The Perfect Paradox: 10 Years

Ten years ago today, The Perfect Paradox released our self-titled album. Ten years! This is the first record I ever made that I was truly proud of, and I’m still not embarrassed to share it with people today. Sure, our youth and inexperience show through on pretty much every track, but these songs meant a lot to me and they still do. I could play That Edge at a show next week and still mean what I was singing.

The project was recorded in the summer of 2006 at Empty House Studio (otherwise known as Matt Tobias’ basement).  The band was at the height of our short-lived existence – several memories come to mind:

  • Playing the Pella Church youth group overnighter (soggy french toast)
  • John screaming in pain from dry sockets during our show at Pit Crew the day after he had his wisdom teeth removed
  • Driving to York for a show with Sequel to Adam and learning about the “Mugician”
  • Forgetting my guitar when we played at Edge 64
  • Playing with Sleeping at Last and O Lovelle at the Sokol Underground (Ben still owes me the forbidden EP with “Better Off” on it)
  • Having our one legitimate invitation to play on the main stage at Lifelight get rained out (and getting bumped to a muddy tent)

The CD release show for The Perfect Paradox was held on February 9th, 2007 at The Foundry in Benson. Within a matter of months the band would break up, which means that I still have unopened boxes of CDs in my parent’s basement. Nevertheless, I’m incredibly grateful for the time that we had together, and I’m happy to say that I still consider Ben, Cherron, and John my friends.

Instead of inundating you with additional trivia about the band, here’s a collection of photos from 2004-2007:

2004 – One of our earliest performances as “Mike Harvat and the Sleepy Jacks” at the Anchor Inn. The original lineup was me, Cherron on upright, Ben on drums, and Mike on piano. We were going for an organic “folk rock” sound at first, but that started to change when we brought in Ben to play electric.
2004 – Cherron hanging out before an outdoor performance at UNO
2004 – The band after one of our many performances at The Rock
2004 – Ben laying down some licks on the back of my car at Lifelight
2005 – Our second audition for Lifelight. Nothing was grounded, so I couldn’t perform barefoot like I wanted to (I’d be shocked by the microphone otherwise)
2005 – Playing the main stage at Lifelight…at noon. We told everyone we opened for the Newsboys nine hours early. We’re also wearing t-shirts that we got for free because we promised to wear them on stage.
2005 – The first and only “Do It for Marco” show. We briefly sponsored a child through Compassion International, but they lost him. Apparently this was one of John’s first shows with us.
2006 – We thought it would be funny to wear sweaters when we played at UNL. It wasn’t funny.
2006 – Playing the Lutters’ “First Thursdays” event in Sioux City. The stage was like a tiny cave that threw all the sound back at us…thanks to Ben’s cymbals I experienced significant hearing loss that night.
2006 – Playing at Benson Nite next to The Foundry. Our friend Aaron was filling in on bass. I met Danny Sabra that night.
2006 – Recording the album, part one
2006 – Recording the album, part two
2006 – Recording the album, part three
2006 – Recording the album, part four
Our friend Telia created the artwork for the album. The original canvas hangs in my office at work.
Artwork sketch, part one
Art sketch, part two
2007 – Our CD release show at The Foundry

Last but not least, I’ve uploaded the album to Noisetrade, and you can download it for free right here:

If you ever came to a Perfect Paradox show, listened to The Perfect Paradox on Myspace, bought a Perfect Paradox t-shirt or CD, or were in one of the various incarnations of The Perfect Paradox, thank you!

3 thoughts on “The Perfect Paradox: 10 Years”

  2. I don’t remember how I discovered this album, but I recall listening to it often. I remember cranking up this album while delivering pizzas at night. Blur the Lines was a favorite, and even in listening to it now after years, I’m singing along. Thank you for making great worship!

  3. I’m re-listening to the CD now. Blur the Lines is an incredible song and really shows both your vocal range and the immense musical talent that is layered in that song.

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