Need This Album
Posted December 30, 2013
By KevinMcNeese_NRT, Staff Reviewer
It is so good to see Plumb back on the scene. Back to crafting pop music. Back in front of audiences on major tour and festival stages. Back to inspiring us with creative music and engaging lyrics that come straight from her heart and personal struggles. It's been a long and dry wait for Plumb fans. The last album to really tap into her full potential was 2006's Chaotic Resolve. She followed that with the lovely, but sleepy by design, lullaby tinged Blink that fully abandoned her trajectory as a Christian music pop sensation. It left fans feeling a bit empty and we were teased for a full two years with Need You Now. The wait, as they say, was definitely worth it.
We've since learned what was holding this amazing artist back. Her own desire to raise her family and struggles with keeping her marriage intact were too consuming to properly balance the life of an artist, but with those struggles behind her and in control, we're back to the ballgame and it's those struggles that have inspired some of the most moving songs she has released.
"Need You Now (How Many Times)," "I Want You Here" and "Say Your Name" speaks to the challenges of keeping a strained relationship on the verge of implosion intact while dealing with loneliness and seclusion in the midst of a waning faith. It's some heavy subjects but Plumb has never been one to shy away from tough topics. "Unlovable" is about our inability to put politics and judgments above the love Christ wants us to reach out with. "Cage," the album's break out rock song, speaks above loving through rage and anger and admits "I've got issues, that's for sure / But it's kind of why you like me".
Plumb is, by far, one of the most interesting female voices in Christian music today and Need You Now prove she deserves your attention. She can speak to both sexes with an honesty and purity not found on many other albums. Her honesty and vulnerability can be heartbreaking and healing at the same time. Her need to be loved not only by her Creator but her partner in life and those around her is something we can all relate with.
Closing Thoughts:
Christian music is once again in this cycle of declining female voices that I hope to see reversed as we head into 2014. In fact, on this list of twenty albums, females make up just three selections. We need more female artists like Plumb who can come at issues from a different perspective and encourage us all in the process. This is an album that Plumb fans have been waiting for for entirely too long. It should hold them over for whatever's next from this amazing artist.
Songs to Download:
"Don't Deserve You" and "Say Your Name"
View All Music And Book Reviews By KevinMcNeese_NRT | View KevinMcNeese_NRT's Profile
|
