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| Stellar Kart - Everything is Different Now
Signing with a new record label has obviously done wonders for Stellar Kart. Wanting to prove themselves worthy of their new benefactors, the foursome has made the most grown-up album of their still young career. They still kick out some pure rockers, but they mix in some languid Beatles-inspired pop ("Like The Sun"), an almost country shuffler ("It's Not Over"), and some straight up worship music with bold soaring melodies and easy to grasp lyrics of praise and piety, including a fantastic cover of Matt Redman's classic "You Never Let Go." They may still dress like kids, but they are starting to sound like men. Read More.
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| The Holmes Brothers - Feed My Soul
Describing the Holmes Brothers as a "meat and potatoes" band may sound pejorative, but it shouldn't; all I mean to say is that their music is simple, never flashy, but always nourishing. On Feed My Soul, they make soul music with rock instruments and gospel overtones, produced by Joan Osborne and heavy on greasy organ vamps. The songs celebrate love as something enduring, something down-to-earth and real—except in the final song, "Take Me Away," where they leave Earth's orbit and aim for the heavens in a Psalm-like prayer for deliverance from these worldly blues. Read More.
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| Lifehouse - Smoke and Mirrors
Touring indefatigably since releasing their multi-platinum debut in 2000, Lifehouse, originally a Christian band formed under the moniker "Bliss," took a creative reprieve, huddling up in the studio to record 35 tunes in a year's time. Here, the Top 40 masters split track timbres between radio-ready and rock 'n' roll. For instance, "Nerve Damage" interrupts its alternative aggression with a bluesy guitar interlude and "Had Enough" balances rock and pop. Lyrically, Smoke & Mirrors delivers anthems of relationships sought and lost, but dwells on its dysfunction and subsequent surrender rather than adolescent infatuation, another sign of the band's maturation. Add insatiable melodies, fat beats, and kinetic rock to the mix, and this is one of the band's best. Read More.
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| Brenton Brown - Adoration
Having written worship staples like "Our God Saves" and "Everlasting God," one of 2007's most sung songs from any genre, and having songs recorded by platinum-sellers like Chris Tomlin, Brenton Brown has little need to pursue an artist career. But seeking a more personal vehicle for his famed catalog, Brown's first stateside release enlists a "Who's Who" of producers, players, and co-writers to impressively realize the sonic potential of his fine song craftsmanship. Though some campy two-beats and corporate "Hey, hey's" occasionally distract, the poignant strains of "All Who Are Thirsty" and monumental fervor of "Amazing God" remind us why Brown will be contributing to worship's musical landscape for years. Read More.
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| Close Your Eyes - We Will Overcome
It's unusual to find a debut by a band that finds them audibly going through growing pains, musically-speaking. But the first album from this Texas band feels like they are still trying to work out whether to embrace their more melodic side or the part that loves chugging metal riffs and deep-throated growls. The former sound appears to be winning out, and for good reason, as it allows singer Shane Raymond's chest-beating lyrics of faith and personal triumph the necessary room to soar and shine. It's a fine first step, but one that will leave you itching to hear where they go from here. Read More.
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| Fireflight - For Those Who Wait
Fireflight's third studio album with Flicker is packed with words of wisdom clearly pointed toward a young audience, with songs about overcoming addiction, living passionately, and waiting on God. The production on Wait, however, is so crispy clean and overdone that it loses its authenticity. Lead singer Dawn Michelle's killer voice is covered with effects and vocal overlay. Guitarist Justin Cox noted that the band explored new recording techniques this time around. But the best parts of this record are when Michelle's voice is raw and in the open, like the soft piano intro of "Name." Her voice is the best part of this album, but the production and songwriting fall short. Read More.
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| Unhindered - Be
If the record label EE-Taow looks a little unfamiliar at this point, that's because it's the brand-new arm of Teen Mania Ministries geared toward giving artists a praise platform. Though its intentions are certainly noble and there's no doubt that its first signees, Unhindered, are sincere, the group's national debut disc Be falls a bit short of the buildup.
Sure, the group can play with precision, and the project has plenty of uplifting tracks split between congregational participation and personal prayer time. However, one can't help but feel like the project is pretty predictable all across the board, from pleasant but uninspiring songwriting to upbeat but unremarkable production. "We Will" has youth-group appeal written all over it and may be able to connect with that generally receptive audience, but doesn't exactly break any new sonic boundaries. "Desperate" is amongst the more musically involved tunes, playing out as a piano-bathed aggressive rocker, but lyrically it reads bland and basic. Read More.
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| Toby Mac - Tonight
Over the past decade, Kevin Michael McKeehan, a.k.a. tobyMac, has consistently raised the standards for Christian music. The industry forerunner, consummate perfectionist, and one-third of former supergroup dcTalk is the brains behind Gotee Records and acts such as Relient K, GRITS, and Out of Eden. His credits include three RIAA Gold-certified records, five Grammy Awards, the annual "Winter Wonder Slam Tour" and now, a fourth solo project, Tonight. Oh, and did we mention he's the father of five? Read More.
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| Chynna and Vaughn - One Reason
Even if One Reason (Reunion) marks the debut disc for pop duo Chynna & Vaughan, it's far from either of these singer/songwriter's first albums.
In the case of Chynna Phillips, fans of all faiths are likely familiar with her time in ten million album selling super-group Wilson Phillips, whose chart conquest throughout the 1990s included "Hold On," You're in Love," "Release Me" and many more. On the solo side, Vaughan Penn amassed a slew of television soundtrack credits including the immensely popular shows The Hills, Grey's Anatomy, Boston Public and Laguna Beach, while also hitting the road alongside Emmylou Harris and Edwin McCain (to name a pair). Read More.
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| Bill Mallonee - Cabin Songs
Shunning the industry standard of making a "full" album every year or two, veteran troubadour Bill Mallonee has recently been releasing a new EP about every three months through his website. This 7-song pearl was written and recorded in 10 days in a North Carolina mountain cabin last fall. Thematically, Mallonee is wrestling with the deaths of his father and a longtime friend, so "a certain sadness," as he puts it, pervades the songs. But, he adds appropriately, "there's a hallowed light scattered about." The album includes his signature voice, clever lyricism, and wit. Read More.
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