on the Music of the Day 27 July [makeup]
okay, it’s time for another “make-up” Music of the Day entry… this one’s more recent, but still a little behind the times… i hope to have another entry up later this week (preferably tomorrow) covering the shiny happy releases from the 24th and 31st because i have a couple of those and have heard a couple more… and then it will look like i’ve caught up…
anyway, this time out, i’ve got some doozies from the latter weeks of July including some rawk music, as well as introspective splendor from a personal favorite… top that off with a couple debuts and cap it all with a surprise hit here at theTRu, which will receive a special little shout out… and that smells like one fantastic day of music… okay, off we go…
the first line of their bio reads… “Ivoryline has been inspired.”… that’s, um, interesting… i guess i’d hope that all band record based on inspiration… but that’s not what they’re talking about and i know this because “inspired” is one of those Christian code words… let me decode it for you… basically, it means that this album is expected to deal directly with the topic of faith… and indeed it does put things clearly and openly… but to be completely honest i don’t know if that’s a new approach for Ivoryline… i don’t even remember what their last album – something about a Lion – from two years ago sounded like or how “clear” or obtuse the lyrics were…
Either way, the album at hand, Vessels, borrows from the same Bible passage from which Jars of Clay took their name… that they have a message of great importance and that they are amazed that it was entrusted to such wounded “vessels” sets the stage for an album of honest and faith-filled lyrics… If you’re concerned about the safety of the lyrics, you can be at ease… if you’re concerned with the quality of music, you can also set your mind at ease… Ivoryline has crafted a nice poppy sound with a hearty dose of rock-tinged riffs along the lines of Anberlin… and now i’ve invested way too much in this quick review… bottom line… it sounds good and if you like the stylings of Anberlin and other modern rock, this is a good choice for you…
i’m always excited to hear what House of Heroes comes up with… if nothing else, i’m always guaranteed that at least five times on the album, Tim Skipper is going to blow me away with his vocal… Suburba doesn’t disappoint in the least and, upon first listen, it immediately jumped into contention for a top spot in my annual top albums list… for fans of rock music, the group brings the ballyhoo on tracks like Independence Day for a Petty Thief and Burn Me Down… however, there’s also a nice touch of harmonies on tracks like So Far Away, which reminds me of The Beach Boys melodically… all in all, it’s another fantastic album from a group that always impresses me…
Andrew Peterson – Counting Stars
Andrew Peterson has a storyteller’s heart… that much is obvious from his music… of course, he’s also written a couple of books and, i believe, is working on the third… but it takes all of fifteen seconds with him before he’s launching into a story of some sort… that’s just the way he expresses his creativity… and when it manifests itself in mellow, heartfelt music, the result is an album-based experience that is unparalleled… once again, he provides stunning visuals lyrically and frames each tale and metaphor with soothing, captivating melodies… give this album a listen and you’ll be swept away along a carefree journey from one man’s perspective as he uncovers the glory of God…
Here’s a new group… and i’m assuming they’ve released this somewhat independently… i’m kind of at a loss thinking of who exactly to compare them to, but that’s not to say their sound is unique, just that the names of similar bands are escaping me… it’s not exactly polished like Creed, but it’s also not as rough-edged as a 12 Stones… but i think you get somewhat of an idea… production-wise somewhere in between the two… in regards to talent level, probably around that range… taken at face value… there are a couple of pretty good songs on here… i do like Longing and No Escape all right… oh, maybe Kutless?… anyway, it’s not a bad debut…
another newbie to the scene… The Museum looks like your typical Christian rock group complete with a name that starts with “The,” scruffy hair, and those army-style baseball caps… but beyond the ensemble lies a pretty smooth and enjoyable sound… there’s certainly a trendy worship element to the album, a la Above the Golden State and maybe The Longing… Especially on tracks like My Help Comes from the Lord and Allelujah, but they include both vertical and horizontal songs, which, i know falls into the Christian code words category again, but hey, it forms a cross… Anyway, the point is, Let Love In has songs for all occasions… some directed to God, some directed to all of us, for instance, Buy This, which explains that hope and redemption are free gifts and not something you can buy… i like this album and it actually made it onto my iPod…
And now for something completely different… i often check out full album streams on AOL because i don’t get albums as frequently as i used to and it’s pretty cool to see what else is out there from people i don’t get servicing from… sometimes… well, during the week of 27 July, i managed to stumble upon a full album stream of the self-titled release from J Roddy Walston and the Business… despite never having heard of them, i gave it a chance… and i listened to that stream no less than 20 times during the course of that week… very disappointing when it disappeared… now, i can’t necessarily vouch for the lyrical content – but i think it’s pretty clean – but i can most assuredly rave about the down home jam session quality of the music that i simply can’t get enough of… think Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and The Black Keys… and if you still don’t have a frame of reference, then i’ve now given you three bands worth checking out… seriously… i can listen to this album for hours on end… good, good stuff…
and that’s all for now folks… i hope to be back tomorrow or the next day to talk about the likes of Jeremy Camp, Israel Houghton, and Natalie Grant among others… we’ll see what i can do…
peace… love… bdg…