Preamble: So when I said this would be up 'next week,' (*cough* several weeks ago...) I apparently forgot that I was doing NaNoWriMo, a full college class schedule, a book report, and rehearsing for/participating in a musical which ran four times over three days. So, obviously, this review was not real high on the priority list there for a while. But it's here now. I still feel it doesn't do the album total justice, but if I wait till I have time to really listen to it another four or five times, we'll probably be into mid-February. So here you go. Enjoy.
Remember John Schlitt? The voice of Petra since 1986's Back To The Street? Yeah, well, his new album came out a few weeks back -- a Christmas album.
I have to be honest: though I supported the Kickstarter campaign, I wasn't entirely sure if I would like this. I've heard Christmas rock music and so far it has all sucked. Remember the band formerly known as Newsboys? tobyMac? Yeah... some artists/bands just weren't cut out for Christmas music. I doubted John's gravelly voice could take these stalwart carols and not take something away from them. Rock is one thing, Christmas is another.
What first struck me when I got the advance download was the track list. This is not your run-of-the-mill Christmas album. No Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree, no Jingle Bell Rock, not even Joy To The World or Angels We Have Heard On High or Away In A Manger. (Can this legally be sold in Christian bookstores?)
Nope, he went way back to the beautiful old Christmas songs that are familiar but, by and large, haven't been bludgeoned to death yet by hundreds of mediocre CCM arrangements. In addition, there are two original songs (That Spirit Of Christmas and What Christmas Needs To Be).
And now, for the track-by-track fangirling *cough* I mean breakdown of John Schlitt's The Christmas Project.
Hallelujah Chorus -- The following is my word-for-word reaction to hearing this song for the first time: 'HOLY DEUCE WHAT THE CRAP WAS THAT AMAZINGNESS THAT MY EARS JUST WITNESSED?' (Seriously.) This. Is. Perfect. This may border on sacrilegious, but I think I like this version better than the original Handel arrangement (though that may be because of my predetermined taste for rock music). It opens with John singing And He shall reign forever and ever a cappella, and then repeating the phrase again and again, singing the different parts and then they start to be layered. Even if he had done the whole song like that, that would have been lovely enough. But it gets better.
As he sings those parts, some kind of harpsichord or something fades in (it's all very Christmas-y), and then suddenly the rocker voice all Petheads know explodes through the speakers: King of kings! and then the electric guitar and the drums come in behind the choir parts. (Also, I'm a soprano and I'm a tiny bit jealous of the notes he hits here. Simply impressive.) Then it becomes a solid rocker of a song, fancy electric guitar work, rollicking drums, stuff that will get you headbanging.
Phenomenal opening song. Ladies and gentlemen, make way: The Christmas Project has arrived.
Do You Hear What I Hear? -- Then with the sound of barnyard animals, we hear a juvenile voice reading the classic Luke passage. Then turns into an upbeat rock sort of thing. It feels quite current, actually (though I'm not exactly on the cusp of current music, CCM or not, so I may be completely out to lunch on that assessment). I've never really liked this song (lyrically) to begin with, so I'm finding it hard to judge this version objectively. But it's easy to move around to and it does feature a pretty decent guitar solo (and the verse right after that is backed by only drums, which is cool, and then a little bit of bass work).
Little Drummer Boy -- This is perhaps the most mainstream song used on the album. Yes, it starts with a drum roll. And the drumming continues with a nice open feel to it, and a melancholy keyboard (or perhaps it's strings), and the vocals come in low and gentle. The song is done faster than most artists do it, and it actually works rather well. After the second verse, it builds a little and yes, there's some guitar, but it's not as in your face like most rock versions of this song. The focus is John's versatile powerhouse voice. Does it top the White Heart version? No... but it's pretty darn good.
O Holy Night -- This one is really pretty. Nice and gentle. John has quite a nice not-rock voice, though the processing it's given in the 'chorus' of this song seems a bit unnecessary. This is a guy who actually can do the full-on screaming rock songs (Mine Field with Petra being perhaps the best example) and the gentle Christmas carols and be equally powerful on both fronts. That takes more skill than I think a lot of us realise. This song doesn't stand out as 'holy crap this is spectacular,' but it is exactly what this song should be (unless you're in the Christmas musical that I was a part of this past weekend, where we did this song with dancers and a full orchestra and a hundred-ish voice choir and there may or may not have been fireworks involved). Gentle but quietly powerful, building a little, now softening a bit, the dynamics just naturally following the contour of the lyric. This is a great song/version of it for just sitting and staring out the window on a clear winter night and looking up at the stars (or at the Christmas tree in the front window of the house across the street, as the case may be). And it even closes with the sound of distant church bells. What more could you ask for?
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen -- It starts out as what could be called a brooding rock song, but with more energy and a deceptively light and airy vocal. You just know it's going to explode, and it does after the first verse with guitars and strings and drums and it's beautiful. This feels a lot like his previous album The Greater Cause. This song actually works well as a rock song. The strings in the background take it from mere 'rock song' to 'symphonic energetic Christmas rock song.' Then with one last cry, the song screeches almost but not quite to a halt and fades out as daintily as the snowflakes dancing in the night.
Good Christian Men Rejoice -- Ah, yes, traditional jingle bells opening the song. But then it turns into a great rollicking, toe-tapping, hand-clapping song with some pretty nice guitar work weaving through the background. The choreographer in me would like to add that this has 'tap dance' written all over it.
That Spirit Of Christmas -- Then we take it down a notch with a mellow, almost bluesy sort of tune (disclaimer: I know exactly nothing about blues). It reminds me of the filler tracks from Petra's mellower years in the late '90s. It's probably a good sitting-by-the-fireplace-with-some-hot-chocolate kind of song. Decent, but not my proverbial cup of tea.
