Back in the mid-90's Kim began writing impromptu reviews of church music CDs (worship music) so that people who were looking for CDs would have an opinion from someone who is also a worship leader and is garnering music for local church use. Up to this point, this was rarely something that was done, because church music was revered as sacred and it was thought that any offering of that sacred worship shouldn't be criticised or evaluated. In fact, Kim wasn't as much a critic as he was an evaluator, helping people find what fit their church. He began posting his reviews on line in a email discussion forum, called the Worship List (website). After a while, when he helped launch Worshipmusic.com, he continued that same concept of trying to help other local church worship leaders and musicians find music that might be applicable to their situations. The reviews continued to be a part of that. Worshipmusic.com went on to grow a staff of writers that would add many more reviews to the collection they have, but Kim continued to participate as a key reviewer. This journal logs all the reviews Kim has written on worship music CDs and projects.
Kim's reviews of CD projects of worship music includes independents, label and main stream recordings, but all having to do with worship music.
Saturday, February 9, 2013 at 4:54PM 
[Free Song Download "O My Soul" from Samuel Lane- see at the bottom of the review.]
With subtle motion and smooth tones begins the "The Fire". Like the starting crackle of a freshly lit hearth, this is how Samuel Lane begins to fuel the fire that is this new album from Vineyard Records UK. The intro song, "Take Me With You", doesn't rip a hole out of your speakers. Rather than pouring gasoline onto a bursting bonfire, it sparks, rumbles and gently ignites the rhythms, vocals and instruments that will build into a warm and engaging experience of songs and lyrics that call out passionately to God.
Rolling from that into "Fiery Love", Sam takes the intensity up ever so slightly, building the anticipation nicely from the intro song into this prayer language song, which calls out:
Lift me from my grave and hold me up
With hands that hold the stars, with fiery love
Holy Spirit come, and light me up
With hands that hold the stars, with fiery love
The song rises to a powerful thundering of passion before receding into track three, "O My Soul". Here, Lane ebbs this project back to a rumbling and humble surrender of worship, with dynamics and rhythms that perfectly fit the song lyrics. And this peeks engagingly into big refrains of "Oh my soul, praise, praise Him!" Wonderful!
And so it goes with this album-- ebb, flow, rise, refrain, response, recede and restart the progression. This is not a formula, it seems, for Samuel Lane. It feels more like a discourse of authentic prayers, each one drawing closer to the person of God and surrendering more deeply the person of the worshiper. I have to admit, I was struck by the intimate language and conversational approach that Lane takes on some of these songs. But it is not a nonchalant cavalierism that reduces worship to a "Jesus-is-my-boyfriend" song collection. This is serious, but intimate. God is great, yet He is near. He is the Father which calls and invites us, and Lane has given us real language and theological strength that hold the tension of humanity and its broken, suffering children seeking a holy and mighty God, who deigns to call Himself Father to each of us.
Musically, this project stays tethered to the acoustic foundation that would place Lane in his living room, strumming and picking his guitar. Several songs swell with electric and rhythmic sensibilities and instrumentation. Some songs drift completely into country, even blue-grass/roots sounds complete with banjo and steel string guitars and brushes on the snare drum. But rock is never completely shut out of these tracks. "You Are With Us", "Lead Me Home", and "Glorious" remind us that Vineyard music, both in the US and abroad, has its origins in the rock generation of the 60s, 70's and 80's, whose anthemic soaring progressions still beat in the musical heart of the modern church.
In a way, this album is the most deeply "Vineyard" project I have heard in a very long time. Certainly, it has nuances of the church movement's musical heritage (along with the modern touch of "Mumford & Sons" splattered occasionally). But more than that, this project harkens back to the days when Vineyard music was the vanguard of intimate prayer language in the global church's worship song repertoire. Lane unlocks something reminiscent of John Wimber in his sensibilities and clarity about how scripture can collide with music. And he revisits the eloquence of rhythm and voice that Scott Underwood brought to the mid-90's through his songs and recordings. But at the core of this album's "Vineyard-esque" traits is the lyrical canvas that Samuel Lane paints on- unafraid of our relationship with God the Father, Holy Spirit and Jesus the Son.
