When are you planning to have another tour? We would really like to know because there's nothing better than being at a live Delirious? concert!

We've got a one-off show at the London Forum on the 19th December. As for a tour, we're actually in the studio writing for another new album, and will be touring the UK at the end of next year (2003). There will probably also be performances at summer festivals next year.

Why do you hardly ever do “The Happy Song” at your gigs now 'coz that song's a classic!

“The Happy Song” has split the band in half. Half of us love it. Half of us hate it! We've done an update of it on the new live album, and we have done it live in America. Don't be surprised if it slips back in the next tour. For the record, I don't like country music!

An American subscriber has asked the following questions: "Why hasn't Audio Lessonover? been released yet in the US? We're desperate here!"

"When are you guys doing a real tour of the US (specifically Atlanta, Georgia)? We've seen you at Atlanta Fest, but you only got to play for like 45 minutes. Stop teasin' and start pleasin'! We want the three-hour Delirious? concert submersion!"

Audio Lessonover? was released in the States under a different title last Monday. It is called Touch. There's been some tweaks and remixes, and there’s the title track, “Touch”. If any UK fans want this different version of Audio Lessonover?, it is available through our webstore at www.delirious.co.uk

As for touring, we're getting too old for three hours! Good news for US fans: we're going to be touring out there next spring. It’ll be a month tour, and we should be hitting Atlanta, or somewhere near Atlanta.

If you could be anyone in the Bible, except Jesus, who would you be and why?

Anyone in the Bible? I was going to say God, but that's probably not the most spiritual of answers! Since I’m Jon the bassist, it’s got to be John the Baptist. I think John was often misunderstood, and often seen as a bit of a stranger, which I can relate to. I really respect him for cutting against the grain of society.

What advice would you give to a Christian teenager trying to walk the walk in school but is finding it hard?

You just have to be true to yourself, and be who God made you to be. Sometimes you're not going to get it right, but surround yourself with friends who are going to support you through good and bad.

Since you started ten years ago, how do you feel the Christian youth scene has changed in the UK, particularly with regards to worship?

Worship music has become a lot more credible, especially with youth. The youth of this generation seems to embrace and own youth music a lot more. When I was growing up, I thought worship was for middle aged people. It didn't connect with me. It was what they were into, and not what I was into. Now the lines are a lot more blurred. But remember that worship isn't a style of music; it's a lifestyle.

Obviously, one of the main aims of word-on-the-web is to encourage young people to read and explore their Bibles. What part does the Bible play in Delirious?

The Bible is an integral part of Delirious?, and a lot of what we write comes directly from the Bible. I think for young people it's actually quite hard focusing on the Bible sometimes, and I go through periods of being extremely into it, then it lies unread on my bedside table for a couple of months and I feel quilty! The One Year Bible is good for me. It makes me sit down and read it every day. I feel very rewarded when I do that.

In response to our review of Audio Lessonover?, there was much discussion on the word-on-the-web forum about your direction. Are you a worship band? A secular music band who happen to be Christians? What exactly is Delirious?

It's a question we ask ourselves a lot and are aware of. Our aim is not to confuse people. At the same time, we want to be obedient and do what God has called us to do. I think God is calling us to be ourselves. We are in a very interesting position: we're too Christian for the mainstream, and too mainstream for Christians. We're in the middle ground, and each way we go we seem to be offending people. We're not afraid of offending people as long as we’re in the centre of God's will, but we do sometimes get it wrong.

Who are Delirious? Worship, or mainstream? Hopefully, when you see us live, the whole thing makes sense. It is performance, and it is worship. On ACCESS:D there are worship songs like “I Could Sing of Your Love Forever” and “History Maker”, and songs that are comments on the world from a valid Christian view. Judging Delirious? from one album is a very hard thing to. With ACCESS:D, the whole back catalogue comes into focus.

Thank you, Jonathan, for chatting with us.  We enjoyed it!

Thank you. I run the Delirious? website, so I spend a lot of time at the computer. I will definitely be bookmarking the word-on-the-web site.

                                                             ~ word on the web

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