We Three Kings -- The piano riff that starts this is beautifully warm and haunting. It makes me think of the cold winter nights with the clear sky in a wide expanse above a snowy landscape. Nice moody electric guitar work. And, of course, the strings in the interlude. I can't put it into words, but the instrumentation is just perfect for the song (until the last chorus, when it somehow feels a little harsh, but then it melts back into that pretty piano riff again).
What Christmas Needs To Be -- It just sounds happy and fun. I like the guitar riff. Not so much the backing vocals. I don't know why, they just don't work for me.
What Child Is This? -- More pretty piano! I've never heard so much piano on a rock album (or even some Christmas albums). It's really nice. It builds subtly in the chorus -- subtly but powerfully. For the third verse, everything stops and then John's gentle voice comes back in with only a little piano, which makes the final chorus stand out more
Overall, this album far exceeded my expectations. Finally, another Christmas album that won't wear out within one year of purchase. (The list of year-in/year-out classics is almost devastatingly small.)
Buy the album on his website here (you can also preview the entire thing on that page). Available on iTunes here.
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
13 December 2013
26 July 2013
Music Day
So now that I told you all about the awesomeness of Crumbächer's Incandescent in a different post, thereby leaving nothing to add to any further posts, now they release the album on the Frontline Records website. Thanks guys... you couldn't do this a month ago when I had a good promotion post all ready to go...
Anyway...
So it's not on iTunes (not in Canada anyway, because apparently it's dangerous to give Canadians good music), but you can still download it from a legal place, so I'm going to tell you about it anyway.
(EDIT: It's now on iTunes Canada!)
The label's website doesn't appear to have an 'individual song' option, but really, six bucks for an LP is nothing to sneeze at. And it's a solid LP -- there's really only one track that one could take out of the album (lyrically). So I'm going to do a full album review on it, just because I can, and also because the site doesn't let you download individual tracks (at least it doesn't appear to) so it'd be kind of pointless to just focus on one song here.
(EDIT: The Frontline webstore is currently under construction, so this is currently not available on their site. Refer to the iTunes link if you want to buy it.)
Before I start, a couple of things you should know -- this is eighties. This is keyboard heavy. And it's not exactly deep, theologically. Don't expect John Piper. Don't expect big intense guitar solos.
Song titles link to YouTube videos.
Understudy -- I love the interlude in this one -- the high-pitched keyboard line. I like the echo on the vocal in this one. In fact, I like how Stephen Crumbächer's voice isn't real spectacular (unlike a certain White Heart vocalist...), but it's still so endearing. I don't know how he pulls it off.
Infrared X-Ray Eyes -- This is probably the most pop-fluffy song on the album, lyrically (not to mention a little creepy-sounding to modern ears), but it's got a good funky sound to it and Dawn's backing vocal in the choruses are nice.
Glowing In The Dark -- This is the song I got the album for. I'd heard it on classicchristian247.com and loved it, mostly for the drum hits at the beginning of the verses and the syncopated keyboard riff after said drum hits. And the keyboard motif employed throughout. Only after the album was mine did I pick up on the huge words this song employs (when was the last time you heard the word phosphorescence in a song?). Being a writer/English nerd, that alone scored this song a few points.
So Strange -- My sister's favourite. This song kicks up into full throttle right out of the gate, with that rapid-fire drum/cymbal intro. The more-prominent electric guitar beefs up the song too. I particularly like the key change and higher vocal dynamics in the pre-choruses (And oh; What is this I'm feeling down inside...). The little kind of 'rock-out' after the false ending is cool too, if a little odd.
It Don't Matter -- A nice perky opening leads into some nice fuzzy guitar chords and then an intriguing staccato vocal -- it's almost a rap, it's fast enough (actually I've heard rappers slower than this). I really like that vocal interplay that starts at the end of the second chorus -- Stephen and Dawn layering the line never fall away. The harmony through the choruses is nice too.
Jamie -- I've talked about the music video for this one before, but I didn't really mention the song. This one starts out relatively slowly (in relation to the rest of the album), but never fear -- after a few dramatic-key-chord seconds to build things up a little, the drumsticks go 'one two three four' and the song kicks up into its groove. It doesn't sound as finessed as some of the other tracks, but its drive makes up for it. That and the keyboard motif... *swoons* Having watched the music video makes the lyrics so much more poignant. Probably the deepest and most beautiful lyrics on the album.
Sweet By & By -- I love this mostly because it bucks the trend so intensely. I mean, the lyrics are straight out a church hymnal (literally -- I looked in an actual hymnal). Any Baptist worth their salt knows the harmonies and parts of this song so they can sing it at funerals (yes, I know the ladies' part and have since I was a child). The hymnal version is quite nice and I do like it, but it's just so cool to watch this eighties keyboard band take it and absolutely turn it on its head. The rhythm, the melody, the mood -- all of that is completely different from what you hear in the churches. All that remains of the actual hymn are the lyrics. I like what they did with this though. He sings almost an alto-type part as the lead vocal. The 'flat' vocal and the shimmering key chords give the verses almost a haunting sound. It seems an odd style choice, actually, since the lyrics are supposed to be rather hope-filled.
Track You Down -- Possibly my favourite from this album. So. Catchy. It's fast, driving, and technically excellent. I really like Dawn's vocals on this one -- gives the song a completely different, 'lighter' dimension. The song would be flat and forgettable without those backing vocals. I also find it funny thinking about how creepy this song sounds to people today who have never heard it before. This song would never have been conceived in today's age of Facebook, Internet privacy concerns, texting/sexting, and the constant fear of being stalked. Since I tend to keep a more level head about these things than most (mostly because I tend to avoid being an idiot on the Internet), I get to enjoy this song without being all creeped out.