I enjoyed this album immensely. And each listen has only increased my appreciation for Lane and love of these songs. After 4 complete journeys through this album, I can tell you there is a lot here and many more hours to spend. Treasures were spent gathering this album together and there are treasures more to be found for anyone willing to listen completely through this entire journey of intimacy, honesty, prayer, surrender, rhythm and joy. One of the best thematically based albums I have experienced in the last 10 years.
For churches looking for great worship songs, I have two suggestions to start with from this album. First is "Father", the fourth track on this album. It is one of the most arresting lyrical prayers I have heard put to a sonic pallette. Truly engaging and easy to place in the deepest part of your intimate worship sets. Second, is the building and upbeat song "You Are With Us". This song is a rolling celebration of God's immanence and the joy of assurance that comes with being in the very presence of the very God. Really, this is a very good song and deserves a listen by almost every congregation doing modern worship styled songs.
Because of the strong songs, excellent thematic elements and seamless threading of all musical elements from top to bottom, this album gets my endorsement as the latest awarded "Editor's Choice". Don't hesitate to get this project, try it with your church band and use these songs!
For churches using WorshipTeam.com, all of the songs, chord charts, lyrics and audio are already available and pre-loaded for you in the WorshipTeam.com system song database. If you are not part of WorshipTeam.com and want to listen to audio samples or purchase the album directly yourself, see the Amazon link below.
Amazon Link: http://amzn.to/15u2Z9A
worshiping Him!
Review by Kim Gentes
Free Song Download "O My Soul" from Samuel Lane
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Many thanks to my friends at Integrity Music / Vineyard Music UK for allowing us to offer this free song download for a limited time. KG..
church, music, praise, sam lane, samuel lane, songs, st. albens, the fire, vineyard, vineyard music, vineyard uk, worship in Awards, CD Review, Music Review Monday, November 5, 2012 at 3:18PM 
Music is a strange thing. Like other technical art-based disciplines, perfection is not just about execution of the skill. Inside the skill of music lies the art. The art blossoms when the skill and structure of the notes, rhythms, fingers, voices and teamwork merge with such effortless integration that the message of the artist(s) rise above the din of music making. If we left it at that, the craft of music would stay an emotional and heartfelt, but ultimately, soulish venture. And so much music is today.
When one listens to the live recordings of a worship service with thoughtful music, well-crafted songs, and (dare I spend that overused phrase) authentic performances, the art of music rises beyond an appeal to emotion. When talking about worship music, what makes room for more than the emotive connection with music as an individual enjoyment is the cultivation of awareness- awareness of others and the Other.
Listening to "For The Sake of the World" from Bethel Music is a pulsing example of a vibrant worship experience and devotional offering of songs; one as intimately aware of God's transcendence as it is celebrating His immanence. When you listen to this new album there is "something" on it -or maybe in it- that takes great music and turns it into songs for nations.
The album begins with a subtle but inviting simmer- the call to worship song "To Our God". Rather than storming the gates of hell, and rousing the emotions of rally, this song performs the combined function of ancient introit, invoking God's welcome, calling all to join the prayer and declaring the intention of the congregation to move towards Him for no other reason than "We'll make His praise glorious, for His name is glorious". From ebb to ecstasy, track one welcomes us to another spectacular album from the folks behind Bethel Music.
Like their youth-focused counterparts on the Jesus Culture albums, this album isn't a self-centered show-case of homegrown tunes. And proving that point, track two is the song "Our Father", a cover of the song from the writers at International House of Prayer music group. Plaintiff, as expected, but powerful too!
Jeremy Riddle leads the third song, "This Is Amazing Grace", which is another blissful example of why Jeremy is writing some of the most heartfelt and widely sung new songs in the church today. I loved this new song, bringing the ancient rhetorical question to glorious life various takes on "who is like our God?", and answering it with poignant precision- "This is amazing grace, this is unfailing love..."
"You Have Won Me" is a vivacious and powerful song, reminiscent of the 4-section tune patterns made popular in Hillsong United choruses (ABABCDBD- where C is a long musical interlude and D are anthemic bridges that could double for 2nd choruses on their own). Brian and Jenn Johnson share the largest portion of vocal point this project, and Brian applies his leadership here with great effect.
