It’s the sixth night of the “What Are We Waiting For?” tour and Luke Smallbone is feeling good.
“We’ve gotten through the hard stuff,” Smallbone says while grabbing coffee. “We’re always grateful to be out on the road. We’ve switched the gear and have found our stride.”
Smallbone is one-half of the Grammy Award-winning Christian duo For King & Country. His brother, Joel, is the other half of the band.
The duo is currently on its 32-date arena tour, which makes a stop at Tingley Coliseum at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 19.
Getting back on tour is something Smallbone has longed for as the brothers released “What Are We Waiting For?” on March 11.
“We write these songs in these little rooms and in some cases they are your stories of hopes and dreams,” he says. “When you release it, it’s for the world to hear. So far, people have been very kind. Art is a subjective idea. In some cases, you can sign up for people getting really angry.”
Smallbone has never been one to shy away from risks when writing.
“Our hope is to make a piece of music in an album that tells a full story,” he says. “I want track eight and nine to be as important as one and five. Who wants the end of the story to be lame? We try to write albums that tell a complete story. One that will have some connection with an audience.”
Because of the pandemic, the Smallbone brothers had the opportunity to buckle down at home for six months in 2021.
“It was a gift,” Smallbone says. “We were all very settled and we’d be able to sleep on the songs and ideas. Then we’d get up and put holes into the songs that we wrote the previous day. It was the most enjoyable writing process.”
When writing the brothers always want to come from a place of transparency.
Smallbone wrote about his health battles.
“I’ve had some unique stuff take place in my life and I remember thinking, ‘Why do these things happen,’ ” he says. “When I started music, I felt God say to me that these things happen because these are stories that reflect hope. It’s real and it’s true.”
Over the course of the last decade, For King & Country’s profile has risen in music.
With the popularity, comes a new lens to closely watch the brothers.
Yet, Smallbone knows it’s part of the job.
In fact, he has learned how to balance it all.
“The pandemic taught me valuable lessons,” he says. “What I realize about being too busy is that it makes me a worse husband and father. It’s not good for my soul. My life shouldn’t be infiltrated by work. For the most part, when I’m home, I try not to work. We will have a family day.”
When the tour stops in Albuquerque, it will be like a homecoming.
“We’ve spent a lot of time in Albuquerque and we’ve really built a connection with the city,” Smallbone says. “We’ve shot a movie there and some other projects. It’s a special place for us.”