Album title: Incandescent
Artist: Crumbächer
Year: 1985
Label: Originally released on Broken Records, re-release on Frontline.
iTunes here.
Anyway...
So it's not on iTunes (not in Canada anyway, because apparently it's dangerous to give Canadians good music), but you can still download it from a legal place, so I'm going to tell you about it anyway.
(EDIT: It's now on iTunes Canada!)
The label's website doesn't appear to have an 'individual song' option, but really, six bucks for an LP is nothing to sneeze at. And it's a solid LP -- there's really only one track that one could take out of the album (lyrically). So I'm going to do a full album review on it, just because I can, and also because the site doesn't let you download individual tracks (at least it doesn't appear to) so it'd be kind of pointless to just focus on one song here.
(EDIT: The Frontline webstore is currently under construction, so this is currently not available on their site. Refer to the iTunes link if you want to buy it.)
Before I start, a couple of things you should know -- this is eighties. This is keyboard heavy. And it's not exactly deep, theologically. Don't expect John Piper. Don't expect big intense guitar solos.
Song titles link to YouTube videos.
Understudy -- I love the interlude in this one -- the high-pitched keyboard line. I like the echo on the vocal in this one. In fact, I like how Stephen Crumbächer's voice isn't real spectacular (unlike a certain White Heart vocalist...), but it's still so endearing. I don't know how he pulls it off.
Infrared X-Ray Eyes -- This is probably the most pop-fluffy song on the album, lyrically (not to mention a little creepy-sounding to modern ears), but it's got a good funky sound to it and Dawn's backing vocal in the choruses are nice.
Glowing In The Dark -- This is the song I got the album for. I'd heard it on classicchristian247.com and loved it, mostly for the drum hits at the beginning of the verses and the syncopated keyboard riff after said drum hits. And the keyboard motif employed throughout. Only after the album was mine did I pick up on the huge words this song employs (when was the last time you heard the word phosphorescence in a song?). Being a writer/English nerd, that alone scored this song a few points.
So Strange -- My sister's favourite. This song kicks up into full throttle right out of the gate, with that rapid-fire drum/cymbal intro. The more-prominent electric guitar beefs up the song too. I particularly like the key change and higher vocal dynamics in the pre-choruses (And oh; What is this I'm feeling down inside...). The little kind of 'rock-out' after the false ending is cool too, if a little odd.
It Don't Matter -- A nice perky opening leads into some nice fuzzy guitar chords and then an intriguing staccato vocal -- it's almost a rap, it's fast enough (actually I've heard rappers slower than this). I really like that vocal interplay that starts at the end of the second chorus -- Stephen and Dawn layering the line never fall away. The harmony through the choruses is nice too.
Jamie -- I've talked about the music video for this one before, but I didn't really mention the song. This one starts out relatively slowly (in relation to the rest of the album), but never fear -- after a few dramatic-key-chord seconds to build things up a little, the drumsticks go 'one two three four' and the song kicks up into its groove. It doesn't sound as finessed as some of the other tracks, but its drive makes up for it. That and the keyboard motif... *swoons* Having watched the music video makes the lyrics so much more poignant. Probably the deepest and most beautiful lyrics on the album.
Sweet By & By -- I love this mostly because it bucks the trend so intensely. I mean, the lyrics are straight out a church hymnal (literally -- I looked in an actual hymnal). Any Baptist worth their salt knows the harmonies and parts of this song so they can sing it at funerals (yes, I know the ladies' part and have since I was a child). The hymnal version is quite nice and I do like it, but it's just so cool to watch this eighties keyboard band take it and absolutely turn it on its head. The rhythm, the melody, the mood -- all of that is completely different from what you hear in the churches. All that remains of the actual hymn are the lyrics. I like what they did with this though. He sings almost an alto-type part as the lead vocal. The 'flat' vocal and the shimmering key chords give the verses almost a haunting sound. It seems an odd style choice, actually, since the lyrics are supposed to be rather hope-filled.
Track You Down -- Possibly my favourite from this album. So. Catchy. It's fast, driving, and technically excellent. I really like Dawn's vocals on this one -- gives the song a completely different, 'lighter' dimension. The song would be flat and forgettable without those backing vocals. I also find it funny thinking about how creepy this song sounds to people today who have never heard it before. This song would never have been conceived in today's age of Facebook, Internet privacy concerns, texting/sexting, and the constant fear of being stalked. Since I tend to keep a more level head about these things than most (mostly because I tend to avoid being an idiot on the Internet), I get to enjoy this song without being all creeped out.
Album title: Incandescent
Artist: Crumbächer
Year: 1985
Label: Originally released on Broken Records, re-release on Frontline.
iTunes here.
03 July 2013
Bonus Music Day!
Okay, so this is kind of a cheater Music Day post because I can't post any links yet (not even YouTube -- this is so hot off the press YouTube doesn't have it yet). But it's too exciting to not talk about.
Yes, folks -- I have heard the new Daniel Amos album.
Literally two hours after my 'official' Music Day post last week Friday (the 21st), Daniel Amos posted on Facebook that the download link for the Kickstarter supporters was coming soon. I was going to leave it till the next day, but then I saw someone in the comments say that had downloaded it already.
No way... It couldn't be...
I checked my email. Sure enough, there was a download link. Cue the suppressed screaming (it was one in the morning, after all...).
Before I begin, it's worth noting that (for those who missed it), I'm a DA fan as of February of this year. I've had to cram their entire thirty-plus year career into the last five months. Therefore, I don't know everything there is to know about them and their songs (yet). I'm fairly well-acquainted with their eighties stuff, but once we get into the nineties my knowledge drops to almost nothing. I haven't heard Mr Buechner's Dream (their previous album) in its entirety, but I've taken a cursory listening of... probably about half of the songs on it.
