I find it very comforting that in the midst of the modern desire within worship music for new songs, that hymns have not only stood the test of time, but are actually being reworked by modern worship leaders in such a way that they come across as new songs in their own right. In a side project to their usual brand of music, Hello Industry‘s Nathan Peterson and James Ross have produced an uplifting acoustic album of hymns. Incidentally, the oldest of these (Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing) is some 253 years in print.

However you like to term your regular “alone time” with the Lord (maybe “quiet time“, “devotional time“, “reflective time” etc.) I suggest that if you are perhaps looking for some music to listen to, you try this. Since finding this album just before Christmas, I must have listened to it in it’s entirety more than 20 times. It is quite simply amazing – it has opened my eyes to several hymns that I never knew existed, and it has also changed the way I view certain hymns that I thought had perhaps been overdone in their existent versions.

The inspiration in this album lies in it’s simplicity in my opinion. Sparse arrangements, with only acoustic guitar and a double bass give the vocal lines the chance to be heard clearly – and it is in the lyrics of these hymns where their beauty lies. Nathan Peterson’s voice is pushed to the fore in the mix, and the vocals sit perfectly over the subtle and sensitive backing. When harmonies come in (the prime examples being used in “I Need Thee Every Hour” and “All Hail The Power of Jesus’ Name“) they add a pleasant layer to the texture, and give a lift to the arrangement.  

The selection of hymns on this album is diverse yet cohesive, and the arrangements have a subtle blend of the familiar and the creative. A couple of great examples of this are “Nearer My God to Thee” – a hymn that starts off in quite a reflective manner but builds up through each verse before opening out into a stirring finale. “I Surrender All“, usually a bright, major hymn, is given an overhaul into the minor key, and in doing so creates an emotive ambience to the backing, again with Nathan’s powerful vocal. 

Nathan’s sleeve notes for this album seem like a perfect way to end this review, he leaves us with the words:

“We hope the music on this album (and all of our albums) screams passion, sincerity, and creativity. And we hope our fans and friends enjoy experiencing this album as much as we’ve enjoyed making it!” 

It’s safe to say I have really enjoyed this album, and if you want to do the same, find them at helloindustry.bandcamp.com

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For any of you worship music fans who are not yet aware, Worship Central are recording their first ever live album on Thursday 24th March 2011 at the HMV Forum in Kentish Town, North London. You could be part of the congregation for a mere £9!

Worship leaders for the event will include Tim Hughes, Al Gordon, Ben Cantelon, Nikki Fletcher and Luke Hellebronth. I cannot recommend the venue highly enough – I have been privileged enough to see Third Day lead worship there on several occasions, it is a very intimate venue, with standing downstairs and unreserved seating upstairs.

You can get more information from Worship Central’s official site here.

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I’ve just returned from a very enjoyable weekend at Centerparcs for New Wine’s “Retreat to Advance” conference. I was expectant of a good weekend of lively worship, good teaching and powerful ministry, and it’s safe to say my expectations were exceeded.

Indeed, the worship was particularly good – “Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of his faithful people”, the Psalmist tells us in Psalm 149:1 [NIV], and this was the theme of Friday night’s worship for me. The first song that was [for want of a better expression] belted out by the worship band was Brenton Brown’s “Our God is Mercy” – a lively opener with a catchy melody and with a structure that was very easy to follow. The song was quick and upbeat, yet gave enough space for interpretation, and had a nice refrain (“Lift up your eyes, lift up your eyes etc.) giving space for the congregation to regain some breath. The studio version present on this album is again an upbeat offering – with an almost Merseybeat-style drumbeat and a very strong rhythm guitar line. The lyrics invite the worshipper into the song – there is a strong message of hope, acceptance and belonging prevalent within the opener to the album.

We go from here to the second track – “Joyful”, with an instantly recognisable melody line – borrowed from Beethoven’s 9th Symphony’s “Ode to Joy”. The message of this song is beautiful – it’s hymnal verses are complemented superbly by a lively praise chorus (“You are the one who saves “etc.). This track (and indeed the entire album) stay faithful to the typical Sunday-morning worship band lineup – a couple of guitars, bass, keys, drums and not much else. The producer deserves credit for this as all too often studio worship albums can be completely over-orchestrated and almost impossible to replicate for worship bands.

