'No Longer Lost For Their Purpose In Life'

Led by brothers Bear and Bo Rinehart, NEEDTOBREATHE (Bear Rinehart: vocals, guitar, piano; Bo Rinehart: guitar, backing vocals; Seth Bolt: bass, backing vocals; Joe Stillwell: drums) has already earned a fervent following throughout the Southeast. The widescreen melodic rock of their Lava/Atlantic debut, 'DAYLIGHT', should see the South Carolina-based quartet spreading their majestic noise even further.

Songs like “Shine On” and the powerful first single, “You Are Here,” are rich with sweeping sonics and heartfelt emotions that are both deeply individual and wholly universal.

With its expressive sound and confident worldview, 'DAYLIGHT', marks the coming of NEEDTOBREATHE as a genuinely moving, often inspiring new band.

Chatting recently with lead singer Bear Rinehart I first noted that their debut album title 'Daylight' was short and to the point, but what did it mean to them? "It's taken from the title track, but it symbolizes the fact that these songs are finally going to see the light of day. For us, one of the most exciting things about playing music is the interaction that happens between our songs and the listener. I guess now we're just excited that a lot more listeners are going to get the chance to interact."

And, while we're on the subject of informing our readers, where does the bands name originate? "Joe heard a story about Socrates when he was kid that always stuck with him. Socrates was beside a lake teaching some students when one of the students asked "How will I know when I'm truly seeking after the purpose in my life"? Socrates just walked over to the student and stuck his head under the water. The student began gasping for air and Socrates said "When you need that purpose as much as you need to breathe, that's when you'll know."

Just how does a band self-release more than 15,000 copies of an EP as you did ... and what was the hardest part along the way? "One thing we were sure of, was that nobody could like us if they had never heard us. We played anytime and anywhere someone would have us. The hardest part is finding reliable transportation! We've been through four vans in 4 years. The first was a 1978 Brown GMC Gypsy equipped with concrete floor boards, a futon, fuzzy dice, and one working door. Our most recent van went up in flames one week ago on the way to a show. We lost the van and everything in it and still made it on time."

OK, let's be honest here ... growing up with names like Bear and Bo, have there ever been any comparisons to those other Southern brothers from the Dukes of Hazard?! "Not really, but we did spend a lot of our childhood trying to get into cars without opening the doors and jumping our bikes over collapsed bridges!"

Are comparisons to bands like Switchfoot and Creed a help or a hinder to you as you progress down the media way for this album? "Well, we've always admired Switchfoot because they're really creative songwriters and they put a lot of emphasis on the details of sounds. Creed is just funny - I've never heard anyone compare us to Creed, and we've had some weird ones."

For fun, and taking the titles of a few of your album tracks, please let us know:

'Quit' - Have you ever quit anything that has either made you a better or worse person as it turned out?! Bo - "Yes, I quit not brushing my teeth. Now I do!"

'You Are Here' - If you could be anywhere, doing anything, for a full year, where would you be and why?! Bo - "Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory ... for obvious reasons!"

'Lost' - Do you watch the TV series 'Lost' or don't you get to watch much TV these days? Bear - "It's true we never get to watch TV and up until last month no one in the band had seen a single episode. Bear got the 1st season on DVD for Christmas and we watched the entire season plus all the bonus footage in about 2 days. I can really relate to Charlie "baby brother" of Drive Shaft. Well, except for the heroine addiction!"

What '80s (and possibly cheesy!) song would you love to cover today if asked ... and why?! Bear - "It would be 'Your Love' by The Outfield. It would be a great choice from the 80's."

Bo - "Probably, I would go with a selection from Michael Bolton (I celebrate his entire catalog), or I would say the 'Superbowl Shuffle'."

Interviewed by Russell A. Trunk

If you would like to win an AUTOGRAPHED copy of NeedToBreathe's brand new CD, just answer this easy question: In addition to their musical pursuits, both brothers excelled at high school football. Bear went on to nearby Furman University, where he was a gridiron standout at wide-receiver, earning several all-time school records and winning which trophy; awarded to South Carolina’s best collegiate football player by the Greenville Touchdown Club?!

Send me your answers and if you're correct you'll be in the running to win one of these great new and AUTOGRAPHED CDs! Just send us an e:mail here before May 15th with your answer and the subject title 'NEEDTOBREATHE SIGNED CDs' to: exclusivemagazine@flash.net

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