I'm dithering. Can you tell I'm dithering? Reviewing something so fantastic is psyching me out because there's no way I'll ever be able to do it justice (to read reviews by better-versed music fans, see the links at the bottom of this post).
*deep breath*
Overall -- this thing is amazing and I love it. It sounds like nothing else I've ever heard. Ever. Timeless stuff -- the best there is.
Also, keyboards! Pretty keyboards! Oh man, some of the keyboard work is gorgeous... I'll get into that more when I talk about the specific songs (I'm definitely going to run out of adjectives). In fact, every instrument is spectacular here. One could probably take lessons from these guys just by listening to this album on repeat.
Lyrically, the album talks about death and dying quite a bit, but one of the first impressions I got of the overall album was how hope-filled it is. There just seems to be an air of hope, of quiet rest in God and His plan. (Also, current CCM 'artists' (and I use the term very loosely) -- note that not once does Terry use the words 'don't you know He loves you?' or 'just lean on Him' as if the listener is a complete idiot (though said listener apparently somehow knows the magnitude of God's love, as it's never explained in those songs).)
Forward In Reverse -- The album starts out with a gentle acoustic guitar and then a pretty flutish sound, and then that familiar voice begins singing... a wonderfully poetic list of clichés, flipped backwards and twisted slightly. In the second verse, a horn of some kind comes in, adding a bit of whimsy. As I listen to it again, it inexplicably makes me think of Dr Seuss (don't even try to understand why -- I don't). And I totally love the whooshing sound effect after the second chorus -- a great sonic interpretation of the title.
Jesus Wept -- Oh man... the keyboard melody in the 'let me out... no not yet' bit. The guitar is wonderfully fuzzy (and not overpowering) and I like the drumming. Gorgeous, gorgeous poetic imagery here: I pound against the walls of my aging skin... Who'll untie the ropes that restrain my wings... They mounted up like eagles; now they're dropping like flies... It's kind of odd, hearing melancholy lyrics in such an upbeat song, but it's not without hope: Before He danced, Jesus wept. Speaking as a young adult whose life is in total upheaval right now, I'm very thankful for that reminder.
Dig Here Said The Angel -- Best. Intro. Ever. I think it's backmasking. Whatever it is, it's awesome. And then the bass (I think) comes growling in over the backmasking (I think it's a guitar going backwards -- or perhaps forward in reverse?*). And then they start humming. I'm a sucker for the humming thing, I don't know why. Maybe because it's so rare. I love that he doesn't start singing until the minute and a half mark -- just lets the intro do its thing first. The guitar here is so so cool... the distortion. And in the chorus, the keyboard -- almost sci-fi like, piping, flutish. You know, all that 'sonic' futuristic stuff everybody did in the mid-eighties and early nineties? It's kind of like that. And the harmony in the last chorus -- so pretty. And then they hum it out with some nice deep rolling drum hits before falling back into the backmasking to end the song. Epic song. I could fly on this song.
Our New Testament Best -- Man, the groove... between the bass and Terry's low vocals, your foot will be tapping. And the keyboards after the second chorus... It's the sound of falling rain. Seriously. My heart stops every time. I wish it would last longer, but the fact that it's so fleeting makes it more beautiful when you get to hear it. And then the guitar comes in over the rain sound and then the song kicks up a bit into the chorus repeats.
Love Grace And Mercy -- This one was an instant favourite, as soon as the vocalising started before the first verse. This sounds more like the Terry I'm used to (in the eighties, with the higher voice). Also, my favourite lyric of the entire album is in here: 'Love grace and mercy; They shake me to the core; Lift me higher than a kite then; Leave me crawling on the floor.' So accurate. The mix of fuzzy guitar and bells in the interlude (and later in the ending) absolutely makes the song.
Bit of a heads-up here: There's this one line -- So to hell with my excuses... I don't know if the word hell in that context is really an issue anymore in the age of Facebook where every other post contains the f-word, but it's something to keep in mind if you happen to have young children living in the house or something.
Now That I've Died -- This one surprised me musically. I wasn't expecting something quite that rock-y. (You'd think I'd know better than to judge a song -- especially one with Terry Scott Taylor's fingerprints on it -- by its title.) It's one of the rockiest songs on the album. At first I thought he was talking about dying to self (the Biblical teaching of turning away from evil desires and instead pursuing the things of God), but on reading the lyrics, it also kind of sounds like he's talking as if he were in Heaven, trying to describe it to someone still on earth. I quite enjoy his delivery of the title line, and the line I'm never cynical (but still a little sarcastic) is perhaps the funniest on the album (especially in the context of Terry's past work, like, say, the ¡Alarma! Chronicles or his solo album The Miracle Faith Telethon). I like the ending, when they get into that I've never been more alive/Now that I've died vocal layering. And I like the keyboards in that part too.
We'll All Know Soon Enough -- I'm still microanalysing this song lyrically. Even knowing TST's lyrical bent for sarcasm (but not cynicism, of course...) in all forms, it was quite a shock to my Baptist-raised reformed-theology-nerd-in-training ears to hear the line 'There may be no heaven, no no no; There may be no hell, no...' I think -- I think -- he may be taking the perspective of a person trying to 'use' God to have a comfortable life (á la Angels Tuck You In and New Car!**) and then being disappointed when God doesn't answer his every prayer with a 'yes.' Yet the verses seem so sincere and well-rooted that it's a bit of a stretch to take the chorus (and the line quoted above) as anything less sincere and Biblically accurate. The bass and drum drive of the verses is cool though, and I quite like the effect of the synthesized vocal in the bridge. Listening to that through headphones is so cool -- the vocal comes only through the right speaker, and the sparse instrumentation comes only through the left. Actually, the first time I heard this I found out later I'd had my earbuds mixed up so I heard the vocal through my left ear. I think I now have to switch my earbuds whenever I hear this song because it sounds wrong with the vocal in my right ear.
