Kevin Max
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Kevin Max is one third of the Christian rock group dc Talk. His birth name is Kevin Max Smith, but he legally shortened it to "Kevin Max" in 1997, citing that there were probably too many Smiths already in the world. Fans of dc Talk were not surprised at the decision; Max is often cited as the most eccentric member of the group.
In recent years, Kevin Max has attempted to separate himself from the Christian music world and create a name for himself apart from dc Talk. While he does not shy away from vocally defending his Christian faith, he has expressed a desire to create art with a universal appeal. He insists, "My music is for a Buddhist [and a Christian] to pick up and still enjoy, [as well as] for an atheist. But it is there to prod and ask some questions: What's my worldview? What do I believe in, and why do I believe it?"
The resulting solo album, Grammy-winning Stereotype Be, released on August 28, 2001, was praised by All Music Guide for "[combining] pop, rock, and world music to create a versatile and intriguing project." Collaborating with legendary artists such as Adrian Belew and Tony Levin, Stereotype Be found Max being hailed in some musical circles as "the next Peter Gabriel."
Curiously, while Stereotype Be has developed a considerable cult following, it wasn't well-received in the Christian music market, and not long after its release, Max was dropped from his Christian label, Forefront Records. Undeterred, Max began to slowly build his solo career through live shows and word-of-mouth. He released independent albums via his website, including an EP entitled Between the Fence and the Universe and a spoken-word collaboration with Adrian Belew entitled Raven Songs 101, both in 2004.
In Fall of 2004, Max's word-of-mouth strategy finally began to pay off. He played the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Later that year, he signed a new deal with Northern Records and is planning to release a second full-length album, tentatively titled The Imposter in 2005. He is also set to star in an independent film titled Soupernatural.
Max is also a poet and an author. He has published four books, three of which are poetry books: At the Foot of Heaven (1994), The Detritus of Dorian Gray (2003), and Divine Erotica (2005). The other is an autobiography of sorts titled Unfinished Work (2001). The book is also an in-depth look at the meaning of each of his songs from the Stereotype Be album. In addition, Max has a spoken-word EP album that accompanies his first poetry book At the Foot of Heaven, released in 1995 by Starsong Productions.
In 1997, Max married Alayna Bennett. They divorced in 2003 for undisclosed reasons.
Discography
- The Imposter (Northern Records, 2005)
- Between the Fence and the Universe (EP, Northern Records, 2004)
- Raven Songs 101 (Blind Thief Publishing, 2003)
- Stereotype Be (Forefront, 2001)
- At the Foot of Heaven (spoken word EP, Starsong, 1995)
Books
- Divine Erotica (poetry, Blind Thief Publishing, 2005)
- The Detritus of Dorian Gray (poetry, Blind Thief Publishing, 2004)
- Unfinished Work (autobiography, T. Nelson, 2001)
- At the Foot of Heaven (poetry/artwork, Starsong, 1994)
External links
- Offical Kevin Max website (http://www.kevinmax.com/)
- Kevin Max fan page bio (http://www.geocities.com/dctalkexp/kevin.html)