at our most broken has inspired countless stories of lives saved and changed. Most recently, that has been evident through "Promise to Live", which topped Christian rock radio charts for a staggering 16 weeks in a row.
"We all are in this world together, and are all in recovery together, from the trauma of this world and this life," Young offers earnestly. "We're not fighting alone. We're fighting together. We make this promise to God and to each other: to not give up fighting. To not lose hope. To live for the most precious gift we have, which is life."
That promise continues to galvanize the band well past the three-decade mark. Even with such storied staying power to their name, DISCIPLE's Kevin Young is quick to clarify the call that still lies before them.
"I don't want to celebrate anything about what I've done in this life. I want to lay my life down in exchange for a better one that God has for me," he states.
With over 200k Spotify listeners, 250k followers across platforms, and 44 million and counting lifetime YouTube views, DISCIPLE continues to show their relevance and profound impact on the heavy metal world. Stay tuned as DISCIPLE releases content throughout 2025 alongside upcoming tour dates.