Waking Up Under Water -- This song doesn't gently ease you into things. It grabs and doesn't let go. It starts with a blasting guitar, and then a driving beat and such an honest lyric -- about trying to escape real life by daydreaming. Lyrically, this could almost have fit on Doppelgänger. The bass is fantastic, just rocks along.
The Uses Of Adversity -- Am I the only one who hears a Newsboys vibe in that guitar bit between the verses? Actually, the Newsboys feel surfaces several times throughout the song. It's a beautiful lyric, though. Very poetic, and lovely, if painful, in its surrender to the supremacy of God (So don't send me rain if I bloom in drought...).
The Ruthless Hum Of Dread -- I think I may forever be calling this one 'The Ruthless Drum of Ed' after that one YouTube video they posted of Ed McTaggert doing drums for this. Very well-orchestrated... sparse instrumentation, soft vocals. It's delivered like a lullaby, only the protagonist can't shake the fears that run through his head as he tries to sleep (...night fears slip in between hissing sheets and springs; And in the folds of my sibilant bed...). The third verse is gorgeous -- the drumming stops, and only the odd piano chord backs the vocals. Some of the imagery in the last verse reminds me of the lyrical content of Terry's solo albums Knowledge & Innocence (1986) and A Briefing For The Ascent (1987). Melancholy but chock-full of wonderful poetic imagery.
The Sun Shines On Everyone -- A bit of an anthem, feeling almost like a reprise more than a closing track. It's already becoming quite a favourite among the DA fans on Facebook, but it drags a bit for me. To be honest I've yet to properly focus on this song from start to finish because of that. The lyrics are nice though. Perhaps it'll grow on me yet.
Honestly, I don't think there's a throwaway lyric on the entire album, and there is nothing, musically, that doesn't feel perfect throughout (though I found the studio applause at the end of the last song cheesy, but that's neither music nor lyric.)
I would have loved to have gone more in-depth with this (I could probably write a thesis on this album), but I will have to click the 'Publish' button in spite of the perfectionist in my mind screaming for me to revise some more, or else this will never get posted. Perhaps at a later date, once I've had more time to listen and memorise and find nuances and simply enjoy it, I'll revisit the album on this blog. But for now, this is what you get, plus a recommendation from yours truly to buy it when it releases later this summer (they gave a tentative date for August). Or at the very least, buy the title track and Love, Grace, And Mercy. After that, the next two you should buy are Jesus Wept and Waking Up Under Water. And after that, you need to just give up and buy the CD.
* I can't even take credit for this pun -- I saw it on the DA Facebook page, though using it to describe backmasking was my idea.
** Both songs from Doppelgänger, 1983.
Other album reviews (as posted by the Daniel Amos Facebook page -- I have no idea what else is on these sites):
More Of Dave
The Phantom Tollbooth
Popdose (includes an interview with Terry Taylor)
Into The Son
Examiner.com
Another from Examiner.com
Down The Line Magazine
Yes, folks -- I have heard the new Daniel Amos album.
Literally two hours after my 'official' Music Day post last week Friday (the 21st), Daniel Amos posted on Facebook that the download link for the Kickstarter supporters was coming soon. I was going to leave it till the next day, but then I saw someone in the comments say that had downloaded it already.
No way... It couldn't be...
I checked my email. Sure enough, there was a download link. Cue the suppressed screaming (it was one in the morning, after all...).
Before I begin, it's worth noting that (for those who missed it), I'm a DA fan as of February of this year. I've had to cram their entire thirty-plus year career into the last five months. Therefore, I don't know everything there is to know about them and their songs (yet). I'm fairly well-acquainted with their eighties stuff, but once we get into the nineties my knowledge drops to almost nothing. I haven't heard Mr Buechner's Dream (their previous album) in its entirety, but I've taken a cursory listening of... probably about half of the songs on it.
I'm dithering. Can you tell I'm dithering? Reviewing something so fantastic is psyching me out because there's no way I'll ever be able to do it justice (to read reviews by better-versed music fans, see the links at the bottom of this post).
*deep breath*
Overall -- this thing is amazing and I love it. It sounds like nothing else I've ever heard. Ever. Timeless stuff -- the best there is.
Also, keyboards! Pretty keyboards! Oh man, some of the keyboard work is gorgeous... I'll get into that more when I talk about the specific songs (I'm definitely going to run out of adjectives). In fact, every instrument is spectacular here. One could probably take lessons from these guys just by listening to this album on repeat.
Lyrically, the album talks about death and dying quite a bit, but one of the first impressions I got of the overall album was how hope-filled it is. There just seems to be an air of hope, of quiet rest in God and His plan. (Also, current CCM 'artists' (and I use the term very loosely) -- note that not once does Terry use the words 'don't you know He loves you?' or 'just lean on Him' as if the listener is a complete idiot (though said listener apparently somehow knows the magnitude of God's love, as it's never explained in those songs).)
Forward In Reverse -- The album starts out with a gentle acoustic guitar and then a pretty flutish sound, and then that familiar voice begins singing... a wonderfully poetic list of clichés, flipped backwards and twisted slightly. In the second verse, a horn of some kind comes in, adding a bit of whimsy. As I listen to it again, it inexplicably makes me think of Dr Seuss (don't even try to understand why -- I don't). And I totally love the whooshing sound effect after the second chorus -- a great sonic interpretation of the title.
