Karl Anderson (keyboards/bass/vocals), Chris James (guitar) and brothers, Douglas Elder (lead vocals/guitar) and Darren Elder (drums), otherwise known as The Wrecking teamed up with producer Dustin Burnett (Augustana, Newsboys, Throwing Gravity, Jimmy Needham) and mastering by Adam Ayan (Nirvana, Madonna, Foo Fighters, Carrie Underwood, The Rolling Stones), for the creation of So Much for Love. With 14 tracks that celebrate the purpose of struggle and the beauty of rising from brokenness, this album is sure to resonate with listeners.
The Wrecking is breaking all kinds of molds in the music industry with a strong mainstream and faith-based following. The band’s drummer, Darren Elder, shares, “After three years of full time touring, writing and recording we know exactly who we are now, and where we want to go. Maybe it’s because we have done this on our own, but it is really exciting to see that we now organically exist in both the mainstream and Christian markets.”
Track Listing
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So Much For Wrecking, This Album's Pretty Refreshing| Posted July 17, 2012
The Wrecking have quietly simmered on the back-burner of the industry for quite a few years now, scoring a slew of moderately successful radio hits but never truly establishing themselves as big players. Now, a long-awaited new full-length album is finally upon us and So Much For Love is filled to capacity with light rock goodness.
The first thing noticeable from just looking at the track listing is that a good number of these songs have been released on a previous EP from the group. If you count in the freebies that they've given away this past year, many listeners probably will have heard a good half of this LP, which means there isn't as much genuinely new material as the 14-song track listing might initially imply.
Still, songs like "Fire" and "About To Fall" were highlights of their The Catalyst EP: Deluxe Edition, and with strong lyrics and singable choruses, they don't detract from the enjoyment of this album. After all, a relatable message like that found on the latter--"Isn't everyone, pretending they're alright, isn't everyone, about to fall"--is one worth repeating.
The other returning tracks--"The Reason" and "Our Feet Don't Touch The Ground"--also pull their own weight in sending the album off strongly. In addition to these, the band breaks out one of their originals from their 2011 Christmas EP, a song called "Glorious." The song's strong and I suppose it isn't too Christmassy as to feel overly out-of-place here. And again, the strong lyrics make it worthwhile, "The first cry from your lips pierced the dark like a fist and I wondered how the tears of a child could ever save my life."
Previously released singles "Tidal Wave" and "View From The Top" are also high points of the album. The chorus of the latter proclaims, "I wanna see the view from the top where your grace is enough and your love never stops." The songs are strong and were smart choices to release to fans early. Another song the band snuck out early (via a Noisetrade sampler) was "Gravity." The song's soaring chorus is sure to get stuck in your head for days. That seems to be a pattern with this band, as there's not a bad song in this bunch. Yet, all of these great songs mentioned thus far, and there's still six "new" songs left.
"The Antidote" cleverly incorporates a heart-monitor effect into a song whose theme is "You're My Antidote." Early in the album, "Let Everything Sing" and "Electricity" are strong offerings. And "Symphony of the Broken" offers one of the more musically powerful openings on the album. All in all, every track has something great to offer.
The sound never really deviates much from the band's established pop/rock sound. There's a fair amount of piano and light electronic elements mixed with catchy light rock and ballads. It's an enjoyable combination. It's not entirely groundbreaking and the band would likely blend well musically with many bands on both Christian and mainstream radio. However, the music never becomes boring or cliché, and that's refreshing.
I'll be looking for more from The Wrecking in the future. I hope they can keep this up because while their sound may not be radically new, they do it much better than many others. And better is good – it's very, very good.
Closing Thoughts:
So Much for Love proves to be a strong album from start to finish. It likely won't find it's way onto too many best-of lists come year's end (primarily because the band still seems to fly comfortably under the radar), but it's a strong and memorable entry into the band's growing catalogue.
So Much For Love...| Posted September 05, 2012
The Wrecking has been releasing music for several years now. Their debut album A New Abolition was released all the way back in 2008, followed by The Catalyst EP in 2009. It was this EP that featured their successful radio single and its companion music video, “Sound of the Resistance.” The band released a fantastic Christmas EP last year and has been throwing around previews of their new album out this summer. So Much For Love, their fourteen-track sophomore project is finally here after several years of waiting. Fans of The Wrecking will definitely enjoy this “new beginning,” and I’m sure the project will bring in new fans, as well, for its encouraging message of God’s faithfulness and its purely awesome rock sound.
“Fire” kicks off the album on an energetic note, speaking of starting something new: ”Are we gonna set this thing on fire?” Fill-ins toward the end will mesmerize the listener, but things get better! “Let Everything Sing” follows, and despite its rocking melody, it has a Psalm-feel to it: “Let everything sing/ speak to me, be my melody.” The deep guitars add a slightly haunting, good-feeling sound to the track as well.
Expect something great from “Electricity,” and that’s exactly what you get! The track begins with escalading pianos and is adrenaline-packed. Though it doesn’t explode as much as I would have expected by the name “Electricity,” it does have a powerful message of being the spark that lights up the darkness, a very positive message. “Tidal Wave,” featured on Jesus Freak Hideout’s free compilation, is a more contemporary track that celebrates the grace of God that washes all our sins away. I love the descriptive element of this track that is really refreshing.
In “Gravity,” Doug Elder’s higher vocals are very accentuated, speaking of how gravity always seems to pull us closer to God and gives us a hunger for more of Him, while the keys really come out in “The Antidote,” speaking of how Jesus is all our soul really needs. “Glorious” follows, actually from their Christmas EP, but it is cool to hear this absolutely beautiful track in a non-Christmas setting, since it is purely worshipful and just begs the listener to sing along at the top of their lungs!
“View From the Top,” which The Wrecking released as a music video last November, is a rocker with a fantastic message of seeing our life from God’s eyes, while “Life In Reverse” has booming drums and contemplates how we are living our lives backward. The radio single “About to Fall” follows next, actually sounding very much like Remedy Drive. Even though it was released nearly two years ago, it is great to hear it again on the So Much For Love album. It’s definitely one of The Wrecking’s best works yet.
Speaking of regret, “Fighting For Something” has a gloomy tune to it, stating: “We’ll always be searching for something/ why can’t we let it be love?” Following, “Symphony of the Broken Hearted” has beautiful strings, speaking of the healing that we can find in Jesus’ arms, while “The Reason” contemplates the pure impossibility of living without Jesus Christ’s love. The melody of this track is grand, paving the way for the album’s closing track “Our Feet Don’t Touch the Ground.” A little more on the mellow side of things, the album closes on a futuristic, fairy-tale type of ending.
There aren’t many albums that are my favorite at first listen, but The Wrecking’s So Much For Love is one of those albums! For one, it’s not often you hear a totally Christ-centered rock band such as you will hear in this band. Secondly, their melodies are captivating and their rock is inspiring. It’s a perfect balance between worship and energetic, hard rock. I hope to see The Wrecking take home an award for this fantastic project!
Good CD| Posted August 14, 2012
I thought the cd is great! I don't listen to rock a lot, but this was good. :) The lyrics are written well, and the music is catchy. I will be considering byuing this cd soon, in the least, adding it to my itunes wishlist.
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