Kim Gentes

Advent is not a word you hear outside of traditional and denominational Christian settings a lot.  But as the recent millenium has brought so many changes, we see much of the non-traditional and non-liturgical church groups reaching into the ancient traditions of the Christian church and mining the wisdom of our forebearers in the faith. Advent literally means "coming" and refers to the season of weeks that precede the celebrated birth of Christ and God's coming earth in the flesh as the Emmanuel (literally "God with us").  The Advent as a Christian season of reverence and anticipation was only exceeded in importance by the reflective season of Lent that leads up to the holy week of the death and resurrection of Christ.

Musical worship of advent often focuses on the anticipation of the coming savior, the light rising in the darkness of this world, and preparation of our hearts for His appearing.  It is in that spirit that the recent EP "Light Has Come" seems to present it’s finely crafted songs for the Advent season.

WorshipTogether releases the "Light Has Come" EP with six modern worship songs that focus on the light, hope, glory and joy of the advent season not by headlining it with artists. Instead it chose to release a compact collection of very focused songs from its songwriters, keeping the arrangements and presentation accessible and reproducible for churches.  Recorded crisply, but with the songs as the focus, one gets the idea this was meant more as a resource to churches coming to Advent than to consumers looking for radio hits.

In fact, even the keys and arrangements of the songs flow seamlessly from one song to another. I was able to sit down with my guitar and play along with each and every song the first time through. Five of the 6 songs were keyed either in F or C (very complimentary keys), making it great to use these songs together in a worship set.

Let’s dive into the songs.

The first song "Let The World Sing Gloria" is a modern song rendering language and context for the traditional phrase "Gloria in excelsis Deo" (which is Latin for "Glory to God in the highest"). Musically, it is an ebbing verse, vaulting chorus and rising bridge which brings the ancient phrase to life.  Melodic, well written lyrics and hook laden chorus, this is the best song on the EP. You really should consider this song for the upcoming season- it is excellent!

"Newborn King" is the second track and gives a medium tempo groove to celebrating the coming of the Christ child. Again the musical affinity is crisply acoustic/rock and easy to incorporate into a modern worship set. The lyrics continue to be the language of advent and anticipatory Christmas season. Another good candidate for your Sunday mornings.

The title track "Light Has Come" is a country-ish sounding ballad that reminds me of something from Vineyard Music's "roots worship" sound with Ryan Delmore- somewhere between acoustic/pop and Mumford & Sons. Lyrically, the song focuses a modern spin on the story of Jesus' light come to the broken and weak of our earthly society and bringing God's glory through such humility.

Track five is the pop-driven "End of Exile", the most progressive recording on this collection. Well done, this song soars on power-chords flooding the chorus. It is comprised of a terse lyrical style, leaving lithe phrases such as its compact chorus:

Glorious miracle here is the end of exile
God the invisible flooding the world with light

Definitely a song to look at for the Advent season.

I will leave tracks 4 and 6 to the reader to discover, as they are laid out simply and clearly in easily reproduced arrangements and keys.

Overall, I found the Advent EP "Light Has Come" to be delightful. I especially loved tracks 1, 2 and 5, as noted above and would recommend them to any church looking for new music for the season.  

"Light Has Come" find it at Amazon or iTunes

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.

If you are wondering where you might find some great new songs for the Christmas/Advent season, and you are in contemporary worship context, you should definitely consider the songs on this new album from WorshipTogether, "Light Has Come".

worshiping Him!

Kim Gentes

I first heard of Vicky Beeching from the landmark Vineyard UK CD "Hungry", where her song "There Is No One Like Our God" appeared in the track list. Later, in 2002, the release of another Vineyard UK project, "Holy", included her popular song "Above All Else". This year, Vicky has come to fruition as a songwriter and worship leader with her new release "Yesterday, Today & Forever". This is a clean, crisp studio project with a mirthful combination of church-usable worship songs with radio-playable production.

What you notice right off about this CD is that it has perfect production sensibility for each song, elevating the arrangements for the anthemic songs and paring down to simplicity for the beautiful, haunting songs of intimacy. In fact, it took me a long time to detach from engaging in the worship music contained on this CD, to allow me to listen critically to the various components of production and songwriting it contained.
From the title track "Yesterday, Today & Forever", you will not be able to sit idly by as this project rolls on. You will be singing or humming your way through, and this is good. And this is not just because the music is interesting, but also because the lyrics have a beautiful balance and deep content to them such as the second verse to her opening
track:

Uncreated One,
You have no end and no beginning
Earthly power fades,
But there is no end to Your Kingdom
Always loving, always true,
Always merciful and good, so good.

Vicky's writing has a conscious balance of awe-filled, glory expression (songs like "Yesterday, Today & Forever," "Above All Else" and "Majesty and Mystery") and prayer and surrender songs ("Search Me", "Nothing Is Impossible" and "Extravagant Worship"). Her lyrical content is solidly scripture-based, while be obviously passionate and personal. A bit of background information on Vicky helps with understanding some of this lyrical depth, when I found out she is has a theology degree from Oxford University. Along with her competent acoustic guitar prowess and pristine voice, she certainly has a wealth of skills to draw from in writing and presenting her songs of devotion.