Jesus Wept -- Oh man... the keyboard melody in the 'let me out... no not yet' bit. The guitar is wonderfully fuzzy (and not overpowering) and I like the drumming. Gorgeous, gorgeous poetic imagery here: I pound against the walls of my aging skin... Who'll untie the ropes that restrain my wings... They mounted up like eagles; now they're dropping like flies... It's kind of odd, hearing melancholy lyrics in such an upbeat song, but it's not without hope: Before He danced, Jesus wept. Speaking as a young adult whose life is in total upheaval right now, I'm very thankful for that reminder.
Dig Here Said The Angel -- Best. Intro. Ever. I think it's backmasking. Whatever it is, it's awesome. And then the bass (I think) comes growling in over the backmasking (I think it's a guitar going backwards -- or perhaps forward in reverse?*). And then they start humming. I'm a sucker for the humming thing, I don't know why. Maybe because it's so rare. I love that he doesn't start singing until the minute and a half mark -- just lets the intro do its thing first. The guitar here is so so cool... the distortion. And in the chorus, the keyboard -- almost sci-fi like, piping, flutish. You know, all that 'sonic' futuristic stuff everybody did in the mid-eighties and early nineties? It's kind of like that. And the harmony in the last chorus -- so pretty. And then they hum it out with some nice deep rolling drum hits before falling back into the backmasking to end the song. Epic song. I could fly on this song.
Our New Testament Best -- Man, the groove... between the bass and Terry's low vocals, your foot will be tapping. And the keyboards after the second chorus... It's the sound of falling rain. Seriously. My heart stops every time. I wish it would last longer, but the fact that it's so fleeting makes it more beautiful when you get to hear it. And then the guitar comes in over the rain sound and then the song kicks up a bit into the chorus repeats.
Love Grace And Mercy -- This one was an instant favourite, as soon as the vocalising started before the first verse. This sounds more like the Terry I'm used to (in the eighties, with the higher voice). Also, my favourite lyric of the entire album is in here: 'Love grace and mercy; They shake me to the core; Lift me higher than a kite then; Leave me crawling on the floor.' So accurate. The mix of fuzzy guitar and bells in the interlude (and later in the ending) absolutely makes the song.
Bit of a heads-up here: There's this one line -- So to hell with my excuses... I don't know if the word hell in that context is really an issue anymore in the age of Facebook where every other post contains the f-word, but it's something to keep in mind if you happen to have young children living in the house or something.
Now That I've Died -- This one surprised me musically. I wasn't expecting something quite that rock-y. (You'd think I'd know better than to judge a song -- especially one with Terry Scott Taylor's fingerprints on it -- by its title.) It's one of the rockiest songs on the album. At first I thought he was talking about dying to self (the Biblical teaching of turning away from evil desires and instead pursuing the things of God), but on reading the lyrics, it also kind of sounds like he's talking as if he were in Heaven, trying to describe it to someone still on earth. I quite enjoy his delivery of the title line, and the line I'm never cynical (but still a little sarcastic) is perhaps the funniest on the album (especially in the context of Terry's past work, like, say, the ¡Alarma! Chronicles or his solo album The Miracle Faith Telethon). I like the ending, when they get into that I've never been more alive/Now that I've died vocal layering. And I like the keyboards in that part too.
We'll All Know Soon Enough -- I'm still microanalysing this song lyrically. Even knowing TST's lyrical bent for sarcasm (but not cynicism, of course...) in all forms, it was quite a shock to my Baptist-raised reformed-theology-nerd-in-training ears to hear the line 'There may be no heaven, no no no; There may be no hell, no...' I think -- I think -- he may be taking the perspective of a person trying to 'use' God to have a comfortable life (á la Angels Tuck You In and New Car!**) and then being disappointed when God doesn't answer his every prayer with a 'yes.' Yet the verses seem so sincere and well-rooted that it's a bit of a stretch to take the chorus (and the line quoted above) as anything less sincere and Biblically accurate. The bass and drum drive of the verses is cool though, and I quite like the effect of the synthesized vocal in the bridge. Listening to that through headphones is so cool -- the vocal comes only through the right speaker, and the sparse instrumentation comes only through the left. Actually, the first time I heard this I found out later I'd had my earbuds mixed up so I heard the vocal through my left ear. I think I now have to switch my earbuds whenever I hear this song because it sounds wrong with the vocal in my right ear.
Waking Up Under Water -- This song doesn't gently ease you into things. It grabs and doesn't let go. It starts with a blasting guitar, and then a driving beat and such an honest lyric -- about trying to escape real life by daydreaming. Lyrically, this could almost have fit on Doppelgänger. The bass is fantastic, just rocks along.
The Uses Of Adversity -- Am I the only one who hears a Newsboys vibe in that guitar bit between the verses? Actually, the Newsboys feel surfaces several times throughout the song. It's a beautiful lyric, though. Very poetic, and lovely, if painful, in its surrender to the supremacy of God (So don't send me rain if I bloom in drought...).
The Ruthless Hum Of Dread -- I think I may forever be calling this one 'The Ruthless Drum of Ed' after that one YouTube video they posted of Ed McTaggert doing drums for this. Very well-orchestrated... sparse instrumentation, soft vocals. It's delivered like a lullaby, only the protagonist can't shake the fears that run through his head as he tries to sleep (...night fears slip in between hissing sheets and springs; And in the folds of my sibilant bed...). The third verse is gorgeous -- the drumming stops, and only the odd piano chord backs the vocals. Some of the imagery in the last verse reminds me of the lyrical content of Terry's solo albums Knowledge & Innocence (1986) and A Briefing For The Ascent (1987). Melancholy but chock-full of wonderful poetic imagery.