Other highlights on this album include “Glorious” – another of Brenton’s co-writes with Paul Baloche, “All I Want” – a well written heart’s cry to the Lord, and the beautiful acoustic-lead closing song “All For You”.

“All for You” contains a great message which I will leave you with – this represents my heart for worship and how I feel we should view our relationship with the Lord:

“Jesus this is all for You,

Father this is all for You,

How Your children long to bless Your heart

Lord we’ve tasted and we’ve seen

We’ve held the beauty of the King

And we long to magnify our God”

Thought I’d take a quick opportunity to plug a new photography company in Rayleigh, Essex. Joe Honeyands has been a good friend of mine for several years, and he’s in the process of starting up his new enterprise. I’ve been fortunate enough to have had a session with him, and have another booked.

Have a look at some of the work he did for me here:

More of Joe’s work can be seen at http://rocksolidphotography.co.uk/Home.html. You can also follow him on Twitter.

Enjoy!

A collection of new versions (with new tunes) of Charles Wesley hymns (entitled Love Divine) has been released this month – and it has, for me, posed a question – am I personally for or against updated hymns?

I have had a fair amount of experience over the years of being part of teams leading worship, and of leading worship alone, and one thing that experience has taught me is that consistency of rhythm, melody, and pitch is key to enabling accessible worship. Hymns create something of an interesting situation when leading congregational worship, as in many cases different members of congregations have been brought up singing these hymns to differing tunes. Never has the phrase “all singing from the same hymn sheet” been more apt than in sung worship. Think of well-known hymns such as “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross“, “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and “Amazing Grace” – all of these hymns have several versions already – do we confuse yet more people by bringing another version of this to the table?

With this in mind, producing an album where every track has a different tune to the one we’re used to is potentially ambitious. I must confess, I’m not yet sold on the idea. This is by no means a negative reflection upon the artists (and there are a few notable ones to choose from) – Mac Powell’s version of “And Can It Be” is emotive, with an affable melody. Chris Eaton’s “Jesus Lover of My Soul” has a beautiful minor chord progression, with a great building atmosphere, good use of drums and ethereal backing vocals. There is some nice synth work and a bright feel to Mark Roach’s “Christ Whose Glories Fill The Skies“. All good tracks in their own right, and there are indeed some hymns I have never heard before in here. And it is here you find my counter-argument to new versions of hymns – that songs that may have been forever confined to the history books can be re-worked and brought to the fore in albums such as this. Moreover, in some cases, once inaccessible (through melody, quick changing chords, or general predictability) hymns can be reworked, maybe simplified, and actually made better through re-working.

Here, for me is a case in point:

How many versions of this song exist? Hundreds, maybe thousands. What a way to reach out to people, to give them a familiar song to sing, and yet to do it in a new way, with a recurring praise chorus. I’m not saying for a minute that this version is better or indeed more relevant as a whole than any other version of the song, but for me it gives a great hymn a bit of a lift. For you, there may be another version of this song, sung by a different worship leader, a gospel choir, or even an instrumental version that creates that same intimacy in worship, and that too is fine. For me, hymns provide a bedrock, a foundation for worship – Matt Redman once commented that Wesley wrote hymns for pretty much every life situation, and that was his way of communicating with the Lord. Most of Wesley’s hymns will not be sung in many churches, yet this new collection proves that by studying what has gone before, we can draw inspiration for what is to come, using hymns that are several hundred years old.

With all this in mind then, am I for or against this idea? I am largely for the idea, though I believe that worship leaders need to be sensitive to their congregation. Rocking out Bluetree’s version of “When I Survey” may be what you feel is necessary for the church, but a little pragmatism is sometimes necessary. Try different feels for songs and see what the church worships to – for that should be the goal – a church in worship. 

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I have faced dilemmas in where to focus my attention for the review. Dave Fitzgerald is, without doubt, a gifted and anointed worship leader – the worship sounds lively, there is a lot of congregational interaction, and the worship flows freely, with lots of “headroom” given in all of the songs to allow space for people to worship. Dave is also an unquestionably gifted singer. His voice is powerful, powerful enough to lead with backing vocalists such as Jenn Johnson (see previous reviews) backing him, and to lead a Bethel congregation in worship. Dave is clearly an accomplished pianist, and he leads well from the piano – something slightly different for Bethel where the focus for the leaders I have encountered thus far is often from vocals or guitars.  Lastly, Dave is a gifted songwriter – all but one of these songs were self-penned, with some collaborations (including Chris McClarney (Your Love Never Fails) and Brian Johnson (Worship Pastor at Bethel Church, Redding)). So where to focus?

