Setting the mood... Stone towers, castle walls, vaulted ceiling with stars twinkling in the night sky, shields and swords. No, I'm not describing King Arthur and the Round Table, but the Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA where Jars of Clay cut the ribbon last Friday for their Three O'clock Parade tour. Over 4000 fans stormed the drawbridge to see Luna Halo, Jennifer Knapp, and Jars of Clay!

Around 8:00, Luna Halo kicked off their set of five songs with loaded guitars and cut to the chase vocals. With an amalgamate of U2 and Radiohead sounds, Luna Halo showed the crowd they knew how to rock, but stopped to profess that "everyone on this stage has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ." This tour is going to put them out in the spotlight.

What can I say... Jennifer Knapp is a fireball wrapped in a little package. Her live vocal quality mirrored her CD's flawlessly, but offered more "kick" with the support of her live band. She started her set with "Into You," her heaviest rocker to date from her newest CD, "Lay it Down." Scanning the audience, I could clearly separate out the JK fans in the sea who were singing along word by word. "Lay It Down" followed, then Romans from her debut Kansas, after which she paused, reading a sign in the crowd, "Jennifer, Throw me your Taylor!" Following the weighty tom-tom beat of "Trinity," she stopped perplexed and commented, "I just got nailed by a cookie!" Holding up a pancake-sized chocolate chip, Jen read the attached note. It was hard not to notice the precision of her style and her relaxed enthusiasm. Her set (list to follow) comprised a solid balance of her best from both albums.

Did I leave anything out?? Are you grinding your teeth with suspense? Ok, to the matter at hand... Piped in "ambience" music from Crowded House mellowed the mood for set change. Then from a dark stage rose the chant we all know, but find very hard to repeat from memory. As the triple harmonies broke through on Liquid, I could immediately sense the energy and passion of this show. Liquid has taken on several faces through Tour 101 and Colliding Rhinos, but now we're close to getting back to the essence of the self-titled CD. New twists, however, abound in this show. Heads up for Crazy Times solo intro, edgy percussion and "Another One Bites the Dust" interlude.

Worlds Apart filled the theatre with a new spirit as Jars drew from both Bubblemaker's Dream and Colliding Rhinos to mold a new combination approach. After the worshipful silence encompassing this song, the crowd showed it's gratitude with a theatre-wide standing ovation. No one could miss God's presence in that room... no one!

Charlie played the entire intro Collide, where upon a screaming girl behind me, yelled "This is my favorite song!!" which made me ponder how many people in the theatre felt the same way! Dan is still breaking the sound barrier with "Be the best one" so hold on to your hats. In I'm Alright, I think I caught three different instrumental interjections, but only can pin down "Day Tripper" from the Beatles, so if you catch the others, I want to know! There were several new "jocular inclusions" as Steve introduced the band, but I'll leave those for your own personal pleasure! Also, Steve's got this two-toned hair thing going on now... blonde on top with an orange fringe. He and Madonna are continually "re-inventing" themselves!

Fade to Grey is incredible! "See all!" Enough said! But if you find yourself train dancing up the aisle, I wouldn't be surprised. With Flood... ok, I need to take a poll on this one. It's funky, it's bluesy, it's got a snippet of Saturday Night Fever... It's impossible to describe. As a friend said after the show... "Mess around with anything else, but leave Flood alone." I need more input from fans on this one to make a final judgment! Be prepared! It will definitely roust the crowd!!

If that's not enough... There's more! For the encore the crowd joined Jars in a beautiful Love Song for a Savior, which was truly a time of worship. Continuing the worship, Dan described their trip to China and Vietnam and the life changing events that happened there. What an amazing journey that must have been for those guys... a cultural awakening from God and His power! Following this intro, Jars played This Road. I truly believe the studio version on City on a Hill doesn't hold a candle to their new live version... It's awe inspiring! Maybe it was because of the crowd's reception to this song, but it became alive with the harmonies.

The bells and whistles on this tour are amazing... supreme sound and new tricks on lighting and stage production! Billy is back, along with disco balls and circles of lights! All old Jars' cast and crew are back with a vengeance to make this tour the best yet. Jars' regular crew are providing production, sound, lighting, and tech support also for Jennifer Knapp and Luna Halo, but they've had to hire extra crew members to smooth out the production. With three buses and three tractor trailers, Jars is coming to a venue near you. Go see'em!

Jennifer Knapp's set list:
Into You
Lay It Down
Romans
Trinity
Whole Again
Refine Me
A Little More
Diamond in the Rough
Undo Me

Jars of Clay's Set List:
Liquid
Like A Child
Crazy Times
Unforgetful You
Can't Erase It
Grace
Famous Last Words
Worlds Apart
Collide
I'm Alright
Fade to Grey
Flood

Encore:
Love Song for a Savior
This Road