Artist: Hillsong London
Album: Shout God's Fame
Format: Audio CD
Bitrate: ???
Track Listing:
01. Shout Your Fame
02. My God
03. Gonna Be All Right
04. You Are My Rock
05. You're Here with Me
06. Centre of My Life
07. I Will Go
08. History Maker
09. Here I Am (Father's Love)
10. For This Cause/Eagles Wings/Carry Me (Worship Medley)
11. In You I Stand
12. King of Majesty
Album Review
This Hillsong London CD, "Shout God's Fame," has an energizing, rocking, shout-it-from-the-roof-top style that captures the live aspect of worship, praise and proclamation.
This is the first live album from Hillsong Church London was recorded at the Mermaid Theatre. "Shout God's Fame" CD features songs that evoke a corporate re-commitment, stirring action and response in the body of Christ. Songs like track 7, "I Will Go," remind believers of our call to the great commission given by Jesus. Song 8, a redo of the Delirious? classic, follows with the affirmation that we."Want to be History Makers in this land.." and to take action to make a difference. Then, "Here I Am" leads believers through singing a prayer of personalized offering to live our life as servants of Jesus Christ. Hillsong London's progression of songs guides worshippers to a place of personal and corporate commitment to the lordship of Jesus.
Musically, there is some variation. The second song, "Gonna Be All-Right," was a bit lengthy and had sort of a Brady Bunch feel. "I Will Go" is played in a minor key and has great potential for adding Latin rhythm instruments.
What comes across immediately is that the writers and musicians have their fingers firmly on the British teen pop pulse and as a result 'Shout God's Fame' sounds as though it has been marketed for this age group. For example, the title track is very much in the vein of guitar-driven pop that the likes of Busted dish up and there is more than a touch of Robbie Williams' "Rock DJ" in the chorus of "Gonna Be All Right"! These similarities aside, the material here is of good quality and is lifted by top class musicianship. Amongst the highlights are "You Are My Rock" - just for the sheer power of the delivery - and the Latin American "I Will Go" complete with chanting vocals and a sweet but all too short piano solo. Most of the songs are originals but Martin Smith's "History Maker" makes a rather predictable but well-presented appearance.
"Shout God's Fame" is an excellent worship resource tool and a fresh call to the body of Christ for recommitment.
Review was compound from Worshipmusic.com and Crossrhythms.co.uk
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Hillsong London - Shout God's Fame (2004)
Monday, September 25, 2006
Delirious? - World Service (2004)
Artist: Delirious?
Album: World Service
Format: Audio CD
Bitrate: ???
Track Listing:
01. Grace Like A River
02. Rain Down
03. To God In Heaven
04. Majesty (Here I Am)
05. Inside Outside
06. Free
07. Everyone Knows
08. I'm With You
09. Mountain's High
10. I Was Blind
11. Feels Like Heaven
12. Every Little Thing
Album Reviews
With six studio albums over the last ten years,Delirious has proven very adept at stretching themselves creatively while also giving the fans exactly what they want—just not necessarily all at once. Consider the impact they made on modern worship with the now relatively subdued rock of Cutting Edge. Since then, Delirious has alternated between the worshipful (King of Fools, Glo) and the experimental (Mezzamorphis, Audio Lessonover). While the albums have been well received, there's always a vocal segment of the band's fanbase that complains about the departure from worship, despite the clear Christian themes on all the albums. In other words, fans seem to want Delirious to sound like Sonicflood whenever they try to be a little more like Radiohead.
It was a good album, but Audio Lessonover (or Touch as it's known in the States) ended up as the band's most disappointing work to date (critically and financially), so it's no surprise that we're back to more of a familiar worship sound with World Service. The album is a hybrid of Cutting Edge and Glo, not as groundbreaking as the former but less bombastic than the latter. You can expect some of these to make their way into modern worship repertoires everywhere, the most likely candidate being the beautiful ballad "Majesty (Here I Am)." There's an anthemic quality similar to "Sanctify" in "Grace Like a River" in its amazement over God's unconditional love: "Mystery of mysteries, that you could love someone like me/In your hands eternity, and yet you have the time for me." Lead singer Martin Smith describes the rock praise of "God in Heaven" as a modern day remake of the hymn "To God Be the Glory."
Much of World Service treads familiar territory, though in a good way. "Rain Down," for example, offers catchy driving rock in the spirit of Glo's "God You Are My God" or "God's Romance," but it's still got radio hit written all over it-and it's especially powerful when Smith belts out, "Do not shut, do not shut, do not shut the heavens/But open up, open up, open up our hearts." At the same time, the talented guitar rock band tries a few variations. Psalm 139-inspired "Inside Outside" is a different, more open sound for them that works quite well, though it's essentially exploring another side of U2's multi-faceted sound.
The new album primarily succeeds by presenting some of Delirious' most open and emotional material to date. They've always been good at expressing the Christian faith walk in new ways, and they do so again with "Feel It Comin' On," a rocker about brokenness and restoration: "Careful when you look, for my heart has leprosy/All I want is to see Jesus/Just one touch and I'll be free." The closing track, "Every Little Thing," was written in memory of John Thatcher Sr., the band's mentor and pastor—and for some members, father or father-in-law—who died in 2003. Featuring backing vocals from pop star and fellow believer Daniel Bedingfield, the song is a somber and moving response to the pain of life's tragedies: "When it's all falling down on you/You're crying out but you're breaking in two/When it's all crashing down on you/When there's nothing you can do/ There is someone who can carry you." Piano-driven "Mountains High" offers a similar lament over the death of a friend and the challenges of life, ultimately relying on God whose "ways are high, too high for us." It's appropriately followed by "I Was Blind," a tender testament to God's kindness.
As expected from Delirious, this is an excellent Brit rock album with plenty of worshipful undertones. The only thing lacking is innovation. While it is indeed a welcome return to form, it's also a bit vanilla, failing to joyously surprise in the way Glo and Mezzamorphis did. Nor does it offer anything quite as memorable as their Cutting Edge days. But the anthemic rock sound and strong musicianship are both still present, and those are enough for most fans when combined with the emotional and worshipful lyrics. World Service is not Delirious' best album, but it might well be their most accessible and radio friendly in the last five years.
Review from Christianitytoday.com
