It is good to take a look at where the modern worship music genre got its genesis . What musicians and producers were there helping it grow ? It is also good to see who is influencing it now in the present tense … who are the contributing musicians and producers ? Remarkably , one man was there at the beginning , shaping the sound and style of modern worship , and is still contributing at a high level over 20 years later ! with Kelly Clarkson “ Behind These Hazel Eyes ” video shoot
It was loud guitars , synths , lots of drums , loops and Roland 808 ’ s . That ’ s how it all started really , just doing what we knew how and what was real to us . People didn ’ t really know what to do with it in the beginning honestly . They didn ’ t know if they were supposed to close their eyes and raise their hands or dance around and rock out . It wasn ’ t long until all of it was happening at the same time ! It was an exciting and inspiring time for sure !
Meet Dwayne Larring .
From one of the founding members / guitarist of Sonicflood back in 1999 , to producing Matt Redman and Tim Hughes ’ first breakthrough records , Dwayne was there . And he still is today lending his talents as a professional guitarist and tour support with arguably the biggest breakthrough artist in two decades - Lauren Daigle .
Dwayne has had a storied career both in several Christian bands and the worship music genre as well as in mainstream music . Grammy nominations , Dove awards , Gold and Platinum albums and chart-topping songs have followed .
When American Idol launched its first season winning artist Kelly Clarkson , Dwayne was there too touring as her guitarist . Appearing on all the late-night national television programs and playing the largest venues across the country . And now returning to those same television programs and large concert venues with Lauren Daigle .
As a seasoned musician Dwayne keeps himself busy every day – even during the pandemic – with playing guitar , producing artists and now he has added mixing records to his skill set . with Nick Carter on Jay Leno
We have so many questions for him so let ’ s dive right in …
[ WM ] Let ’ s talk about the early days of Sonicflood . It was one of the best -selling worship albums of all time then . What was the initial intent of that record titled simply Sonicflood ?
[ Dwayne Larring ] We all had been in different bands and played for different artists for several years and so we were all friends from doing tours and festivals together . Each guy individually had an experience with God through worship around that time that was quite profound and life changing . The main thing was that we decided we would rather sing to God than about Him ! It was literally that simple . We wanted to use our music to worship Jesus and create an atmosphere where people would be drawn to do the same . Back then “ praise and worship ” was very churchy and involved a lot more choirs or it was more acoustic guitars and mellow . We wanted to worship in a way that felt authentic to us and that meant making the kind of music that we knew how to make .
[ WM ] What was the guitar sound , the tones you were after then and what gear were you using back then to get that sound ?
[ Dwayne ] There was always a mixture of things . My main rig for most of that time was vintage Marshall JMP 50 watt heads and 4x12 cabs as well as an original Matchless DC-30 . 75 ’ Strat , 79 Les Paul Deluxe , Epiphone early 90 ’ s Riviera and a slew of pedals as well as a Roland Space Echo ( Tape )… because you know , Radiohead ! ( laughing ) Needless to say , things tended to get extremely loud , which was quite fun !
[ WM ] It is amazing to look back and see that not only as a guitar player , but you emerged then as a producer , producing such iconic songs as Matt Redman ’ s “ Blessed Be Your Name ” and Tim Hughes ’ s “ Here I Am to Worship ”. These songs truly shaped the next phase of modern worship . How did that come about and what was that experience like working with both those young men back then ?
[ Dwayne ] After Sonicflood kind of fell apart , Jason Halbert ( who played keys in the band ) and myself got asked to produce some different projects for people . It seemed like a natural step based on the massive success of
Sonicflood “ I Want to Know You ” Matt Redman “ Blessed Be Your Name ”