Listening through the CD, you will have a hard time not closing your eyes and surrendering your heart, if you sing along with honesty to the song "Above All Else". I still find myself in tears when I say those words from my heart. In this same vein, "Captivated" is aptly named as the song allows you to consider the Lord and be captivated by his beauty. This CD playlist is a wonderful washing of music and lyrics, bringing in waves of cresting celebration songs, accentuated with ebbs of deep worship songs. For me, the most memorable part of the CD is the last 3 songs, where we go from being captivated by His glory, to the 6/8 swing of surrender in "Extravagant Worship" and ends with a beautiful re-envisioning of the classic "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus".

Because of the variety of tempo and arrangements across these songs, this is not a CD that will grow tired quickly in your player. Be sure to check it out- you will not be disappointed.

Product Link Yesterday Today & Forever

Review by Kim Gentes

If you're like me, you have friends who regularly share with you of their latest discoveries in worship and music. Several months ago, one such friend, introduced me to a song called 'Here I am To Worship'. The song was clear, inviting and sparkling of truth. The more I listened, the less I listened and began to worship and bow my heart to God. Such was my initiation into the sounds and songs of a worship leader Tim Hughes, from Watford, England's Soul Survivor movement. Now, the album from the young Soul Survivor worship leader is released in the US and abroad. And thankfully, the title track ('Here I Am To Worship') was just a hint of the great collection of praise and intimacy that earmarks this terrific project.

As many of you know, my most important criterion in reviewing a praise and worship album (IE. an album for the Church to use in devotion) is the quality of the songs. In that area, 'Here I Am To Worship' is the finest album to come from the UK since Delirious? released their Cutting Edge double CD collection in the US. Most immediate comparisons for this album will go directly to label-mate Matt Redman's 'Friendship and the Fear' and 'Heart of Worship' projects, and rightly so. Tim Hughes garners musical and lyrical style out of the same cloth as Redman, no doubt about it. But comparisons are really not needed to appreciate this album, as it stands squarely on its own merits of terrific songwriting, great production and fine vocals! So let's dive in and look at the songs!

The project kicks off with 'Maker of All Things', a guitar driven song that is definitely a 'freeway hit' (you know what I mean- you will be rocking back and forth singing this song as you roll off to work on the freeway). Not only is the music upbeat, but also the lyrics and attitude of this song truly elevate the heart as you find yourself lifting up the Lord. I really appreciate the album starting this way, making God the context of our music through clearly praise pointed lyrics. In fact, you won't find the word 'I' in this introductory track at all; a tendency critics of modern worship music have said was a shortcoming of many projects. As a writer Tim Hughes does great service to the Church with this first song, making us all focus just on Him through God-ward lyrics. He also does not allow us to worship in isolation by crafting language for the whole Church and joining us all to worship by using pronouns 'we', 'our' and 'your people' through the song. Rolling along, the album ebbs musically softer through tracks 2 and 3. 'May the Words of My Mouth' begins by borrowing from Psalm 19, and resounds with personal devotion and commitment to 'follow You' and 'give my all to You'. Stuck between a great opening track and the title song, this track could get lost, but I encourage everyone not to let that happen. And that goes for this whole album- every track on this project is worthy of its placement on an international release like this.

On to the third song, we come back to 'Here I Am To Worship'. In my opinion, this song is so infectious, so truthful, and so balanced (by both words of heartfelt longing and beautiful lyrical sculpting of God's character) that it will become the most widely used song out of the UK worship stream since 'I Could Sing of You Love Forever'. In the manner as David did in the book of Psalms, this song attains the same amazing juxtaposition of personal prayer/cry and artful etching of God's awesome attributes. And that is the signature of Tim Hughes writing on almost every song- a constant contrast of our emptiness and God's greatness. You just have to look at the chorus of this song to see that clearly:

Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that You're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me

What else need be said? If you aren't doing this song yet in your times of corporate worship, you will be soon.

Arriving at 'I'll Always Love You', the fourth track is easily my favorite. With the best musical hook on the album, this song says what we all long to say:

I'll always love You
I'll always sing to You, Jesus
I long to worship You in Spirit and in truth

The simple lyrics, great melody, and excellent power-chord progression of this chorus-based song will be bouncing around the halls of youth groups and youthful hearts for many years. I have to say it again- this is my favorite song on this album! Don't miss it!

You may have noticed that I haven't said much about vocal style or musicianship and production. Don't worry; this is one of the best musical productions to ever come out of the UK worship leaders. Producers Jason Halbert and Dwayne Larring, of the original Sonic Flood, made sure the project shines with tasteful arrangements (using power and understatement effectively), excellent instrumentation and well placed vocal styling. Not to diminish the superlative work of production done on this project, but the songwriting on this CD is so stellar it remains its backbone.

