It’s like Weird Al Yankovic with a Christian theme.
The group Apologetix will be in concert this Friday night, bringing its brand of biblical rock to Covenant Fellowship Church. The concert starts at 8:30 p.m. and tickets cost $10.
Apologetix has performed from Vermont to Utah and agreed to play in Warren County as a fundraiser for Lighthouse Ministries, which operates a men’s homeless shelter near the fairgrounds. The homeless shelter is at full capacity with 12 residents and currently has a five-man waiting list, according to organizer Nathan Smith.
Apologetix is an accomplished band with 15 CDs. Smith says he is well pleased he was able to land them for a concert.
“They are unbelievable how much they study the Bible,” said Smith. “To me you really have to be gifted to take somebody else’s words and music and change the message.”
Apologetix uses biblical verses in its music and all songs have a Christian theme.
Popular songs include “Lazy Brain,” a parody of “Crazy Train” by Ozzy Osbourne, “The Devil Went Down to Jordan,” a parody of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” by Charlie Daniels, and “Bethlehemian Rhapsody,” a parody of “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen.
The group also covers songs from Eminem, Elvis, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock, and the Eagles, to name a few others.
The concert will serve as a fundraiser for Lighthouse Ministries, which is looking to obtain money for its men’s homeless shelter, which is located at the old animal shelter. Lighthouse would like to one day open a women’s homeless shelter.
“We’d like to open a women’s shelter and also open a youth center again,” said Smith, who indicated giving money to the homeless people themselves is not necessarily the best way to help. “We have a lot of good-hearted people in this community who want to do what they can, but we’ve found that giving them cash doesn’t really accomplish much toward a long-term solution because they just go out and blow it. That’s why we try to counsel them on making smart choices and talk to them about the right ways to spend money.”
Lighthouse Ministries is working on opening batting cages near its men’s shelter. Smith says the batting cages, which would be equipped with pitching machines for slow-pitch softball, would be perfect for players wanting to warm up before a game at the adjacent fairgrounds.
Tickets for the Apologetix concert can be purchased in advance at Exchange Furniture and the Lighthouse Ministries fireworks tent at Northgate Center. They can also be purchased at the door before the concert this Friday night at 8:30 p.m.