The Sun Shines On Everyone -- A bit of an anthem, feeling almost like a reprise more than a closing track. It's already becoming quite a favourite among the DA fans on Facebook, but it drags a bit for me. To be honest I've yet to properly focus on this song from start to finish because of that. The lyrics are nice though. Perhaps it'll grow on me yet.
Honestly, I don't think there's a throwaway lyric on the entire album, and there is nothing, musically, that doesn't feel perfect throughout (though I found the studio applause at the end of the last song cheesy, but that's neither music nor lyric.)
I would have loved to have gone more in-depth with this (I could probably write a thesis on this album), but I will have to click the 'Publish' button in spite of the perfectionist in my mind screaming for me to revise some more, or else this will never get posted. Perhaps at a later date, once I've had more time to listen and memorise and find nuances and simply enjoy it, I'll revisit the album on this blog. But for now, this is what you get, plus a recommendation from yours truly to buy it when it releases later this summer (they gave a tentative date for August). Or at the very least, buy the title track and Love, Grace, And Mercy. After that, the next two you should buy are Jesus Wept and Waking Up Under Water. And after that, you need to just give up and buy the CD.
* I can't even take credit for this pun -- I saw it on the DA Facebook page, though using it to describe backmasking was my idea.
** Both songs from Doppelgänger, 1983.
Other album reviews (as posted by the Daniel Amos Facebook page -- I have no idea what else is on these sites):
More Of Dave
The Phantom Tollbooth
Popdose (includes an interview with Terry Taylor)
Into The Son
Examiner.com
Another from Examiner.com
Down The Line Magazine
18 May 2012
That Moment (Music Day)
So I finally bought Classic Petra's album Back To The Rock the other day.
Basically it's Petra (the Greg X Volz mid-80s Petra), but they redid a bunch of their Greg-era hits -- 'modernized' them a little. Since the original Petra was technically disbanded a few years ago, they now call themselves 'Classic Petra.'
On the Petra Zone forum I'd read quite a few 'meh... I didn't like it' reviews, so I was a bit unsure of what to expect. In fact, I probably wouldn't have bought the album if I hadn't already heard the redone versions of Rose Coloured Stained Glass Windows and Adonai (two of my all-time Petra favourites) on classicchristian247.com and loved them both. (Seriously, you wouldn't think mixing strings and an electric guitar would sound like anything, but they do it on that first track and it sounds AMAZING.)
Anyway, so I bought the CD and the next Saturday afternoon my mother and I went birthday shopping for my sister so we listened to it.
It's good.
Usually I'm a total 'original-version-is-always-best' purist, but these are some good remakes.
The first couple of songs have some seriously kicking bass. Clean, formerly an eighties synth track, is now a thumping growling electric guitar extravaganza. Let's just say now I finally understand why people call songs 'crunchy.' This is it.
I don't know if the extra guitar brings it out, but in Bema Seat and More Power To Ya, you can really tell how much Greg's voice has matured. At one point I actually said "He sounds like Steve Green" (which only warps your mind until you remember that Steve Green was once the lead singer of White Heart).
(I just messed with everything you ever thought about Steve Green).
(You're welcome.)
It's not a bad thing though. At least he (Greg, that is) can still sing. Even twenty-five years after his last Petra concert he still hits all the notes.
Grave Robber took a little warming up to, but the use of strings really amps up the drama.
They also added two new tracks -- Back To The Rock and Too Big To Fail, the former written by Greg and the latter by Petra founder/guitarist and songwriter extraordinaire Bob Hartman.
Back To The Rock starts out a little slow and to me it seems almost off-rhythm, but it picks up well in the chorus. And oh man is it ever catchy. I was singing it for the rest of the day. Here again you can really tell how Greg's voice has mellowed.
Too Big To Fail -- Bob Hartman does it again! This is brimming with the 1980s/early 90s enthusiasm that all Petheads know and love. I love how the bridge loops back to the pre-chorus and the chorus again and then they rock out for a while and then they go back to the bridge and do it again. It's a fantastic, soaring song. This is one of those you turn up and sing along with no matter how bad your singing voice may be.
But what I really wanted to talk about was the remake of Angel Of Light.
It's another one of my favourite Petra songs. In fact, I featured it on Music Day a while back.
They put in some pretty sweet guitar for the remake, but there's this moment where (in both versions) all the instruments drop out and they all sing, a capella:
Angel of light
I see you glow in the night
But you only bring darkness to my soul...
On soul, in the original 1981 version, the guitar slides back in and draws in the other instruments for a full-on musical experience by the time they sing the next line.
In the new version, they layered all the members' voices and added an echo so the a capella already has more resonance. Then, starting on but, there's a couple slaps on the drums and on soul, the guitar comes screaming back in and BAM! a wall of sound hits you and almost knocks you off your feet.
When I first heard it, I was actually stunned breathless. It was so epic.
My only problem now is this: how to choreograph something even half as epic to go with that moment...
Title: Angel Of Light
Artist: Classic Petra (yes, iTunes lists them as just 'Petra,' but iTunes isn't exactly known for their accuracy)
Album: Back To The Rock
Year: 2010
Label: Classic Petra LLC (independent release)
iTunes here; YouTube here.
And, of course, I recommend buying the whole album... (also I recommend pumping up the bass and turning up the volume).
Basically it's Petra (the Greg X Volz mid-80s Petra), but they redid a bunch of their Greg-era hits -- 'modernized' them a little. Since the original Petra was technically disbanded a few years ago, they now call themselves 'Classic Petra.'