Back to the songs, tracks 5 and 6 continue the renderings of Hughes' psalmist heart on the music canvas. 'If There's One Thing' is a medium tempo song that builds into a commitment song of our devotion to God. 'Redeemer' returns to a soft tone, and to contrasting the worshippers heart with the vastness of the One being worshipped. Ringing in the song 'Day After Day', the seventh track is another one of my favorites. This song is a wonderful prayer/cry with another tremendous melodic chorus. Some will say it is too simple, too repetitive. Too bad for them! I love this song, and it makes my list of songs to do in church. Track eight is a fun tune, continuing to weave great lyrics with infectious music and melody. When I first heard 'Jesus, You Alone' I was immediately remind of 'That Thing You Do' musically. It is a bouncy song of God's glory, but with good lyrical weight.

The next song retreats back to simplicity and intimacy with 'Never Lose the Wonder' only to return to another wave of musical exuberance with 'The Eyes of My Heart', which in turn is followed by the calm devotion of 'My Jesus, My Lifeline'.

You don't have to be a fan of UK worship music or Tim Hughes to simply love this album. The tremendous offerings of songs on this project will wash over the Church worldwide, as we praise God. While listening to this CD in my car stereo (I listened to this CD no less than 30 times through!), I was able to get to know the songs personally and am now ready to begin incorporating them in my own local churches worship services. But I have said enough, the best way for you to believe it for yourself is to listen online to the CD! Get yours soon- this is a great CD!

Product Link Here I Am To Worship - Tim Hughes

Reviewed by
Kim Gentes

In the mid-90s a number of local musicians, songwriters and worship leaders in the UK began to flourish and influence not only their nation but the world in bringing new songs to the church. From that stream of praise and worship comes possibly the most influential songwriter over the last 20 years within the modern worship movement- Matt Redman. Redman's songs have been used across the globe, and in virtually every Christian denomination. They have been recorded by countless other leaders, artists and musicians. And while Redman shirks the notariety of his influence, there is scarecly a Christian musician or leader in North America that would not recognize his songs or his name.

Matt Redman was introduced to the North American church largely through the efforts of the music label WorshipTogether, a brand of EMI Christian Music in the United States. The WorshipTogether moniker was comprised largely of songs and recordings from UK leaders and songwriters that were connected with Kingsway Music.  As part of that effort, WorshipTogether introduced Delirious?, Matt Redman, Tim Hughes and others to a broad church and consumer music market from 1998 until the present. While some of Delirious? (Martin Smith) and Matt Redman's songs were making their way across the pond before the EMI marketing effort began, the impact and effectiveness of the WorshipTogether brand, recordings, marketing and website was nothing short of phenomenal.

To review either of Matt Redman's first two albums seems a bit misinformed, as both albums were released first in the UK and both contained slight modifications before being introduced to the US market. The first was a merger of UK releases (songs from UK releases "Passion For Your Name" and "The Friendship and the Fear" became  the US version of "The Friendship and the Fear"), the second was simply a name change (UK "Intimacy" was released as "The Heart of Worship" in the US). In any case, we review each album here.

Redman's first recording that released in the US was "The Friendship and the Fear" in 1998 (released through the EMI StarSong label).  This album was chock full of singable and upbeat songs that contained a rock driven sound with fresh rhythmic sensibilities such as Believer and Better Is One Day. But it was mixed in with intimate melodic classics that have become staples in churches worldwide- such as I Will Offer Up My Life and Once Again. Each of these songs resonated across the North American church, but probably none more so than the Better Is One Day track, which found wings on many other recordings including the phenomenal explosion of the Passion youth gatherings and their associated recordings, whose breakout album in 2000 not only included the song but was entited "Passion: Better Is One Day".

After establishing a strong presence in the church with "The Friendship and the Fear", WorshipTogether released another album by Redman a year later. In 1999, the WorshipTogether label released what would become, at the time, Matt Redman's signature album and song in "The Heart of Worship" (it would later be eclipsed only by his most popular song, Blessed Be The Name). Like Believer on "The Friendship and the Fear", this new album included another celebratory praise hit with Let Everything That Has Breath. But it was the title track that seemed to find its way into hearts across not only North America but the world. In what Redman would later explain as a response to God's corrective to him (as part of his serving in a local church worship leader context), the lyrics of the song The Heart of Worship focused on repentance and Godward devotion intended for worship rather than the music in which praise or worship may be delivered.

These two albums were not only the introduction of Matt Redman as a worship leader and songwriter, they were the seedbed of dozens of other recordings both in North America and abroad. The songs were just the first of dozens that Redman would continue to write, which eventually placed him as one of the most prominent church songwriters in the last 100 years.  And he continues to write the songs of our modern liturgy, even today.  These original albums are still available and are a great archive of wonderful songs usable for churches.

Product Links:

The Friendship And The Fear - Matt Redman (1998)

The Heart Of Worship  - Matt Redman (1999)

Review by Kim Gentes