Today, Tenth Avenue North have released their sixth LP, No Shame, on August 2nd. After more than a decade on the road, five studio albums and a season of transition, the band has found themselves wondering what they wanted to say next. This collection of songs finds Tenth Avenue North feeling more free than ever before.
“There’s a difference between healthy shame and toxic shame,” frontman Mike Donehey explains. “Healthy shame is actually the necessary feeling you have when you realize you’re not God and you have limitations. That feeling of shame is actually a gift from God. Toxic shame is that voice that cries out, ‘Unredeemable.’”
“Regret looks like something completely different for everybody,” guitarist Jeff Owen remarks. “It’s something that everybody experiences, but it oftentimes surprises you when you have those feelings. We just wanted to write a song that felt like that emotion and the resolution that comes with trusting that God was with you through it all.”
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A Bold New Direction| Posted July 28, 2019 What You Need To Know Never a band to stay stagnant, Tenth Avenue North has come a long way since their debut album released just over a decade ago. With five successfully impactful studio albums behind them, Tenth Avenue North recently found themselves in a season of transition, carefully crafting the message of what they wanted to say next. The result of that season is No Shame, an offering that finds the band tackling more vulnerable topics than ever with a newfound boldness and refreshing sense of freedom.
What It Sounds Like For longtime Tenth Avenue North listeners, No Shame may take some getting used to, as it sees the band move into a sonic direction we haven't heard from them before. The new sound grabs your attention, adding an extra punch to the hard-hitting lyrics found on the record, especially on tracks "Someone To Talk To," "Paranoia" (which feels reminiscent of "We Won't Numb The Pain" from their 2014 Cathedrals album), "Call My Name," "Reaching" and the title track (featuring The Young Escape). It wouldn't be a Tenth Avenue North record without the thought-provoking worship ballads, though, and the band delivers on that front with lead single "Greater Than All My Regrets," as well as "Space To Speak" and "Always Been You."
Spiritual Highlights I've been a Tenth Avenue North fan from the very beginning, largely because of their willingness to talk about hard topics with grace and boldness–while their sound may be changing, that much hasn't wavered. With a sense of freedom and honesty we haven't heard quite like this, Tenth tackles the issue of shame by offering songs that speak of the forgiveness found in Christ ("Greater Than All My Regrets," "No Shame") and the power found in community ("Someone To Talk To").
Best Song on the Album One of several songs on No Shame that combines the best of Tenth's staple sound that we all know and love with the best elements of this new project, "Heaven Is Now" offers a message of living in the fullness of Heaven's power right now on earth. "Let your kingdom come here in my heart / let me be the place where Heaven starts," the song prays.
Final Word Through both high-energy tracks and softer moments, No Shame uses every single second to deliver high-quality content that will leave you thinking more deeply about your relationship with God and your relationships with others. To the credit of a band who continues to evolve and mature their sound and from the production to the songwriting, every element of this album screams "well done." We've never heard Tenth Avenue North like this before–and it's well worth the listen.
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