If the aim of this album is more good worship from a thriving church of revivalists and worshippers, then this album ticks all the boxes straight off. The worship is accessible, reverent, powerful and meaningful, and many of the songs on this album would be equally at home on any Jesus Culture album. Where this album comes into it’s own, however, is at track 5 – “We Are An Ark”. The feel of this track is awesome – laid back yet not restrained, strong yet not overwhelming. Here we see all of the gifts of the band laid plain for the world to see. The sensitive nature of Dave’s piano and vocal, Jenn Johnson’s succinct backing vocals, Ian McIntosh’s ethereal keys and Chris Quilala’s drums that provide the catalyst for the build up to the climax of this song make it what it is – great. This track provides the turning point  of the album for me – and switches the focus from all of the ancillary factors and theories and places the attention squarely to the Throne of the Lord, and to His glory. Here the album becomes personal, natural, sensitive and glorious. It is here where I “got” this album.

The title track “Hope of Heaven” provides a sublime mix of Jesus Culture and Dave Fitzgerald. The driving drum and bass groove, with the ethereal keys and edgy guitars usually associated with Jesus Culture are interspersed perfectly with a subtle yet very effective piano part from Dave – giving this track it’s edge. The album finishes with another 2 nice piano-led tracks – “Shine” (w/ Brian Johnson), and “Sweeter” (w/ Christa Black and Chris McClarney). Once again, we find space, freedom, and subtlety in the piano lines – it’s uncomplicated yet more than enough for the atmospheric nature of the songs – which provide a great platform on which the songs can build – which they do to great effect. 

I must confess that it took me a few tracks to work this album out, but now I have it is making it’s way steadily up my “most played” playlist. I love piano-led worship, it is for some reason more of a rarity in modern worship, but when it is done this well it is a joy to experience. Buy this album, you will not regret it.

You can find more information about Dave at www.davefizgerald.com

Jesus Culture – Come Away

One of the things that has struck me in recent years about my faith in general, is what a privilege it is to be able to have such a great level of intimacy with the Lord. Over the centuries we have seen this shift towards intimacy and deeper relationships with the Lord, to the point where we now have the freedom to come before the Lord and reveal our hearts to Him, and He in turn will respond, and reveal His heart for us. I believe that worship is there to enhance these acts, and, in my humble opinion, nowhere is it revealed with more purity than in the worship of Jesus Culture.

From track one of the new “Come Away” offering, we hear the prophetic words from God of “Open up Your heart, and let me in”, a heart’s cry that could be taken either way. We want to know God’s heart for us, and He wants our hearts to be for Him. Giving us worshippers that freedom of expression is the aspect of worship that Jesus Culture have got down to a fine art. For worship to be accessible, it must first be pure, and the purity of Jesus Culture’s worship is plain for all to see. We follow “Come Away” with “Rooftops”, Kim Walker-Smith’s vocals singing cries of “Here I am, I stand with arms wide open, To the One, the Son, the Everlasting God”. 1 Peter 2:9 tells us that we are a people chosen to declare the praises of the Lord- this is a good way to start.

Anyone who has listened to Jesus Culture should now know what to expect from their worship albums – a good mix of upbeat praise songs, interspersed with some equally powerful, more reflective, and even spontaneous offerings. This album builds upon this ‘brand’ – the opening few songs are upbeat, with strong rhythm and emotive vocals, and by the time we get to “Let it Rain”, “Mighty Breath of God” and especially “Show Me Your Glory”, we are very much looking at songs of a reflective, heart wrenching nature.

Since the first time I  heard Jesus Culture, “Let It Rain” is the song I think I’ve most wanted to hear them attempt. The chorus is tremendously powerful – I first heard Michael W Smith do it on his “Worship” album, and his version was very emotive, a massed choir were singing with him, and there was plenty of space for harmony and spontaneity, two things that Jesus Culture excel in. The version does not disappoint, in such a simple chorus it is possible to get carried away and over-complicate it, yet the sensitivity and purity that Kim and Chris give it is respectful, and completely natural.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending a Jesus Culture night in London, and I was struck by the length of the songs, in some cases 10-15 minute versions, that were simply incredible. Being limited to 80 minutes for a CD, the listener often ends up hearing shorter versions of the tracks, though this time they have included longer versions (and an extra track “Kingdom”) on the included DVD. Having watched the DVD the other night I can tell you that I’m quickly running out of superlatives for this group of worshippers. Just watch it, listen to the CD, and expect to worship.

