Lead singer of Tennessee-based rock quintet NEVERTHELESS, Joshua Pearson talks us through the group's latest album

Nevertheless

Despite having an average age of 23, Nevertheless from Chattanooga, Tennessee have been playing together for six years after forming during high school. After college the band hit the road and in 2005 were signed to Flicker Records. Nevertheless' debut 'Live Like We're Alive' was a high energy slice of pop rock though it's their new album, produced by Rob Hawkins (Fireflight) which has pushed the band's boundaries. With a more melodic piano-driven sound, 'In The Making' skews the band's sound towards Copeland and Mae. Here singer Joshua Pearson, who with AJ Cheek (guitar, piano), Brad Jones (guitar), Adam Wann (bass) and Adam Rowe (drums) make up the group, talks about each song on their album, shortly to be released in the UK by Integrity-Provident.

"Sleeping In"
We all have certain insecurities that creep in from time to time in our lives. At some point, each one of us will face something that is very difficult and we will either have the choice to ignore it or face it head on with the strength that only God can give us. This song was written as an encouragement to others to say, first of all, that we all face these trying things, and, secondly, that we can make it through the most difficult of times if we rely on God. We have to decide to stop sleeping in and move forward in God's grace.

"It's True"
If I could only play one song off the record for people, this would be the song. "It's True" says that, even though Christians, including myself, have been sinful and misrepresented Christ at times, he is still true and he is good. It is a good reminder that God is the one who puts faith in our hearts in the first place, and we can't completely mess that up, though try we may.

"Cross My Heart"
Everyone feels pressure in their lives. It can be frustrating and even discouraging to feel trapped and pressed to move in a direction that we don't believe is right. What we have to remember is that God holds the world in his hands, and he can and will make all things like new if we let him. This includes our own hearts as well.

"It's No Secret"
This is a simple song that touches on our most basic need of Jesus. We are simply saying that we have tried to play both sides of the fence and handle our own lives, and it always becomes evident that we can't do it alone. It is no secret to anyone that we need God in our lives every single second of the day.

"Rest"
Jesus tells us to come to him when we are weary. He asks us to lay our burdens down because they are too heavy for us. He tells us that he wants to give us true rest. This is a beautiful truth in a crazy fast-paces world where everyone is out for themselves. Jesus wants us to slow down, quit trying to find our own innocence and our own success and come find rest in him.

"I Needed This"
Sometimes things get taken away from us and we begin to realise that we do not have the handle on life that we thought we did. We can't always see the reason for losing something or someone dear to us, but we must believe that God does have our best interest in mind. Even though we don't understand, we should believe that it is what we needed all along to become the type of people that we should be.

"Long Shot"
This is a fun song about a guy trying to convince a certain girl to go out with him. He really believes that she is right, so he give her all of this silly banter, such as "Someday both of us will die" and "Let me sweep you off your feet" to say her. Really, it shows just how far a guy will go to get a girl, even if it is a long shot.

"Augustine"
St Augustine, Florida is one of my favourite cities in the US. It is old and beautiful, and it is also the city that I proposed to my wife in. "Augustine" is a song that tells a story reflecting on romantic love and the attempt to figure it out.

"Topics"
Being on the road full time, we hear many stories from kids everywhere. A lot of times, we find that these kids will tell us things that they are struggling with before they would tell their parents or a leader in the church. We need to always encourage honesty and respond to those hurting with love instead of judgment.

"When I'm Alone"
Sometimes we have people in our lives to depend on, and other times it seems we have to go through it alone. We wrote this song from the perspective of someone who has lost a person very dear to them. It is in that most vulnerable of times that we are forced to find out who we really are on our own. We are forced to put one foot in front of the other and move forward with total dependence on god, even when we don't know exactly where we are going.

"Found My Way Back Again"
Life is always full of ups and downs and sometimes the downs win. I wrote this song after a lengthy conversation with a friend who was in the lowest state that I had ever seen someone. There came a point when he said, "I don't think I want to live anymore," and that is a scary moment. The only one who is big enough to grant life to the lifeless, and pull someone out of the deepest hole, is God Almighty. He is always beside us, knocking at our door, but it is up to us to let him in.