Brandon Gollwitzer plays guitar for Lift, a modern rock band that makes music to worship the Lord. And for Brandon, it's a miracle he's able to play the guitar, because he sawed off his finger while doing a home remodeling project two years ago.
After being rushed to the hospital, it took a team of 12 people in the emergency room to do a three hour surgery to reattach Brandon's index finger. Would it function like it used to, or would he not be able to bend it? Would he be able to play guitar?
Fast forward to now. Brandon's finger has healed and he is able to bend it like you would any normal finger. His doctors were quite amazed and took pictures to email to their friends out of state.
Besides playing the guitar for Lift, Brandon is one of the band's main songwriters, along with lead singer Trevor Kaufman. The band is rounded out by the capable musicianship of Gary Bianchi (drums), Tony Cipriano (guitar), and Matt Mackiewicz on bass and keys.
Fans of Skillet and Hillsong United will appreciate Lift's 11 songs on their self-titled debut (available on itunes). The stand-out track is “Rise Up,” which will have you singing “Shine On” long after the CD player has stopped playing the song. “Upside Down” is a fist-pumper, the kind that'll get a crowd singing along. While much of the band's sound is aggressive and driving, they do slow it down once in a while. Their ballad, “You Are,” reminded me of early 90s rock from Nelson or Extreme, the kind people would get their lighters or cell phones out for, to wave their lights in the air to the swaying beat. And “Break Me,” a touching ballad, features the talented Dave Meyer on cello. While there are some gentle moments on the CD, for the most part it's got “crunchy guitars” throughout, the kind appealing to young males. Producer Joe Secchiaroli (The Reign of Kindo, Relevant Worship, More Than Me) did a superb job at giving the entire project, which works as both a rock record and a worship album, a great sound.
You can hear Lift live at The Wesleyan Church of Hamburg, New York, where they often play for "The Hub" youth ministry center.
For more info about Lift, please visit www.liftworshipband.com. Email
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. Let them know you read about the band on Buffalo Christian. |
