Regal faith
For King & Country touring in support of ‘Burn the Ships’
Life has been crazy for Luke Smallbone.
He finds himself experiencing an ever so slight lull in his week, which has also allowed him time to take his eldest son to soccer practice.
It’s a moment he will take in and absorb, because he knows it won’t last for long.
“The problem with traveling a lot is that you schedule your days off tour with things to catch up on your daily life,” he says. “It’s really like not having a day off. There’s always something to do. But I’m grateful for everything in my life, craziness and whatnot.”
Smallone is half of the Grammy Awardwinning Christian pop duo For King & Country. The other half is his brother, Joel Smallbone.
The brothers are touring in support of their 2018 album, “Burn the Ships.” The duo will stop at Tingley Coliseum on Saturday, Oct. 19.
The current single is “God Only Knows,” which features country legend Dolly Parton.
For King & Country began releasing music in 2012 with its debut album, “Crave.”
In 2014, “Run Wild. Live Free. Love Strong.” was released to more critical acclaim.
The Smallbones grew up in a musical family, and after decades of performing, Luke Smallbone is humbled.
“The chance to be able to do music as a whole is a real honor,” he says. “We released our album a year ago, and the fact that people still want to receive singles from us, it’s amazing. People have been responding to our music, and it means the world to both of us.”
The Smallbones are always working on new projects. They worked on the 2016 film “Priceless,” which was filmed in New Mexico.
The current project is “The Drummer Boy,” which tells the story of two brothers who end up on different sides of the Civil War.
“It’s been something we’ve had on our mind for a while,” Luke Smallbone says. “My brother Ben is a film director, and he came up with the idea. That was his brain trust, and we’ve continued to develop it with him.”
Luke Smallbone says he and Joel continue to write, though there are fewer songs that make it far into the process.
“We work on songs that will be significant,” he says. “Our percentages of songs that become singles have increased for the better.”
As usual, the Smallbones pull ideas from daily life and experiences.
“I’ve had some strange things happen in the last six year of my life,” he says. “God gives us these stories to tell. He gives you talent, not to bury it in the ground. I have this obligation to speak about it in a way of being truthful.”