Looking for something fun to do with family and friends this weekend? Along with the football game, the showing of “One Snowy Night” and the Homecoming Dance, Northwestern will be hosting a concert this weekend put on by the well-known and loved band, Rend Collective. This event is open to the public.
Rend Collective is a worship band that has been popular for about ten years, and they are originally from Northern Ireland. They have released multiple albums throughout the years but are most well-known for their songs “My Lighthouse,” “Build Your Kingdom Here,” “You Will Never Run” and “Rescuer.”
The concert, “Campfire: The 10th Anniversary Tour” will kick off the many festivities of NW’s Raider Nation Celebration, the Homecoming and Family weekend on campus. The concert will be on Friday, Oct. 6 and will begin at 8p.m.
Tickets are going fast, so anyone who wishes to attend this awesome event should get theirs soon. If there are any tickets left on the day of the concert, prices will increase. To purchase general admission tickets for $26, go to echoconcerts.com. There is a discounted price of $20 per ticket available for purchase to NW students and faculty members in the Ramaker Center student life office. There are $40 tickets available to purchase for early entry, as well as $75 deluxe tickets, which include being the first one to enter the chapel, and a picture pass with the band after the concert. As of Tuesday, Oct. 3, there are still about 20 tickets available to purchase.
While talking with Lucas Heiberger, the director of NW’s Student Activity Council, he provided background information on the concert. “NW has had a ton of awesome bands come throughout the years,” said Heiberger. NW is partnered with “Echo Concerts,” a booking agent in the Midwest, which helps them get connected to worship bands that are going on tour and are looking for locations. For the past several years, NW has had the privilege of hosting bands such as Sidewalk Prophets, Newsboys, David Crowder, Phil Wickham, Audio Adrenaline and Skillet, just to name a few.
“For many years in a row, there was one concert every single year. COVID kind of killed that. The last one we had was Newsboys in 2019,” said Heiberger.
Heiberger went on to talk about his excitement for such a talented and entertaining group to start up the concert tradition again. He said, “Hopefully it’s a great concert and everyone will love the chance to worship together - fellow Raiders, community members and world-renowned worship artists!”
In their music, Rend Collective provides genuine worship, as well as entertaining, professional musicality. For them, worship is more than a song. It is a heart posture and a way of life. The name “Rend Collective” is inspired by the Bible verse Joel 2:13, which says, “Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.” The idea of rending one’s heart means having an attitude of worship in all areas of life. This is something Rend Collective does an incredible job of doing and inviting people into during their concerts.
During this upcoming concert, the band hopes to commemorate the album, “Campfire”, which was recorded live around a campfire in 2013 on a Northern Irish beach. The concert will consist of all the cozy and eclectic, yet upbeat vibes that are also present in the album that started it all.
