American Christian rock band Sanctus Real formed back in 1996 in Toledo, Ohio when Christian rock did not quite have the national attention it does now. Sanctus Real tickets have sold through the end of the grunge era, the boy band era, and in the 21st century.
The band is comprised of Matt Hammitt as the lead singer, Chris Rohman on lead guitar, Dan Gartley on bass, Pete Prevost on rhythm guitar, and Mark Grallman on drums. Along the way Steve Goodrum and Matt Kollar (two bassists) came and passed through the lineup.
Sanctus Real met in 1996 and released three albums independently before being picked up by Sparrow Records in 2002. The major label debut Say It Loud came out on Christmas Eve in 2002. The album neither charted nor earned any album sales certification, but the sophomore album Fight the Tide climbed the Christian albums to Number 23 and the Heatseekers to Number 38. The album earned the group a 2005 Dove Award nomination (which it won).
