Discovery by Final Quest

At first the group started on a small scale, honing their chops in area coffeehouses and churches, but as their on stage dynamic and interactive chemistry grew, so did their performance opportunities.

By the mid-90's, Final Quest made it to the festival circuit performing with Christian music's genre spanning elite, including Third Day, Kathy Troccoli, The Newsboys, Sonic Flood, All Star United, Cheri Keaggy, Out of Eden, and Bryan Duncan. Eventually, their buzz caught the ear of famed producer/BMI Award winning songwriting Kevin Chalfant, who many will recall fronted the mainstream super group The Storm (also featuring members of Santana and Journey).

Chalfant immediately caught the vision of the group's musicality, and thanks to his personal faith, was also able to grasp Final Quest from a spiritual perspective. He quickly signed the group to his Chicago based Clique Records and got the group into the studio to record their official debut Heart and Soul in 1998. Besides having Chalfant behind the boards and as a co-writer, the delightful acoustic/alternative recording also included songwriting by Alby Odum (Daniel's Window) and drums by Shawn Fichter (Trisha Yearwood).

"One thing led to another as Final Quest matured, we got to work with some amazing people," Chuck says with a thankful tone. "But as tempting as it was to want to ride that out all the way and start touring all over America, we realized that some groups are meant to serve a region and foster relationships with people, rather than take the 'new city every day' route."

Despite staying close to home, Heart and Soul did put Final Quest on the map so to speak, establishing them within radio and retail circles and making them a regular name on concert promoters' menus. After the record successfully ran its course, Chuck and Lynette went back to the drawing board for the sessions which would birth its follow-up Discovery, their brand new CD framing the group's developmental interplay with worshipful undertones. The project and subsequent live shows also feature fellow church worship team members Denny Rockey on percussion and backing vocals along with Chris and Angie Brock on drums and bass respectively.

"Though praise and worship music may be the trend right now on the contemporary Christian scene, it's just an extension of what we've done all along and the next logical step in our recording direction."

Not only was that decision further validated through the introspective beauty on the project's recordings, but they're also overflowing with instrumental experimentation. Take for instance the title cut's message of exploring one's faith to its fullest over a guitar driven, semi-acoustic canvas that's sprinkled with ethnic and world beats. Or, the project's initial single "Hear the Roar," about Christians uniting and lifting their hands in praise. (The track has already received considerable airplay throughout Chicagoland).

Then there's the lush and melodic "Where You Are," a gritty gem that calls believers to rise above their broken state and enter into the presence of God. "A lot of times worship can be congregational in a church setting, but this song is about coming together face to face with the Lord and offering up thanks and glory," Chuck explains.

To round out the album, Final Quest includes a cover of Natalie Merchant's "Kind and Generous" (the "Thank You" song) to highlight Lynette's radiant vocals. It may be best known as a mainstream hit, but thematically it expresses gratitude towards the giver of life Himself. "Lynette is often compared to Natalie vocally, so I suppose this is the best tribute we could think of to mirror those statements."

"If I could sum what Final Quest is, in it's simplest form, it's merely an extension of who we are in our local church. What we do in a concert on Saturday night is essentially the same thing you will find us doing on Sunday morning...worshipping God."

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