Lift to Experience was a band from Denton, Texas, United States that formed in 1996 with vocalist and guitarist Josh T. Pearson, drummer Andy Young and bassist Josh Browning. When the band performed at the SXSW festival in 2000, they impressed Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie so much that the duo decided to sign the band to their record label, Bella Union, that same day. Lift to Experience's characteristic sound comes from a solo guitar with heavy use of effects pedals and a modified Leslie speaker. The band's major work, released in 2001, is The Texas Jerusalem Crossroads. The album's lyrics are replete with Biblical Christian imagery relating to the Second Coming of Christ and a professed love of Texas and the United States. The music features a multilayered Wall of Sound and feedback-driven aesthetic. According to their label, the band has no plans to reunite. Frontman Josh T. Pearson is currently pursuing a solo career, while Andy Young formed a project with Elbow frontman Guy Garvey, Western Arms. Young now has a band called The Flowers of God who released a four song EP in September 2010, and as of late 2011, Josh Browning also now plays bass in Fort Worth, Texas shoegaze-styled band Year of the Bear. http://bellaunion.com/artists/lift-to-experience
