David Crowder*Band, the highly accessible fan-favorites are back with their new release Church Music, arguably their most innovative effort to date. Packed full with 17 full tracks, the band hopes this album serves as a reminder of the continual evolvement of music within the Church. Anticipation for the release and the band's upcoming Fall 2009 Church Music Tour is already soaring as several thousands presale tour tickets sold the first week they went on-sale. With over 200,000 youtube views, 7 million plays on mySpace, 30,000 twitter followers and over 1 million albums sold to date, DC*B is leading the way defining innovation, accessibility and fan-connectivity.
Track Listing
Click On Buttons Below To Listen To Real Audio Clips, View Song Lyrics or View Videos (If Available). Click Here To Add Videos. Click To Add Lyrics If Not Available.
01.
Phos Hilaron [Hail Gladdening Light]
02.
Alleluia, Sing
03.
The Nearness
04.
Shadows
05.
Eastern Hymn
06.
SMS (Shine)
07.
The Veil
08.
We Are Loved
09.
All Around Me
10.
How He Loves
11.
Can I Lie Here
12.
Birmingham (We Are Safe)
13.
Church Music - Dance[!]
14.
What A Miracle
15.
Oh, Happiness
16.
God Almighty, None Compares
17.
In The End [O Resplendent Light!]
18.
David Crowder On "Church Music" (Not On Album)
David Crowder*Band [Church Music]| Posted September 09, 2009 [MAIN REVIEW]
David Crowder*Band, the Dove Award-winning six-piece band, crafts compelling, inimitably progressive electronic rock. They are back with their new release “Church Music” arguably their most innovative effort to date. Packed full with 17 full tracks, “It’s our stimulus package,” the frontman player jokes. “We’re doing our part.” The band hopes this album serves as a reminder of the continual evolvement of music within the Church.
One of David’s favorite selections from “Church Music” is “God Almighty, None Compares,” because he loves “the guitar harmony…the guitarmony, if you will, and shredding is involved, which always makes me smile.” The band is rounded out by guitarists Jack Parker and Mark Waldorp , bassist Mike Dodson, drummer Jeremy Bush and electronic violinist Mike Hogan. For the epic “Eastern Hymn,” which is the rest of the band’s favorite song on the disc, David commissioned the translation of an ancient Chinese prayer book which he’d found last summer while the band was on the Passion World Tour, and portions of the translated tome appear in the song’s chorus.
The album opens with “Phos Hilaron (Hail Gladdening Light)”, which sets the tone for this excellent album, my top album of 2009 and my favorite overall album by this amazing band. If you liked “Illuminate”, “A Collision” and “Remedy”, then “Church Music” is for you. The album blends previous musical and lyrical styles with some new ethereal and ambient songs and an incredible cover of my favorite song of the year, “How He Loves”. To add to the uniqueness of the album, the 17 songs on the album play continuously from beginning to end with one song blending into the next. In order to accomplish this, the band poured an immense amount of work into the process, sequencing the tracks before anything had been recorded so keys and tempos could be finalized. The result: 73 full minutes of music. “Alleluia Sing” is next and has that signature David Crowder*Band praise and worship style similar to “Open Skies”. “The Nearness” and “Shadows” bring back the electronic feel from “Remedy” like “Everything Glorious” and “Can You Feel It?”. “Eastern Hymn” is truly epic and flows beautifully into the next few tracks “SMS (Shine)”, “The Veil” and “We Are Loved”. This section reminded me of the brilliant section of “A Collision” from “Do Not Move” to “Our Happy Home”.
The band even tackles a cover on the disc that has to be heard to be believed: Flyleaf’s “All Around Me.” As if the album wasn’t impressive already, David Crowder*Band's beautiful cover of "How He Loves", originally written and recorded by John Mark McMillan, is spectacular. The band finds a unique balance of capturing the sweet lyrical moments of the song but continually crescendos the intensity of the song and the message as the simple chorus builds over and over again. The genuine sound of the song reminds us of the simplicity yet magnanimity of God's love for us. “Can I Lie Here” and “Birmingham (We Are Safe)” bridge to the final section of the album in the style of “…neverending…” and “Rain Down” before the title track “Church Music (Dance)”, one of the most fun tracks on the album. I can’t wait to see this song performed live as it has an electronic feel that will remind you of a 1970’s disco. The album closes with an amazing section from the unashamed praise of “What A Miracle”, and “Oh Happiness”, which reminded me of “We Win!”, the guitar-shredding of “God Almighty, None Compares” and the epic closer “In The End (O Resplendent Light)”.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
This is my favorite overall album by David Crowder*Band and my top album of 2009. For me, this is truly a 5 star album! My favorite songs are “Alleluia Sing”, “The Nearness”, “Eastern Hymn”, “All Around Me”, “Church Music (Dance)”, “God Almighty, None Compares” and my song of the year “How He Loves”.
Rating: 10.0 out of 10 (100%, A+)
Review written by: Kevin Davis | Review can also be found here.
This review has been reprinted on NRT with permission from ChristianMusicReview.org. Click here to visit ChristianMusicReview.org today!
Top 10 Album Of 2009| Posted January 04, 2010
Inventive. Daring. Artistic. These are not words typically used to describe a new album by a praise and worship band. Modern worship has fallen into a familiar rut as of late and while that's certainly not a bad thing (as a worship leader, worship music will always be an untouchable art form to me) there's certainly been a successful formula that many worship artists have followed. Hats off to David Crowder Band, one of the most successful praise and worship groups, for crumpling up the manual and drop kicking it out the sanctuary doors.