As the tracks play on, each is an excellent, diverse and compelling song. The 8th note hymn-styled "Who You Are" by Jenn Johnson, the slow building "Forgiven", the joy-graced power-praise of "In Your Light" with Jeremy Riddle, and the fast spinning "Freedom" are a steady and inviting ramp of rhythm and praise through the album's mid-section. By the time we reach "Closer" with Steffany Frizzell-Gretzinger we have come to the downward arch of tempo on this project and themes of intimacy and devotion are reaching the apex. On "This Is What You Do" (led by William Matthews), we pause briefly for what seems like a lighter moment, only to be pulled back into deeper groove and devotional themes once again.
Finally, the project is landed as it started, with Brian Johnson making the plaintiff prayers and invocations of a hungry people for a glorious God- calling out for revival flames in the hearts of the church to bring true love and passion to reach the world. This is apt not only as a theme for this album, but as a generalization of the Bethel Music as a whole- they are a revivalist church whose musical collective is singing the messages of their tribe. "For the Sake Of The World" is a song, and an album that reflects the best of the subtleties of passion and music that has burned in the tradition of revivalist musical liturgy across the ages of the evangelical church groups reflected by such as John and Charles Wesley, the Pentecostals of the early 20th century, the Jesus people of the 60's, the Vineyard churches of 80's and 90's and now Bethel Music and the Jesus Culture groups that emanate out of the Bethel church sphere. It is passionate, contrite, prayer laced, unafraid of intimate language, declaratively rich, exceptionally vibrant musical styling and maintains a balance of transcendence and immanence in its theological content. In short- God's glory and God's goodness.
I very much appreciate this album, its musical excellence and its lyrical, thematic and theological attentiveness to both the scriptures and the traditions of its tribal stream from which it comes. I highly recommend "For The Sake of the World". Check this album out- you won't be disappointed! If you are a worship leader in a church that is looking for songs laced with the prayers of revival tones and invocations of God's glory and nearness, you will have an entire cache of new songs to consider here- all worthwhile!
For those who use online planning, you can also find the songs from this album, the full audio, chord charts and lyrics online in WorshipTeam.com.
worshiping Him!
Review by Kim Gentes
Monday, August 20, 2007 at 9:24AM 
Once in a while an album comes along that surprises you with great songs, capturing melodies and effusive worship. In the "normal" course of things, a strong project might contain one great song and maybe another good song. Rarely would you find a project with 3 or 4 truly top notch songs. But in 2006, a growing church in the Dallas metroplex released an album called "Living For You". The ministry of Gateway Church and its worship department was introducing its cadre of songwriters and leaders to the country for the first on a broad scale. This inaugural release was not the first project Gateway worship had produced, but it was the first one released through Integrity Music, a group that has consistently mined a large portion of the most used songs in America over the last 25 years.
"Living For You" delivers no less thirteen prestine tracks, with four phenomenal songs, including one of the most popular songs in the world today in the blissful modern rendition of the trisagion prayer entitled Revelation Song. If you haven't heard this top 5 CCLI song at least once in the last 5 years, its likely you haven't been to church. For pastoral leaders and teachers Revelation Song was quickly accepted because it both glorified God with direct language and used mostly Scriptural quote and reference to fill and inform its lyrics. For worship leaders and musicians everywhere Revelation Song proved an irrisistable combination of excellent lyrical content and refreshing musical variety, giving the pop-worship 1-4-5 musical mantra a needed rest. Which of us worship leaders wasn't delighted to find a well-written song with a great melodic hook that made good use of a minor 5th and flatted 7th prominently styled into the song?
Other songs from this album, which have also found broad acceptance across the church, are You, You Are God, The More I Seek You and Thomas Miller's modern revision of the classic Come Thou Fount, Come Thou King. These songs are all incorporated with a top notch musical presentation into the "Living For You" album. Listening to this project, you will find moments of explosive praise, enthralling worship and absolute abandon. One forgets that the musical leaders on this project have become well known, because this project reflects none of the trappings of "stardom" that seem to come as quickly to Christian worship leaders as they do to pop stars. The album feels and sounds like an authentic voice of a local church giving its all in song and worship to God. You will be drawn in and find yourself prayerful, praiseful and heavenward as you take the journey of the songs represented here.
If you haven't already put this project on your playlist, get the mp3 album and enjoy some great songs as you worship.
Product Link: Living For You - Gateway Worship
Review by Kim Gentes
