Vagabonds
by
The Classic Crime The title to The Classic Crime's latest long player implies a certain need to travel; and while the alternative rock act is no stranger to touring, the inspiration actually comes from a more missions-minded...
Eternity Invades
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Vicky Before UK born and bred singer/songwriter, Vicky Beeching, began her pursuit of professional music she enrolled as a theology student at Britain's renowned Oxford University to ensure her spirit-led songs...
Miracle
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Robbie Seay Band Quick disclaimer: What I don't mean to say is "if you've heard one Robbie Seay Band album, you've heard them all." At the same time, RSB's latest batch of worshipful pop/rock tunes, entitled Miracle, features...
ANGRY, ANGSTY, NOISY AND INTENSE (IN A GOOD WAY) | Posted September-29-2008
There’s a lot the six mild mannered band mates of Underoath could teach Tears for Fears about primal scream therapy. For that matter, they could expose the underlying terror of tears and fears to the band Primal Scream. But, call it hardcore, grindcore, post-metal/artcore, or whatever the kids are calling the loud, fast, heavy stuff these days, and there’s not a lot anybody needs to teach Underoath.
Gut-wrenchingly intense, the Tampa sextet follows the winning ways of Define the Great Line, an album that excelled in taking the hardcore genre in a more experimental direction while topping Billboard’s album sales charts. On Lost in theSound of Separation, as before, Underoath is angry, angsty, noisy and intense. In short, everything here feels like an “Emergency Broadcast” with vocalist Spencer Chamberlain in full-throated howl about these “Desperate Times, Desperate Measures.”
Of course, nothing here is subtle, but there is a greater appreciation of nuance, dramatic tension and the soundscapes that fill the quieter moments (yes, I said quieter, and I only meant moments) and allow the tunes to grow and build. Too often the guitars function like the drums as blunt instruments, but the growing cohesive interplay of musicians reveals a creativity that could be overlooked amid all the sturm und drang.
In slight and incremental ways, Underoath has allowed a bit more traditional melody into the mix, most notably on its most accessible track (ever), “Too Bright to See, Too Loud to Hear.” But thanks primarily to the vocal additions of Aaron “The Almost” Gillespie and the spooky keyboards of Chris Dudley, moments of beauty and tunefulness have been brought to a genre where these things are rare.
But of course, none of this matters if you don’t understand what these songs are all about, which is ultimately the longing for peace, wholeness and redemption, and, as Chamberlain wails in “Breathing In a New Mentality,” for God to “show me how to love.” –Brian Quincy Newcomb
This review has been reprinted on NRT with permission from CCMMagazine.com. Click here to visit CCMMagazine.com today!
THIRD TIMES A CHARM FOR 20-YEAR-OLD POP/ROCKER | Posted September-29-2008
Krystal Meyers was in good company at this year’s Dove Awards, sharing her second “Female Vocalist of the Year” nomination with such luminaries as Amy Grant, Mandisa, Sandi Patty and Natalie Grant. Not bad for an artist whom three years ago was an unsigned teenager playing local hot spots.
Although Make Some Noise just hits stores this month, NBC’s fall TV promo spot has already been screaming the title track of Meyers’ sparkling new disc. Not afraid to shout it out, the just-turned-20-year-old cranks up the tunes on her third CD, plunging head first into a 10-song set that explores maturing faith in the context of an upgraded sound.
Though she has been touted in the past as an edgier Avril Lavigne or Ashlee Simpson, Meyers incorporates fatter sounds for Make Some Noise, mixing in some thick beats and entrancing Gwen Stefani-esque vocals (if we must compare) to shake it up loud.
“Shine,” the glittering first single, is pure pop fun, programming beats worthy of any dance floor circa the 1980s. “Love it Away” keeps it bumping with a song of restoration: “Do you know when your world is unraveling/Holding on, hanging by a thread/Don’t you know there’s somebody to pull you in/Don’t cry anymore… He will love it away.”
Merging her happy beats with astute fashion and a timeless message, Meyers’ worldwide crossover appeal readies her to become a legitimate Christian music international pop star. With such mass marketability, it’s no wonder the iconic blonde is rocking out arenas on this year’s “Revolve Tour,” Women of Faith’s reach to girls.
But lest you think Meyers is only capable of speaking to her peers, think again. Addressing the concerns of a budding woman, Make Some Noise is more than typical teen fare and more musically and lyrically satisfying than her previous two ventures.
Watch out. Krystal Meyers is poised to take the world by storm. –Andrew Greer
This review has been reprinted on NRT with permission from CCMMagazine.com. Click here to visit CCMMagazine.com today!
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