Born for a Bigger Purpose: Bourneforyou Speaks of God's Calling & Their New EP

By Timothy Yap May 16, 2014 06:48 AM EDT

Bourneforyou is a new Christian rock/pop band that comprises of Jared Ostrander, Jorge Miranda, Cody Austin, Jenn Walters, and Brandon Gilzean. "Born to Life" is their brand new EP that comprises of 4 brand new cuts coming from the band. Already making head way into the airwaves is the single "We (Our Lives Given)." Utilizing Isaiah 61 as its template, "We (Our Lives Given)" succinctly sums up the ministry of Jesus to the broken, the brokenhearted and the prisoners over a hook laden mid-tempo number. We are honored to be able to chat with Brandon Gilzean for this Hallels' exclusive interview:

Hallels: Thank you Brandon for your time. For our readers who may not be familiar with your music, tell us who is Bourneforyou?

Hi Hallels! Now this is a good question! We are a band whose sole purpose is to create music for those who have ever felt lost and alone. The definition of Bourne means "Goal" or "Destination" and with that said, our goal with this band is to illustrate that there is more to this life than what we do or see. We can be born again and find that peace and hope that we're looking for.
We've all experienced times where it seems that God doesn't care or is far away from us, but we truly believe that He longs for a relationship with us. We have accepted that love and all we want to do is reach out to those who are longing to be adopted. We are bourneforyou.

Hallels: How did you feel the Lord's calling into music?

This is another good question. This is basically my testimony of my heart for worship. In 2008, I was attending UCF and I was about to get kicked out of college for my grades. I was also researching as a Software engineer and I remember the professor telling me that I wasn't going to make it is a software engineer. Along with everything else, my parents were divorced. I was done with God (so I thought), I had enough. I needed to see if God was real or some made up crutch to keep people going. So one night I cried out to Him and it was then that I felt this peace come over me. My only response was to worship! My roommate had an electric guitar. I would pick it up and play for hours literally! That's when my heart for worship through music really took form. I joined a worship team and ever since then I have been sold out for Christ! Music/worship to me is not just music, it's a life style and a response to what Christ has done for me. I live to bring him praise!

Hallels: Tell us a little about how you come to the making of your EP. What were some of the joys and challenges in the recording of this EP?

We have been a band for less than a year now and we've been playing in a lot of venues, retreats, young adult ministries and other opportunities that have allowed us to use our gifts for the Great I Am. But we felt that God was calling us to reach a larger audience. So we prayed about it and began to truly start taking on the tasks of creating the EP. To be honest, I would say that the most joy I've had in regards to making this EP is spending time with the members of this Band. We've truly begun to really grow as believers and as friends! Having the ability to pray for one another and share in each other's hurts
and happiness makes this EP so much more real. As far as the challenges, since this is the first time we've recorded and released something this big, it was hard to not be a perfectionist. As one of our band members said, the main thing we've learned in this process is to trust God for small beginnings. Our hope for this EP is that people's lives are changed by being encouraged to turn to Christ in all their situations. We have hope in Him and He is the anchor for our souls!

Hallels: How would you describe your sound and music?

Well, I think our sound is unique but not foreign. :) Basically, we love to rock out. From solos to drum fills, bass riffs, and harmonies we try to engage the listener in many ways. Our vocals represent a little salt and pepper (literally). Jenn has more of contemporary vouice and I'm more Jazzy but, we enjoy singing together! Our music and lyrics could be illustrated by this statement; "In a night sky, the moon is the lyrics and the oceans waves are the instruments". We love what we do and that is definitely heard through our music and sound.

Hallels: "We (Our Lives Given)" is your new single. What is this song about?

Yes, I was waiting for this question!! We (Our Lives Given) has got to be the favorite song on the EP. This song is essentially about the lost and the lonely. The verses describe a person who is beat down by society and their sins. In this generation, we tend to look away and just go about our business, losing sight of those who are truly hurting. For this song, we were thinking about the Good Samaritan. We truly have the opportunity to be God's hands and feet! He knocks on our heart, the question is, are we willing to let him in? We are, and we want our lives to be given to Him and seek out those who are lost and bring them home!