Though he's no longer the lead singer for Sonicflood, Jeff Deyo is still very much immersed in worship music, as evidenced by his latest solo album, Saturate. It's clear that Jeff is most passionate about two things: his ministry as a worship artist and his family.

Can you give us a little background leading up to the creation of Saturate?

Jeff: I think the obvious connection point is my history with Sonicflood. I was very proud to be a part of that excellent band, and was really happy about being a big part of creating the sound and writing the songs. But some of the guys in the original Sonicflood band would honestly say they weren't big fans of the music. Two of the five of us were writing and creating the music and really loving it.

How do you describe what your album, Saturate, is like?

Jeff: To me, it's a follow-up or what you would expect after the first Sonicflood record. There are modern sounds with enough familiar sounds you're used to hearing if you love Sonicflood. The voice is obviously the same and the song-writing style is similar. It's just who I am, I can't help it.

To those who aren't familiar with Sonicflood, I'd describe this album as being very modern pop/rock. It's very vertical lyrically. I describe it as worship, but when I say that, what I mean is the songs are basically prayers set to music. So, anything you would pray to God, whether out of frustration or out of happiness or praise, [the band] tends to put that to music.

Who do people say you look like?

Jeff: Luke Perry, kind of 90210-ish.

What do you hope people will say about you someday?

Jeff: "He was faithful."

What's your best habit?

Jeff: Daily worship time.

If you owned your own record label, what three artists would you want on your label?

Jeff: Steven Curtis Chapman, Rebecca St. James, and Jonathan Lee.

What would you like less of in your life?

Jeff: Less misunderstanding with the Sonicflood thing.

What blessing in your life have you really appreciated lately?

Jeff: Ten years of marriage.

What do you think you should do better?

Jeff: I should be better at loving people.

What can't you live without?

Jeff: My wife.

If you could change one thing about your personality, what would it be?

Jeff: I would be more serving.

What would you like to invent someday … a better way to do what?

Jeff: A better system to get through rush hour traffic!

Getting the band together was an interesting process for Jeff. Here are a few stories of how two of the guys became a part of the band:

Fred Williams plays keyboards in the band, but he never expected to be where he is today. He went to Atlanta Fest 2000 and saw Sonicflood. He found out that Jeff Deyo wasn't a part of the group anymore and that he was involved with something called WorshipCityMinistries (WorshipCityPraise.com).

Fred visited Jeff's ministry's Web site and wrote an e-mail thanking him for his influence in his church's worship. Jeff responded with thanks and also asked if he knew of any keyboardists who might be interested in joining his band. Fred wrote back and said, "How about me?" They met the next day, and Fred played at a conference with Jeff at Purdue University the day after that.

Nate Winters now plays drums for the band. Jeff called a friend of Nate's about playing drums at an event. He wasn't able to play, so that friend mentioned Nate as a possibility. Jeff called him while he was at a baseball game and left a message. Nate called Jeff back, but learned the spot for a drummer had already been filled. So Nate went out and bought a cell phone right away in case Jeff called again, and he did. The first drummer didn't work out and Nate was ready this time to step in and become a permanent part of the band. That was two years ago.

To read our review of Jeff's solo debut, Saturate, click here. Visit Musicforce.com to purchase your own copy of Saturate today!

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