It would be a simple assumption to suggest that the worship produced by any of the various worship leaders at Bethel Church, Redding would be predictable. I now have in my possession several albums by various worship leaders from the church, almost all have the same backing band, and almost all have the same vocalists and producers. Yet each album has it’s own distinct qualities, and perhaps more importantly, feel – the latest offering from worship pastors Brian & Jenn Johnson being no exception.

Strong, punchy bass lines, backed up by Chris Quilala’s imperious drumming, provide a solid backbone for the sound to build around. Indeed, in the verses of “O Taste and See”, these are the only audible instruments, with Jenn’s voice comfortably capable of leading the melody for the congregation to follow. When songs such as this one get going, the other instrumentation is sensitively built up, with the keyboards and guitar playing off each other to create a pleasing sound. These qualities are equally present (perhaps even more so) in my personal favourite of the album – “We Believe”. In what I would call a “progressive chord sequence” (where the listener feels as if the song is continually moving forward), the sound rises and falls succinctly, sustaining musical interest, and also stirring emotion and heart.

It is in the lyrical aspect of the songs that I feel the real meat of this album lies. I’ve recently been trying to focus more and more on the words I am singing, as in worship songs there lies some strong terminology. Take for instance the lines present in “All My Worship”:

All of me, I surrender, everything to You. All I am and all that I am to become, all my worship and my praise. All my love to You I give, all my life and all my dreams. I surrender all my worship.

These are powerful, meaningful words, that you should find it very difficult to sing half-heartedly. Sing the words to this, and all the other songs on this album whole-heartedly to the Lord, and it might just change your life. Your attitude to worship will change, it will become deeper, and God will lead you into a more intimate place with Him. Just as we should ask God to reveal things to us through His Word before a Bible study, I feel we should ask the Lord to reveal more of Himself to us through worship, drawing us closer to Him.

This album has changed me, the passion that exudes from this ministry is there for all to see. These guys truly believe everything they are singing, their worship is pure, and their songs are powerful.

This album has quickly (and I do mean quickly), made it to the top of my most played albums in my collection. The superlatives have been flowing freely in the past couple of months – several artists are releasing their best work ever – and Chris Tomlin can happily add his name to this list.

I’ll make no bones about it, I’m a huge fan of the way Ed Cash approaches production, and when I read the previews of this album I was a little concerned that he wasn’t going to be producing the whole album. I can categorically say however, that by ear alone, I couldn’t tell you which tracks he has produced on this album – the quality is sublime throughout. The use of loops is effective yet subtle, and the warmth of the crowd vocals (especially on “Our God”, “I Will Follow”, and “Majesty of Heaven”) provides a great corporate feel to the sound – an important aspect for congregational worship.

The formula for a good Chris Tomlin song – strong, descriptive verses, a powerful chorus, then a tag/outro that takes the song yet a notch higher is once again plain for all to see. From the opening track we see a pristine example – the power that is in the final refrain -

“And if Our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?

And if Our God is with us, then what could stand against?”

is a true insight into the “angels’ song” we hear mentioned time and again in worship.

Like many previous Chris Tomlin albums, this is an exceptionally accessible album, which remains a key aspect for me. Chris has existed for a long time now on leading people into worship with songs that are musically accessible, rhythmically strong, and melodically sound. I can see many songs on this album being used in the same vein, indeed, both “Our God” and “Awakening” feature on the latest Passion conference album in this very format.

I put this album on as soon as I got it, there is always an expectancy of quality, power, and anointing with Chris, but to be honest I was never quite sure how he was going to top “Hello Love” – itself an astonishing collection of worship songs. These matters are always open to debate, but I think that this album is comfortably on a par, and the “new song” aspect of it just tips the balance for me at the moment. The vocals on this album are simply stunning – play it loud, and play it over and over again.

Standout Tracks:

“Majesty of Heaven”

“I Will Follow” 

“Our God”