The Wedding!

Alright, It's May 26, I missed a day (shame on me) and I'm in Branson, MO with my friend, Ben. We've been listening to whatever shuffled on my iPod and it just so happened that a song came on that'll always make you homesick: Diamond of the South. So I've decided that it would just be a slap in the face if I didn't make Stephen's Band of the Day:


The Wedding with frontman Matt Shelton

The Wedding!


Currently listening to: The Same Mistake. Song That Hooked Me: Morning Air. Fan Favorite: Say Your Prayers.


Yes, that's right children! Step right up! The Wedding from Fayetteville, AR! Formed in 2003 under the name Easier Said. Joined Rambler Records, later Brave New World Records, in 2004 until 2009 until Brave New World was closed, leaving The Wedding an independent band, which they have remained to this day.


Easier Said

The Wedding was formed in 2003 by Kevin Kiehn, vocals & piano, Cody Driggers, backing vocals & bass, Clint Robinson, drums, & Trevor Sarver, guitar. They released their self-titled debut album, The Wedding, on February 15, 2005. According to their Wikipedia page (very accurate, I know), Matt Thiessen, of Relient K, lent his voice to their song But A Breath. Not too long after that, the Rumble In The South EP was released. It contained 3 bonus tracks and acoustic versions of Morning Air & Move This City. In 2006, Clint Robinson left the band, so Joe Rickard (now drummer of Red) was brought in to replace him. Jeremy Ervin was added at bass and Cody Driggers was moved to guitar. April 17, 2007, The Wedding released their second album, Polarity. This album proved that the band was eclectic and more than just some random local band. Shortly after the release of Polarity, 3 members left the band: Jeremy, Joe, & Kevin. Kevin got married and decided he needed to focus more time on his marriage, so now he leads worship at The Rock of Northwest Arkansas. Adam Thron took over guitar, so Cody Driggers went back to bass, Matt Jameson replaced Joe on drums, and Landon Ginnings took over vocals for a few months during local tours, then went to play guitar in Showbread. This is when The Wedding found Matt Shelton, formerly of Letter Kills, and recruited him as frontman. Since then, they have released 2 EP's: The Sound, The Steel EP (June 17, 2008) & Distance EP (November 16, 2010).



The first time I saw The Wedding was at the 180 Center in Fort Smith for Rock The River on September 8, 2007. It was my first time to see The Wedding, first concert with my girlfriend before we were dating, and the first time to see Kevin Kiehn rule the stage (also the last time to see Kevin too). The Wedding was about 3 songs into their set when Cody Driggers had just hit his final chord on It's Time TO Rock, OK? when he stops playing, walks up to the edge of the stage, and points to the section I was standing in and said, "This is my favorite group. Right there!These guys are my Bunch-A-Punchin'-Hooligans!" Let me just say this now, Cody Driggers is the man. Since then, I saw them play at Rock The River in 2009 and at Amp'd in Fort Smith twice. I wasn't too fond of Matt Shelton when he first started, but I've gotta admit that he was the perfect man for The Wedding.

Now as you leave, here's a link to Diamond Of The South. So, let me know what you think and let me know any other bands I should look up.

http://youtu.be/FxJN9pW_hD0

"If This Love Changes Everything, Then With This Love, You Know That I Can't Afford To Make The Same Mistake." - The Same Mistake by The Wedding