by: Jessica
T4JYM: How did your group form? Did you start out together or did you pick up players along the way?
MM: I led worship for student ministries at the Vineyard Community Church in Syracuse, IN and began playing with these guys on Wednesday nights at youth group. After we played with each other for a while and began to really blend, I thought it would be a great time to start playing at other churches and worship events. So we stepped out in faith and started leading worship at other churches and events.
T4JYM: How long have you all been together? How long has the group been in existence, not counting any possible changes in members?
MM: We’ve been playing together for about 6-7 years now. We lost our drummer near the beginning and picked up our current drummer (Simon) shortly after. The rest of the band has been the same since the beginning.
T4JYM: How has this affected the group? Did it take awhile to bond? What kind of relationship do you all have now?
MM: Before we started playing together, we all had really good relationships. I lived next door to the electric guitar player, Nick, and knew the bass player (Scott), really well from working on technology stuff in the church. Because we are all in the same age range (15-19), our friendships are incredibly strong and we have a great time playing together. We are very close – like brothers.
T4JYM: What kind of equipment do you use?
MM: When I play acoustic, I use a Taylor 714e, 314ce, or a 310. For electric, I use a G&L ASAT classic. I use a Line 6 DL4 for some delay and of course, a Boss Chromatic Tuner. Loops are run through a Boss Loop Station. My vocal mic is a Beta 87a and I use Shure E5 In-Ear Monitors (these are amazing).
T4JYM: What is the main focus in your ministry? Teens? The lost? The hurting? Why did you decide up on this as a focus?
MM: The focus is worship. We’ve got an incredible God who loves us so much! Worship is an important way to express our love and passion for God. Although we tend to do more worship with Teens and youth conferences, the young, old, the lost and saved are all part of our ministry focus. We want to create an intimate worship experience for everyone.
T4JYM: What does your groups name mean?
MM: Our name, Epic, came to me as I was on vacation in San Diego, CA. I was thinking about how amazing and huge our God is. We say that “we worship a God of epic proportion”
T4JYM: Where do you see the band in five years? Ten? The future?
MM: If you would have asked me 5 years ago, I would say exactly what we are doing right now. But for 5 years from now, I would love to see us do more traveling, leading at more youth worship conferences and ministering at more churches around the country. I would also really like to record an album of our worship songs. I do a lot of song writing and would like to record them.
T4JYM: Do you ever worry about getting caught up in the world of show biz? That success will change your group?
MM: Not really… we understand how important it is to stay humble in what we are doing. It’s not a show or a performance. We are here for one reason – and that’s to worship undignified.
T4JYM: What kind of relationship do you maintain with your audiences? Do you fellowship with them? Or do you remain distant as the performer?
MM: I try to be as friendly as possible. I’ve never liked it when a guest artist just stays hidden in the back room all night. I think it really gives a bad vibe. I try to be right in the middle of things, with everyone – and try to fellowship with as many people as possible. It’s way more fun than just chillin in the back room. The band is extremely friendly as well. We try to help out with anything we can – tearing or setting up sound equipment, setting up chairs, cooking, etc.
T4JYM: How would you describe your music style?
MM: We have a worship style similar to David Crowder, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman and Tim Hughes.
T4JYM: Who, or what, are your biggest musical influences?
MM: Coldplay, U2, John Mayer, David Crowder, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman and Tim Hughes
T4JYM: Are you involved in any other ministries?
MM: I currently serve as the Worship Leader for Student Ministries at the Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati, OH.
T4JYM: How much time do you spend practicing as a group? How much time do you practice individually?
MM: I think we all practice individually pretty often. Scott (bass player) doesn’t seem to practice as much as he should (hint hint)… but we all play our instruments very often. We try to practice as a group as much as we can – usually a lot more often before a major worship event.
T4JYM: Does the group come together for prayer at times other than concerts and ministry opportunities?
MM: Like I said, we are all very close relationally. There is a trust that is built between us all. We go to each other with problems, concerns and prayer requests.
T4JYM: Have you always had a desire to be in a group like this?
MM: Yes. I’ve always wanted to do a lot of traveling and leading at worship conferences. I hope it starts happening more frequently. We have a busy load ahead of us for 2005. We are having a blast!
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