On the Petra Zone forum I'd read quite a few 'meh... I didn't like it' reviews, so I was a bit unsure of what to expect. In fact, I probably wouldn't have bought the album if I hadn't already heard the redone versions of Rose Coloured Stained Glass Windows and Adonai (two of my all-time Petra favourites) on classicchristian247.com and loved them both. (Seriously, you wouldn't think mixing strings and an electric guitar would sound like anything, but they do it on that first track and it sounds AMAZING.)
Anyway, so I bought the CD and the next Saturday afternoon my mother and I went birthday shopping for my sister so we listened to it.
It's good.
Usually I'm a total 'original-version-is-always-best' purist, but these are some good remakes.
The first couple of songs have some seriously kicking bass. Clean, formerly an eighties synth track, is now a thumping growling electric guitar extravaganza. Let's just say now I finally understand why people call songs 'crunchy.' This is it.
I don't know if the extra guitar brings it out, but in Bema Seat and More Power To Ya, you can really tell how much Greg's voice has matured. At one point I actually said "He sounds like Steve Green" (which only warps your mind until you remember that Steve Green was once the lead singer of White Heart).
(I just messed with everything you ever thought about Steve Green).
(You're welcome.)
It's not a bad thing though. At least he (Greg, that is) can still sing. Even twenty-five years after his last Petra concert he still hits all the notes.
Grave Robber took a little warming up to, but the use of strings really amps up the drama.
They also added two new tracks -- Back To The Rock and Too Big To Fail, the former written by Greg and the latter by Petra founder/guitarist and songwriter extraordinaire Bob Hartman.
Back To The Rock starts out a little slow and to me it seems almost off-rhythm, but it picks up well in the chorus. And oh man is it ever catchy. I was singing it for the rest of the day. Here again you can really tell how Greg's voice has mellowed.
Too Big To Fail -- Bob Hartman does it again! This is brimming with the 1980s/early 90s enthusiasm that all Petheads know and love. I love how the bridge loops back to the pre-chorus and the chorus again and then they rock out for a while and then they go back to the bridge and do it again. It's a fantastic, soaring song. This is one of those you turn up and sing along with no matter how bad your singing voice may be.
But what I really wanted to talk about was the remake of Angel Of Light.
It's another one of my favourite Petra songs. In fact, I featured it on Music Day a while back.
They put in some pretty sweet guitar for the remake, but there's this moment where (in both versions) all the instruments drop out and they all sing, a capella:
Angel of light
I see you glow in the night
But you only bring darkness to my soul...
On soul, in the original 1981 version, the guitar slides back in and draws in the other instruments for a full-on musical experience by the time they sing the next line.
In the new version, they layered all the members' voices and added an echo so the a capella already has more resonance. Then, starting on but, there's a couple slaps on the drums and on soul, the guitar comes screaming back in and BAM! a wall of sound hits you and almost knocks you off your feet.
When I first heard it, I was actually stunned breathless. It was so epic.
My only problem now is this: how to choreograph something even half as epic to go with that moment...
Title: Angel Of Light
Artist: Classic Petra (yes, iTunes lists them as just 'Petra,' but iTunes isn't exactly known for their accuracy)
Album: Back To The Rock
Year: 2010
Label: Classic Petra LLC (independent release)
iTunes here; YouTube here.
And, of course, I recommend buying the whole album... (also I recommend pumping up the bass and turning up the volume).
01 May 2012
One More Week!
In case you haven't heard, John Schlitt is putting out a new album.
In Hope That Saves The World -- try to imagine Peter Furler (of Newsboys fame) about twenty years from now. That's what John sounds like here. (At least that's who I thought of.) It's not a bad thing though.
It's a good solid rocker of a song. Whoever played drums here is fantastic (actually the guitar is pretty sweet too, now that I hear it again). This one is definitely growing on me.
You can hear previews of them both on his official website (it starts cycling through the two when the homepage loads, beginning with Hope That Saves The World).
But now I'm in a bit of a spot -- do I order an actual physical CD and wait two weeks for it to get here, or do I jump on iTunes and download cold soulless MP3s and be able to hear the album right away? (I could stop by the Christian bookstore on Tuesday but I can pretty much guarantee they won't have it in... heaven forbid they actually have a new CD the day it drops.)
Yes, the John Schlitt. The Grammy-award-winning former lead singer of Petra (sometimes he still does concerts with them, actually), and, if you go far enough back, former lead singer for a band called Head East. He's released three solo albums since 1995.
That John Schlitt.
And the new album is due to drop on 8 May -- next Tuesday (so excited!).
As such, the two singles from the album have been getting decent rotation on classicchristian247.com -- Hope That Saves The World and Where I Wanna Be.
His Facebook fan page promised a rocker of an album a while back, and if these two songs are any indication -- this is going to be a GOOD album.
Initially I liked Where I Wanna Be most of the two. It's amazing how addicting that echo is in the chorus. The rest of the song is actually rather slow, but that echo in the chorus (if love (love) could set the world on fire (on fire)...) sunk itself deep into my mind, even when I first heard it. It soars into your mind. It feels dramatic and epic.
In Hope That Saves The World -- try to imagine Peter Furler (of Newsboys fame) about twenty years from now. That's what John sounds like here. (At least that's who I thought of.) It's not a bad thing though.
It's a good solid rocker of a song. Whoever played drums here is fantastic (actually the guitar is pretty sweet too, now that I hear it again). This one is definitely growing on me.
You can hear previews of them both on his official website (it starts cycling through the two when the homepage loads, beginning with Hope That Saves The World).
But now I'm in a bit of a spot -- do I order an actual physical CD and wait two weeks for it to get here, or do I jump on iTunes and download cold soulless MP3s and be able to hear the album right away? (I could stop by the Christian bookstore on Tuesday but I can pretty much guarantee they won't have it in... heaven forbid they actually have a new CD the day it drops.)
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