PureNRG [Here We Go Again]
Posted September 24, 2008
By christianmusicreview,
[Main Review]
I have to admit when I first listened to PureNRG’s new album, Here We Go Again, I was thinking to myself… “Don’t I hear enough of this kid-pop while my daughter watches the Disney Channel?” Well, no more then a few songs into the disc I realized these kids may sound similar to the music heard on Disney Channel shows like Hannah Montana, High School Musical and Wizards of Waverly Place, but the message of the album was the big difference.
While the music of High School Musical and Hannah Montana come across as positive and fun for kids, PureNRG steps it up and brings the message of Jesus in their album full of not only positive and encouraging tracks, but songs that will be sure to get your house bouncin' and pumped up and I don’t mean just the kids either!
The writing process of this album review started out a little different then most that I write. Normally I listen to an album through a few times before sitting down to write the review, you know to familiarize myself with the artists, their music and the message. No, this time I handed the CD to my eight and half year old daughter, Mariah. I said, “I want you to take this CD into your room and listen to it and let me know what you think”. No more then ten minutes later, I heard her in her room singing along with some of the songs. “What do you think Mariah?” I asked her. “This CD is my new favorite CD dad! You know I like Hannah Montana and stuff, but she doesn’t sing about Jesus. She says she is a Christian, but I don’t ever hear her sing about God”
This really made me feel good. You know there is a lot of ‘so-called’ kids’ music out there, but what is it teaching our children? Absolutely nothing. PureNRG seems to pick up where Jump 5 left off with their Hello/Goodbye CD. A few songs that caught my ear (and that I even found myself singing along to) were the group’s cover of the 1967 Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell duet, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough”. I really enjoyed PureNRG’s cover of the song. I immediately thought of the bus scene in the Denzel Washington film, Remember the Titans, when the players started singing it on the bus on the way to Gettysburg.
Another song I really enjoyed and really like because of its positive and uplifting message was the group’s cover of Nicole C. Mullen’s “Call On Jesus”. “I was really nervous doing it because I really love singing that song and I love Nicole C. Mullen,” says Carolyne Myers. “The producer and I would pray before every pass while recording it in the studio.” The other big cover on the album was Matthew West’s “More”. I absolutely loved that song, it reminds us of Christ’s love for us and willingness to do what He needed to do in order to atone for and defeat our sins once and for all.
With a few covers on the CD, there are some originals that I think the ‘younger’ fans will find exciting to listen to. Particularly in the ‘chick tracks’ (as I call them) like “Girls Can Change the World” and “BFF (Best Friends Forever). I was surprised at how much I actually enjoyed listening to the album. I am not afraid to admit, I would consider myself a fan of PureNRG! I think that the group’s focus is where it needs to be, and that’s on going out and showing people who their Savior is and what He’s about.
I actually had taken my wife Shannon and daughter Mariah to Winter Jam 2008 earlier this year and got the opportunity to see PureNRG perform and even got to meet them backstage after their performance. My daughter Mariah was excited to meet them, but at the same time was too shy to even say anything to them at first. It was cool seeing how they interacted with my daughter, you know how humble they came across and the time they took to talk with her. It made her day.
All in all Here We Go Again was an enjoyable album to listen to with a message that today’s kids need. Jesus. Christ should be the center point of their lives. You know as Proverbs 22:6 says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (KJV). These kids are our future (just as the song says) and we need to encourage them to be grounded in their faith. It’s okay to have fun, but in the way that is still honoring to God and found in the center if His will.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
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If you are looking for an album for your kids that has some great music, this albums a good choice. If you are looking for an album that your kids will enjoy and has a great message, then this is definitely one to pick up. I thoroughly enjoyed it as did my daughter and I think once your kids take a listen, they will too. Look also for PureNRG’s next DVD to hit store shelves later this year.
Rating: 9.1 out of 10 (91%, A-)
Review written by: Jay Heilman
(jay.heilman@christianmusicreview.org)
Review can also be found at:
http://www.christianmusicreview.org/purenrg_herewegoagain.html
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