While Never Going Back to OK positions the band for additional general market success, The Afters are up for the challenge, and they’re having fun while they’re at it. Still, they take what they do very seriously.

Right underneath all the joking and quipping, it’s easy to unearth the hearts of these four men. Just ask them about their musical heroes.

Brad: “The 77’s. Just the way he [Mike Roe] captured all the different ways it feels to be human … so many facets of human emotion [he] put into words. …”

Matt: “Rich Mullins, and just his commitment to charity and humility … Just listening to his music; it was so passionate, you could just tell that he really loved Jesus.”

Marc: “Geoff Moore [now the band’s manager] … He has shown me ways to, while on the road and having a family at home, how to make those things balance and to just take care of those things.”

Josh: “Michael W. Smith … I was a huge Smitty fan as a child … I just have a lot of respect for the way he has conducted his career and family and balanced that over the years. Even as a kid, I love how he had a desire to not only edify believers from the church, but he reached outside that and … made music that was relevant to the culture at the time.” The Afters’ own mission looks ironically similar.

One of the common qualities among these influences includes that precarious balance between life on the road and family back home—something all four guys deal with daily. All are married and quick to gush about their kids.

“The Afters are [my 4-year-old son’s] heroes,” Josh says. “He always talks about Marc, Brad, Matt and Daddy … He came up to me after practice and said, ‘Daddy, can you take a picture of me with The Afters?’”

Marc adds, “[My daughters] don’t care that I’m in a band, nor do their friends. They just know that I know the Jonas Brothers. That’s all they care about.”

Beautiful Words

Don’t be fooled by all the good humor. These guys have worked hard, and it hasn’t been easy. Need evidence? Look no further than the band’s new disc.

“I think one of the big goals that we had for this record, we already accomplished,” says Josh. “We set out to make what we thought was a stronger record than our first one, and I think we all agree that this album is a big step forward for us.” The band gives major props to producer Dan Muckala (Backstreet Boys, Nick Lachey, Brandon Heath) for helping with that leap. “Dan pushed us to search deep and write about things that are really important to us,” says Josh.

Muckala says OK reflects who The Afters truly are: “What makes me so excited about this record is that The Afters pushed themselves to go to the next level while still delivering songs that embody exactly who they are as a band.”