caedmon’s call

overdressed

ino

www.caedmonscall.com

Derek Webb returns to Caedmon’s Call for the group’s new release, which features more of the same jangling acoustic music blended with intelligent lyrics about love and life that we’d expect from the band. Highlighted by Derek’s vocals, the project kicks off with everything CC fans desire—highly descriptive lyrics with a spiritual theme, with acoustic stringed instruments in the background and a steady, smooth beat throughout. Female leads from Danielle Young first appear at “Sacred,” which combines the band’s trademark sounds with a few sacred lyrics from “Holy Holy Holy.” OVERDRESSED, being not overproduced, is likely one of the best of this group’s efforts—so far.

ronnie freeman

god speaking

koch

www.ronniefreemanonline.com

Ronnie Freeman has spent the last few years performing at hundreds of churches, youth gatherings and special events all over the country; leading summertime worship at California’s JH Ranch; writing scores of new songs for other artists; serving as an artist-in-residence at his home church, and being a family men. He chronicles those experiences on his 10-song sophomore recording, GOD SPEAKING. Ronnie breaks out of the gate with passionate vocals ala Kevin Max (dc talk) on “Breakaway,” and continues throughout the project with midtempo pop recordings dealing with a life spent serving God.

kevin max

the blood

infinity

www.kevinmax.com

Speaking of K-Max, his latest effort is by far his best yet. While more and more Christian and gospel artists of late have been producing covers of traditional hymns, Kevin (of dc talk fame) says he’s taking a different twist on his latest project, THE BLOOD. Together with guest appearances by Amy Grant, Vince Gill, dc talk, Joanne Cash and American Idol finalist Chris Sligh, Kevin shows through these songs how much gospel music has influenced his life and his career. The CD starts with a old gospel recording of “The Old Rugged Cross,” then moves into a steel guitar on “The Cross” (backed up by Toby and Michael), then slides on to a Moby cover (“Run for a Long Time,” itself an old remake), and then slithers into the wonderfully soulful “Run On For a Long Time.” Lots of juicy numbers here, perfect for driving, or sitting, or jumping in worship. “This is a sensitive and stylized adaptation of the music that was at the root of rock and roll, blues and popular, culture,” Kevin says. “THE BLOOD is about the story of Redemption and Grace, found only in the salvation story of Jesus Christ.”

jaci velasquez

love out loud

apostrophe

www.jacivelasquez.com

Although Jaci Velasquez has had 13 records over the span of her career, LOVE OUT LOUD is the first on this her self-owned label. Famed producer Mark Heimermann (Amy Grant, Prism and much, much more) oversaw the engineering of this recording, which lyrically highlights events in Jaci’s person—life including her childhood (“It’s Not You, It’s Me”), her relationship with Christ (“Jesus The Way”) and her relationship to her husband, Salvador frontman Nic Gonzales (“A Likely Story”). Most of these tunes are of the midtempo variety, while the most fun comes when she returns to her Latin roots with the flavorful songs “Tango” and the delightful “Por Escrito” (the latter of which has Nic singing a duet with Jaci). Jaci is currently partnering with both Compassion International and Feed the Children, in an effort to put her songs into action and “Live Out Loud” her faith.

inhabited

love

7spinmusic

www.7spinmusic.com

For those who really enjoyed the last project from this Houston-based threesome, LOVE is even more intense. Female-fronted rock groups are fairly rare in the mainstream realm, and even more so in the CCM genre. This band succeeds by mixing up their edgy pop/rock melodies, as exemplified on the passionate vocals and shouts of “Hush.” Reminiscent of the glam metal groups of the ‘80s, Uninhabited employs symphonies, strumming guitars and a thick bass line on their more laid-back numbers, as during their title track. Lyrics on most of these 10 songs address specifically the challenges facing young women in today’s society, and the high-energy sounds the group employs in that effort will do a super job appealing to that demographic.

