Buried Above Releases Self-Titled Album, Produced by Josiah Prince & Andrew Stanton of Disciple
Buried Above has released their self-titled debut solo album, a rousing rock record co-produced by Josiah Prince and Andrew Stanton of Disciple. The album follows the singles “It’s Never Too Late” and “The Nations Fall (feat Josh Bramlett),” which had a consistent presence on CMW’s Christian rock chart throughout 2021.
“I personally feel that I grew in a big way over the last couple years working on this record,” says Colton Reed, who has been making music under the title Buried Above since 2019. “Whether it's through my talents with guitar or vocals, or learning tricks in the studio to make better demos for ideas, I feel that God gave me the ability to learn these things at a faster pace.”
The result is 10 strong tracks, each one serving Buried Above’s core desire to communicate the Gospel of Jesus. That drive draws on Colton’s personal testimony, as told in the track “Already Written (feat Dawn Michele).” “I'm certain everyone has had the fear that there's something they could do to lose their salvation, though the Bible tells us that it's eternal, and through our faith in Jesus Christ, we are saved forever,” Colton shares. “While we have a choice to determine what we do in our lives, God already knows our story from beginning to end, and sacrificed His son for us in spite of anything and everything we have done against Him.”
Deeply emotional, “Already Written” is intensified by guest vocals from Fireflight’s Dawn Michele, who Colton connected with through producer Josiah Prince. In deep gratitude, Colton says, “Dawn made the song, which was already my favorite on the record, so much more powerful.”
“Blood” is another stand-out, this one featuring the contributions of producer and guitarist Josiah Prince. “This is another testimonial song, but more about salvation for humanity in general instead of for me personally,” Colton explains. “When we look at ourselves in the mirror, we see all our impurities and flaws. For those who have accepted Jesus as their savior, the impurities are wiped clean. Instead of seeing the things we've done, all that God sees is the Blood of Jesus in our place.”
There are several other powerful collaborations on the album, including Spoken’s Matt Baird on “Gravity” and rapper Aaron Ray on album closer “Divide.” With the overall production helmed by Andrew Stanton and Josiah Prince, Buried Above’s first full album draws on the support of veteran talent.
“From the beginning when we wrote our first song together, Josiah helped to bring out the best of my musical and lyrical writing skills. Many of the songs we worked on were a joint effort between him, Andrew and I, but I was surprised at how much of the songs came from my own head,” Colton remembers of the writing process. “When it came to tracking the songs, both Josiah and Andrew were exceptionally fun to work with, Josiah having a lot of Synth and Background production ideas, and Andrew focused more on getting the best guitar sound and character that we possibly could.”
The result is an album that caps off 2021 with one of the strongest debut releases of the year, promising more to come from this rising band’s music and ministry. Colton concludes, “If only ONE person hears this record and decides to follow Christ, then I have done my job as a follower of Jesus. Being able to work with the best in the Christian rock industry is a dream come true, but the ministry is what's really important in the end!”
