| 28th
July, 2005
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"From
the opening cut, ‘Let Creation Sing’,
with its sparse yet driving sound to the disco-pop/rock
of ‘His Love’, the epic nature of ‘God
He Reigns’ and the re-interpretation of United
Live (Hillsongs’ youth band) songs such as ‘All
For Love’ and ‘Tell the World’,
this is an ambitious and energetic project that achieves
a wonderfully live experience with clarity and zeal."
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JUSTIN
MICHAEL
Artist: Hillsong
Album: God He Reigns
In A Word: Passionate
I’ve said it before, and I guess I’ll
have to say it again - Hillsong are the only people in the
world that are allowed to sound like Hillsong! Sounds ridiculous,
I know, but in a market that is flooded with new and used
praise and worship albums, Hillsong has not only become a
yardstick for the rest of them, but has also been the subject
of much criticism for allegedly "sounding the same as
last year".
Like any artist that is prolific in their output, with Hillsong
you often have to listen a little closer to hear the line
of development. God He Reigns is a certainly a significant
step forward from last year's ARIA chart-topper For All
You’ve Done and if you like to backtrack, try putting
this album beside the likes of Blessed (2002) or
God is in the House (1996). The growth in the maturity
of the writing and production is quite marked and speedy to
say the least.
Entering the ARIA charts this year at number two just behind
Dave Grohls’ Foo Fighters, Hillsong music’s may
have appeared at first to have had more impact for its newsworthiness
and political persuasivness than what it’ll do for your
CD speakers.
But if you were measuring this double disk of 15 tracks by
its song-writing calibre alone, you would reach close to a
10 pointer every time. This swag of songwriters including
Raymond Badham, Joel Houston, Marty Sampson, Darlene Zschech,
and Reuben Morgan, among others, somehow manages to draw a
line of musical continuity and intention through the entire
album.
From the opening cut, ‘Let Creation Sing’, with
its sparse yet driving sound to the disco-pop/rock of ‘His
Love’, the epic nature of ‘God He Reigns’
and the re-interpretation of United Live (Hillsongs’
youth band) songs such as ‘All For Love’ and ‘Tell
the World’, this is an ambitious and energetic project
that achieves a wonderfully live experience with clarity and
zeal.
Although no-one would claim that these projects are completely
live, there is the tell-tale raw energy that seems unique
to live Australian praise and worship. The congregation is
audible, the clapping is loud, the guitars are crunchier.
Compare Aussie disks to any of the the American ‘live’
disks and you’ll notice that in the latter a big blanket
has been thrown across the sound to make it ‘nice’.
I was actually asked whether I would class the single 'His
Love' as ‘rock’ because of its overall volume
and intensity! This is heart-on-your-sleeve, hands-in-the-air,
surround-sound church, and I like it.
Musically this album is diverse enough to hold interest yet
still manages to create a comfortable ‘been here before’
Hillsong feel. Melodically, Hillsong seem to stand alone.
While the music is aimed at congregational singing - where
some would write ‘safe’ and therefore bland melodies
- God He Reigns takes risks and invites the singer
to have some fun.
The album also provides a stack of musical moments of abandon
(try ‘All For Love’, ‘Emmanuel’, and
the epic ‘There is Nothing Like’) for the person
who loves to worship and sing in the car, in the kitchen or
via the iPod.
If you’re into Hillsong music, you will love this album.
If you’re not into it, feel free to get over it and
give this a shot.
Enjoy!
Justin
Michael can be heard weekday mornings on Geelong-based radio
station 96.3 Rhema FM - www.rhemafm.org.au.
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