fireflight

unbreakable

flicker

www.fireflightrock.com

While Inhabited is a girl-fronted band featuring high-energy pop rock, Orlando-based Fireflight performs outright edgy rock ‘n’ roll with soaring female lead vocals in the vein of Evanescence. In fact, the title track for this project was selected last fall by NBC executives to air in promotion of the network’s new show, “Bionic Woman.” Lyrically, the songs on UNBREAKABLE speak to the promises of Christ and the assurance believers can have that He will never fail us. Musically, the roaring music complements perfectly the always-on vocals of Dawn Richardson.

avalon

another time, another place

sparrow

www.avalonlive.com

When in 1994 “ER” and “Friends” debuted on NBC, Twila Paris’ song “God Is In Control” was released. The year Michael Jackson’s best-selling “Thriller” album was released, Amy Grant’s “El Shaddai” first became a hit. Steven Green’s “People Need the Lord” was first heard on Christian radio the same year the Supreme Court ruled that taping TV shows at home on VCRs does NOT violate federal copyright laws. After multiple awards and more than three million records sold, Avalon has decided to recreate 16 of the pioneering songs that have defined CCM over the past quarter of a century. The group’s powerful vocals are paired with driving pop music that breathes new life into hits by Crystal Lewis (“People Get Ready”), Steven Curtis Chapman (“For the Sake of the Call”), Amy Grant (“Thy Word” and “El Shaddai”), 4Him (“Basics of Life”), Russ Taff (“We Will Stand”), Michael W. Smith (“Place in This World”), The Imperials (“Praise the Lord”) and many more. Listening to these remakes is like listening to many of them for the first time—at least, for the first time with an awesome chorus of voices—and will introduce to the younger generation the songs that have shaped the lives of their parents. And, of course, with this many great tunes on a single CD, a person can listen to the recording for over an hour without a repeat—and singing along the entire time!

cadia

cadia

word/curb

www.cadiaonline.com

The debut project from female duo CADIA packs guitar-laden hooks and melodic piano pop to deliver songs telling of having confidence in Christ and understanding God’s amazing redemption. While the music is straight-ahead pop/rock, the lyrics on this self-titled project are clear and focused on Jesus. In face, even the group’s remake of Martina McBride’s hit song “This One’s For the Girls” fits perfect into this CD’s overall message of encouragement. “CADIA means ‘a place of peace,’” explains group member Courtney Myers. “Each song here is saying that there is a place of peace, a safe place to fall, in this life. We’re all trying to find ourselves, trying to hear God through all the noise, the pain, the insecurities, the lies people have told us about who we are and who we’re not. These songs are our way of saying, ‘You can let that all go and just give it to God. He is the source of peace.’”

demon hunter

storm the gates of hell

solid state

www.demonhunter.net

Demons beware, because Demon Hunter is hot on your tails. STORM THE GATES OF HELL features hardcore music (driving drums and racing guitars) with a growling lead vocalist. The lyrics, however, are focused on fighting sin and Satan, and the occasional nice harmonies that pop up during the choruses make things clearer to those of us who have trouble comprehending all the “AARRGGWWSS!!!!” on these 12 tracks. There’s a nice photo of the band on the back cover of this CD, by the way, with each of them sporting priest (collared) shirts with tattoos up and down their arms. It should cause any demon to flee—that is, if they can hear them coming over the music of Demon Hunter.

kirk franklin

the fight of my life

zomba gospel

www.kirkfranklin.us

Social ills and spiritual needs are addressed on THE FIGHT OF MY LIFE, the latest from gospel superstar Kirk Franklin—the top-selling contemporary gospel artist in Soundscan history. The leadoff track (and first single off the album), “Declaration (This Is It),” borrows from the classic hit by Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald, but in this case acknowledges the power of Christ along to help Christians conquer trials. This artist long ago proved he can easily create grooves that become classic hits, and on this CD the groovy “He Will Supply” will surely become a staple for gospel choirs, while “Jesus” is a pumping R&B track that would sound great bumping the trunk on any downtown city street. “Kirk Franklin is one of those rare artists whose music instantly strikes a chord with the human spirit,” says Jazzy Jordan, the general manager for Zomba Gospel. And in this day and age, this is the music the whole world should be singing.

