The Josh Martin Band is pleased to announce Eminence Speaker as our first sponsor. From the Eminence Speaker website:

In 1966, Bob Gault founded what was to become the world’s largest loudspeaker manufacturing company after working as an engineer for Magnavox and CTS (Chicago Telephone Supply). Ironically, Gault started Eminence hoping to maintain three 18″ speakers per day, based on a commitment from Ampeg’s Everett Hull. Under the leadership of Gault and most recently his son, Rob, the company’s capacity has grown to over 10,000 speakers per day, employing nearly 200 people.

Eminence speakers are known throughout the world for being top quality. They can be found in a wide variety of guitar amps and sound systems from trusted brands. Eminence also endorses a long list of professional musicians.

Currently, the Josh Martin Band uses custom-built subs housing Eminence speakers. We are proud to list Eminence Speaker as our first sponsor.

You can request to see the Josh Martin Band live in your town!  We’ve created an account with Eventful to allow our fans to “demand” us to come to their town.  What is Eventful?  Here’s an explanation from their site:

Eventful is a leading digital service connecting consumers with entertainment and live events. Over 15 million people rely on Eventful every week to find out what’s happening and decide what to do; from movies, concerts and sports to family fun and nightlife. With a comprehensive movie showtimes section and over 4 million local events to enjoy, Eventful provides the world’s most comprehensive selection of local entertainment content. Eventful serves its users across multiple platforms including online, iPhone and email programs, all of which deliver highly personalized content to each user.

Eventful’s unique Demand it! service empowers fans to influence the content and location of entertainment and live events. Over 100,000 musicians, comedians, film makers, politicians and other performers use Demand it! to engage with millions of their fans and supporters to find out where they are in Demand and make informed decisions about where to appear.

Head over to our page on Eventful if you’d like to see us in your town!

It’s been a while since we last checked in with everyone.  2009 was a transition year for the Josh Martin Band.  All of the band members have experienced life changes in the past twelve months, so we weren’t able to play as much as we would’ve liked this year.

With sadness, our lead guitarist Doug Dearinger decided to leave the band.  We love Doug, and he is an amazing guitarist.  He will be missed.  To date, we have not found a replacement.  If you are an electric guitarist looking for a band, or if you know of someone, please email us.

Our bassist, Derek Hughes, will be leaving the band in the summer of 2010.  Derek will be leading worship at Crossings Camps over the summer, and will move to Indianapolis next fall.  Derek will be leading worship at a new church plant, Redemption Hill Church.  As such, we are also looking for Derek’s replacement.  If you are a bass player looking for a band, or if you know of someone, please email us.

On a more upbeat note, Derek and (now, his wife) Mary Beth got married this past summer!  And, I (Andrew) will be getting married to my bride-to-be, Julie, on New Year’s Eve.

We’re looking forward to 2010.  We’re currently lining up concerts, and we hope to be able to finish our next album.  You can also keep up with the band via Twitter and Facebook.

If you are interested in auditioning, or know of someone who may be interested, please email us.

[10.08 UPDATE: We recorded some more last night!]

The biggest news is that we will begin recording our next album this weekend!  Stay tuned to this site for live blogging from the studio, videos, audio clips and more.  Needless to say, we’re very excited.  We only have four or five songs worked up at the moment, but over the course of the fall, we will finish up several more in rehearsals and recording sessions.  Our hope is have the album finished by the end of the year and have the album ready by early 2009.

At the moment, we have only one more scheduled performance on our calendar.  We hope to play a few more dates before the end of the year and share some of the new material with everyone.  Check back this weekend for updates!

For those that may not know, guitarist Bert Lace has left the band. His family is in the process of adopting two children (a brother and sister). To be able to focus on this process, his work and time with his family, he needed to step away from the band. We’re disappointed to see him go, but we know that God has great things in store for his future. We, along with Bert and his family, ask for your prayers as they enter this new stage of life. We’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Bert and his family for their dedication to this band for the last few years. We’re going to miss you man!

You might see some new faces with us the next time you see us. No, we haven’t replaced Bert. Due to other obligations (work and school), Derek may have to miss a concert or two. In his place will be Josh’s uncle on bass – Johnny Martin. In fact, he’ll be filling in for Derek at Munfordville. We’ll also have the pleasure of Laura Hadley filling in on vocals. We certainly appreciate both Johnny and Laura’s willingness to help us glorify God!

Speaking of Derek, congratulations are in order! Derek and his girlfriend, Mary Beth are now engaged! We’ll let Derek tell you where he proposed. It’s a good story.

In the mean time, we’ve continued to slowly work on new material for our next album. We haven’t quite worked up enough material just yet, but there are several songs in the works. We hope to start recording soon. Check back for details!

Congratulations to JMB keyboardist Kelly Briscoe and his wife, Ericcia.  They gave birth to their first child this week.  Head over to Kelly’s blog for the full recap.