Lyrically, Church Music is a worship album through and through. The songs are filled with "hallelujahs," "praises" and "holies." Musically, Church Music is made for the dance floor. Think Nitro Praise (remember that series?) meets Passion. The result on paper almost certainly sounds disastrous, full of cheesy clich? and wannabe production aspirations. Neither is the case with this incredible collection of music. Songs like "Eastern Hymn," "The Nearness" and "The Veil" are some of the best electronic songs you'll hear all year. "All Around Me" takes a hit Flyleaf song (yes, a FLYLEAF song) and transforms it into an incredible worshipful experience. "How He Loves" is by far the best take on this modern worship song that has been recorded by many other artists this year as well. They hit it out of the park.
I give huge props to David Crowder Band by taking a giant leap forward in their music, forgetting about how many churches can pull off their songs on a Sunday morning or how their fans would react to what is an obvious progression, but still a bit shocking at first. They have produced an entertaining album full of vertical lyrics that never point anywhere else but up and created a subgenre that they can own all by themselves. Well done.
a PREview...| Posted September 21, 2009
this is supposedly the follow up to remedy. But it's so much more than that... go check out www.hearitfirst.com/davidcrowder*band to hear 30 second previews. This is going to be an amazing album. Combining Rock, Pop, and electronic worship. Also DC*B does an interesting cover of Flyleaf's All around Me. Very nicely done. Standout tracks include: the veil, we are loved, in the end, Birmingham, and all around me. the 0 stars doesn't mean i don't like it i'll give it a full rating later...
Who Knew DCB could Dance!?!?!| Posted September 16, 2009
This is an AWESOME album from beginning to end. When I first read the title, I thought that these guys bowed to the masses and did a traditional praise and worship album like so many of their peers. Thank goodness they kept true to themselves and put out another album chock full of their unique stylings. These tracks cover the gamut from traditional DCB "pop" to a more dance-influenced club sound and even foray into an all-out rock fest. Through it all, the lyrics are definitely uplifting and encouraging. These guys constantly lift up praise to God and encourage their listeners to listen in and join the ride. This is one to listen to over and over and over...Enjoy!
WARNING... you may hate this CD| Posted September 22, 2009
As much as it pains me to say this, chances are very good that you will not like this CD on your first listen, if ever. However this worship album, is possibly one of the best worship albums ever put together! It is groundbreaking and sadly controversial. As an employee at a small Christian bookstore in the North East, I hear alot of opinions about music, and in the nearly 24 hours that this CD has been on the shelves, I have heard more negative feedback about it than say Derek Webb's new (and more legitimately controversial) album, which I have heard a fair ammount of negativity around also! The general consensus is that "It's Techno, Dance, Electronic yuck! Not WORSHIP!" And as DCB redily points out, anything showing admiration and praise to our Savior and Creator is considered worship in His eyes. NOW that I have that out of the way, I would like to tell you why you WILL like the album.
Church Music, is a genuine and heart felt Electronic/Techno/Rock worship project that is sure to stun even some long time DCB fans. The songs on the album are sewn together with precision and is truly a delight to listen to. The album features guest vocals from five of Christian rocks most angelic voices, Lacey Mosley (of Flyleaf fame, and she brings a bit of Flyleaf along with her, her signature scream is subtly slipped into "The Nearness") and the four very talented young ladies from the band Eisley. And if for any reason their bands crash and burn, the ladies would be a very welcome addition to DCB in my opinion. The vocals as a whole from DCB members and non-members alike are ethereal. Musically the band has never been better, take The Nearness as an example. The song is a complex and up-tempo wonder that is tied together exquisitely.
From beginning to end (an epic 70+ minutes), Church Music delivers the goods, and again, in my opinion, is one of DCB's best albums, one of the best of the year for sure, and one that history will look on favorably.
Compliments some of the same stuff| Posted September 15, 2009
I think this album is very much like A Collision. When I first heard it, all the techno and synth stuff reminded me of it. Of course I will buy this album, but I feel these songs will need to grow on me if I will really like it. Crowder became popular because he had songs people could sing in church. But with "Church Music" these songs are so difficult to reproduce due to its producing and most of the songs' lyrics are abstract enough that a congregation can't sing together. But besides using it, it could be a decent Crowder album.
How I Heard| Posted January 16, 2010
I listened to most of this album while walking to the library. As a total experience, it's well done, but to take individual songs from it, the only one that really stood out was "How He Loves"
It's a new kind of Church Music| Posted January 13, 2010
I am an avid follower of David Crowder and his music, and have all of his releases. I can honestly say this is his most powerful, inventive, and experimental album to date. From the opening track to the last, Crowder uses loops, layering, and moving lyrics to redefine exactly what Church Music can be. Highlights are "the Nearness", "Eastern Hymn," "How He Loves," and "Birmingham." Highly recomended, the very best album of 2009.
Suprising| Posted December 31, 2009
When I first saw the title and flicked through a few songs on YouTube, I wrote this album off straight away. But when I listened to it again I was surprised to find that I enjoyed it. I like the mix of rock and techno sounds that David Crowder*Band uses in this album.
AMAZING| Posted December 19, 2009
This was the biggest surprise to me of the year! I never thought I would really like a DCB cd but Church Music has proved me wrong. This is a very diverse cd from electronic to prog rock. "Dance" is probably my favorite song. It sounds a lot like "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger" by Daft Punk. I also love "God Almighty, None Compares" which is ... See Morevery much prog rock. It has a 2 minute guitar solo! The only song I really hated was Crowder's cover of Flyleaf's "All Around Me" which just didn't work at all. Overall GREAT CD!!
To Add Lyrics If Not Available.