phil keaggy

the song within

autumn

www.philkeaggy.com

The 16 songs on THE SONG WITHIN are both contemplative and cheerful—qualities that have permeated every Phil Keaggy recording I’ve ever heard. This time, however, the focus is on the music, which Phil performs exclusively with a McPherson acoustic guitar. “The McPherson is a wonderful instrument, a wonderful recording guitar,” he says. “It is very much loved by engineers who record acoustic guitars because its sound is very true. It sounds just like a guitar should sound.” These songs vary stylistically, sometimes even within the same tune. From waltzes to rock ‘n’ roll to jazz to the blues, however, everything remains truly Keaggy-esque. And this will please fans both young and old.

the michael gungor band

all I need is here

worship together

www.michaelgungorband.com

Members of the Michael Gungor Band says they share a deep desire to fuse authentic worship with social justice, and see their music as a vehicle to spread their unified message. “If our worship simply become about ‘Jesus and me,’ and doesn’t have any real impact on broken humanity, then I don’t think we are fully joining into the story,” explains Michael. The 12 songs on ALL YOU NEED IS HERE can best be described as creative rock ‘n’ roll melodies, similar in style to artists Pete Yorn and Chris Thile. The music on the project range from tunes driven by electric guitars (“Be Praised”) to those with an ethereal edge (“Ancient Skies”) to amazingly sonic numbers (“Fly”).

chill cafe

hiding place/where you are

integrity/provident

www.provident-integrity.com

An ambient setting suitable for prayer, meditation and relaxation is captured on the first two recording in the Chill Café series—a collection featuring popular worship and praise songs wrapped in a Euro-styled fusion of jazz, pop, electronica and R&B. Each CD contains 11 songs, including such worship favorites as “You Are My Hiding Place,” “The Heart of Worship,” “God of Wonders,” “More Love More Power” and “I Can Only Imagine.” Perfect projects for playing in the background or for unwinding after a busy day.

sevenglory

atmosphere

7spin music

www.sevenglory.com

For those who enjoy upbeat, catchy sing-a-long pop songs, the latest from Sevenglory might be one they’ll want in their music collection. Musical influences ranging from Jimmy Eat World to Radiohead to Lynyrd Skynyrd abound on this CD. “Sometimes we don’t feel we have anything to offer God or the people around us,” says lead guitarist Josh Parsons. “Yet I think it’s often during those times that God gets our attention and uses us most. We can’t get in the way if we have to rely on God for our strength.”

co3

determined

flagship

www.co3music.com

First sounding Southern Gospel-ish, then changing to pure country and alternating with pop-centered tunes, CO3 covers the gamut all on this their debut release. Using uptempo melodies—with squealing guitars and the occasional organ—to perform joyful songs about the Good News, these two guys sure do sound like they’re having fun. “I guess you could say our group name has a double meaning,” says guitarist Chad Little. “We joke all the time that we’re like carbon trioxide. We’re really caustic and we’ll blow up on you! But the meaning is still Scriptural as well, talking about a total dedication to a life in Christ where the songs say it louder than we could ever talk about.

hillsong London

jesus is remix

integrity

www.hillsongmusic.com

The passionate, upbeat worship dance music of Sydney-based Hillsong Church is captured on this recording, which contains 12 songs remixed from Hillsong London’s 2006 CD, titled JESUS IS. Tunes include both originals and remakes, each featuring the pop/rock, electronic and ambient vibes popular in the London music scene. These songs contains the same type of lyrics one would here in the praise songbooks of any American evangelical church, but with the music of the clubs. And believe it or not, it works just fine.