• tobyMac: portable sounds, Forefront/EMI

To follow up his first two solo gold certified albums, tobyMac offers (portable sounds) – another eclectic mix of rap, hip hop, rock and pop. The first single, ‘Made to Love,’ is still in heavy rotation on Christian stations, after reaching #1 last month. If you want to rock, check out the bombastic ‘Boomin’ and ‘Ignition’; if you want to party, crank up ‘One World’ or ‘Feelin’ So Fly’; and if you want a trip down memory lane to his alma mater, dcTalk, try the pop/rock of ‘Face of the Earth’ and ‘All In.’

This project relies less on programming; his backing band, DiverseCity, gives the sound a more organic feel and a great live vibe that resembles the raw energy of his live show. As expected, toby can’t resist a few comedic interludes between tracks; and his son Truett is back once again as truDog. The album closing ‘Lose My Soul,’ featuring Kirk Franklin and American Idol finalist Mandisa, shows us Toby’s ability to marry infectious melodies with passionate lyrics. This album is in non-stop rotation in my house, my car and my  back yard.

• Relient K: Five Score & Seven Years Ago, Gotee/Capital

Relient K follows up on the gold-selling MMHMM with this power pop/punk rock album, offering themes of hope and happiness. The band’s signature mix of quirky humour and insightful lyrics picks up right where the group left off, adding more melodies and somewhat more pop than punk influences. Lyrically, the CD addresses themes of relationship – specifically reconciliation and intimacy.

‘I Need You’ points out the importance of fellowship; ‘Come Right Out and Say It’ acknowledge the need for honest communication; ‘Forgiven’ emphasizes the equality of our sins, and the fact that we all need forgiveness. The album closes with ‘Deathbed,’ an epic, 11-minute fictional biography about a man reviewing his life in his last few moments – regrets about a broken home and failed marriage, leading to true love and acceptance found in Christ. It’s a poignant and ambitious song, expertly executed – and even has Jon Foreman (Switchfoot) lending his voice as Jesus.       relientk.com

• Various: WOW Hymns, Word/EMI/Provident

For the first time, the WOW music series has released a hymns project. A great concept: bring together the top artists in Christian music today to perform their favourite classic hymn, and hopefully reintroduce a song to a new generation. The only problem is that they did not stick to the classics – hence the tag line, ‘30 Modern & Classic Hymns.’ But there is an abundance of great contemporary arrangements of classic hymns: ‘’Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus’ (Casting Crowns); ‘Take My Life’ (Chris Tomlin);  ‘I Need Thee Every Hour’ (Jars of Clay); and ‘The Old Rugged Cross’ (Bart Millard). This CD has more new original recordings then previous WOW efforts, with contributions from Building 429, Brian Littrell, Point of Grace, Mark Schultz and Stephen Curtis Chapman.                       wowhymnsonline.com

Continue article >>

Once again, Hillsong has released a new kids worship project, with a level of excellence and creativity which far exceeds similar projects. More than 3,000 children gathered to worship Jesus in Australia, as a statement to the world that there is a generation rising up within the church who are unashamed to declare their love for Jesus. This album is full of passionate and energetic songs, including Hillsong favourites ‘Shout to the Lord’ and ‘Everyday’; Israel & New Breed’s hit, ‘Not Forgotten’; plus many great new songs, like ‘You’re All I Need’ and ‘For Who You Are.’ The Supernatural DVD features 12 of the songs recorded at the live event, along with performance tracks, videos with audio options, actions, monologues and documentaries.                  hillsongkids.com

• Group 1 Crew, Fervent/Curb/Warner

Musically diverse, lyrically relevant and culturally engaged, Group 1 Crew presents this solid urban/hip hop self-titled debut. With rap and R&B flooding mainstream radio, it’s great to see a new Christian act emerge – as hip hop artists are hard to come by in CCM. With comparisons to the Black Eyed Peas, Gwen Stefani and Souljaz, Group 1 Crew has created the right mix of accessibility, variety, street smarts and a relevant message. They have the potential to go far in both mainstream and Christian radio, with party hits like ‘Let it Roll,’ ‘No Plan B,’ ‘Clap Ya Hands’ and ‘Put Like That’ – which just make you want to dance, yet still deliver straight-forward lyrical messages. Spiritual content is evident throughout the whole record, especially on the piano-driven ‘Forgive Me,’ the soulful jazz of ‘Come Back Home’ and the rock/beat driven ‘What Yo Name Is.’                                         group1crew.com

May 2007