Live Revelations: On Stage Off Stage Back Stage DVD/CD - Third Day

Third Day in context

Live Revelations: On Stage Off Stage Back Stage DVD/CD
Artist: Third Day (http://www.thirdday.com/)
Label: Provident
Length: DVD – Approximately 72 minutes plus bonus material; CD – 9 tracks/35:35 minutes

If context is important in interpreting Scripture, it’s also helpful in getting to know Third Day. Live Revelations follows the concert DVD trend of taking the viewer behind the scenes between song performances.

This documents the fall 2008 Music Builds Tour, which Third Day co-headlined with Switchfoot. It records times and destinations, life on the tour bus, backstage banter before and after concerts, meeting with fans, getting together with family in Atlanta (the band’s hometown), interaction with Nigel James (Tour Pastor), and other events along the way.

Viewers get to follow the band through their days to the stage and off again. One of the most touching moments is hearing the band members talk about their families and seeing how they interact. “Born Again” from Revelation plays not only in the background but also on heartstrings as you see the sacrifices that these families make. Other songs from Revelation serve as background for other segments, so there’s no shortage of music on this DVD.

The majority of the concert songs are from Revelation, but you also get a short, acoustic version of “Cry Out to Jesus,” in which the audience sings along. In addition, Third Day perform the reworked version of “Thief,” originally from their first album, and “I’ve Got a Feeling” and “Rockstar” from Wire.

It’s not until the second half of the DVD, during the Nashville segment, that you have more than one song together. In the previous sections, the pattern is one song followed by a look behind the scenes and then another song. You get three uninterrupted songs in the Nashville sequence.

The performances and technical aspects are all excellent. Robert Randolph makes the only DVD guest appearance on “Otherside.” The flames on the screens in the background are entirely appropriate as Randolph and the band heat it up with passionate playing.

The CD has a couple of songs not found on the DVD. The most interesting is a performance of the old U2 song “When Love Comes to Town,” which brings together Third Day, Robert Randolph, Jars of Clay and Switchfoot.

The sound on the CD is not as clean as I would like, but it may be as close to normal as they could get for a rock concert. The CD serves as a nice extra—the DVD is clearly the main attraction.

The highlight of the bonus material is the music video for “Revelation.” It includes numerous images of what is known as “Salvation Mountain.” Located in the California desert outside of Palm Springs, this is artist Leonard Knight’s visual presentation of the gospel. The cover art (also found on the Revelation CD) is a representation of the mountain. Live performances of “Slow Down” and “Tunnel” are also part of the bonus material.

Third Day rocks on this release but what I appreciate most is the fascinating look into their lives. Viewers will appreciate the authenticity. This is a must-have for Third Day fans and a great way for anyone to get to know the band better.