Question:
After receiving my free copy of Caedmon's Call's new album last week, here's what I sent them in response:
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I've been listening to the "In The Company Of Angels II" album that
y'all sent for a couple of weeks now, so I figured I would take a shot
at giving some feedback.
1. Are these songs something you and your congregation could worship to?
Some are and some are not.
I was expecting more songs that were well-suited for a congregational
worship service (nearly all of the songs from the first album were
such, I felt). Songs like "The Story" and "The Fountain," for example,
really don't strike me as congregational worship songs. They're a bit
too musically complex to really be useable in a congregational setting
(where the participants are usually not musically skilled) and the
lyrics are seemingly too specific and personal to be relevant to
everyone involved.
On the other hand, songs like "Great And Mighty," "Sing His Love," "Be
Merciful To Me," and "We Give Thanks" are wonderfully suited for
congregational use. The tunes themselves are relatively easy to catch
on to, and the lyrics are simple enough to be relevant to everyone yet
clever enough to be interesting. I actually used "Sing His Love" just
this last week in our Sunday worship service, and I will likely use
"Great And Mighty" this coming week.
2. If so, Which songs stood out the most?
I think the title track "Sing His Love" was easily the strongest song
on the album. I have been quite interested in the various projects and
side-projects surrounding the RUF hymnbook idea, and this song (which
also appeared on the Indelible Grace IV album, if I remember
correctly) is a wonderful new version of timeless words. I am glad to
be a small part of the revived interest in the hymns and songs that
were sung by saints from years past, and I'm always glad to find
albums and songs from musicians who are similarly minded.
Other stand-outs for me were "Great And Mighty," "Be Merciful To Me,"
and "We Give Thanks." They're nice and simple, and are at the same
time very expressive. I could see using all of them in our
congregational worship services.
I was pleased, as a musician and a listener, with the versions of
"Draw Me Nearer" and "I Surrender All" on the album, and I thought the
production quality on those two tracks was especially nice. However,
unlike "Father, Long Before Creation" (AKA "Sing His Love"), the
familiar / traditional tunes for these two hymns are so loved and
known by the members of my congregation (and I suspect others) that I
doubt I will find occasion to use these two particular songs in our
services. It would be like using a new tune to "Amazing Grace," for
example. The traditional tune is just too strongly linked to the text
in such a case.
I liked the last two songs on the album, "Fellowship So Deep" and
"Mercy Of My God", but I didn't feel as though they were as strong,
lyrically, as what I've come to expect from songwriter Aaron Senseman,
given the number of extremely well-written songs that appeared on the
first "In The Company Of Angels" album under his name. I will probably
use these songs eventually, but not with the same frequency as I use
songs like "Before There Was Time," "God Who Saves," and "Carry Your
Love" from the first album (I use these particular three quite
regularly, probably about once a month each, at least, on average).
3. If not, why do these songs not appeal to your congregation?
When I look for a song for use in our congregational worship
services, I try to find songs that are relatively easy to sing and
have lyrics that are easily comprehendible, yet theologically deep at
the same time. "It's a shame to build our homes with bricks of fear
and cynical stones," from "The Fountain" (or was it "The Story?"), for
example, is not really an example of either. While the message is
important, it's not particularly easy to understand from the lyrics;
this strikes me more as a radio-friendly / concert-oriented song
rather than a congregational worship song. Additionally, the melody is
rhytmically complicated and not particularly easy to catch on to.
4. Did you personally enjoy the record?
I enjoyed the album very much. I own nearly all of Caedmon's Call's
albums, and the overall sound of this one struck me as very well
rehearsed and produced. I'm not sure if I can think of another CC
album where the band itself sounds quite as good as on this album, or
where the music is as well-performed. Cuts such as "Draw Me Nearer"
and "Be Merciful To Me," in particular, are very pleasing to the ear.
The exotic percussion and layered vocals that I've come to love and
expect from Caedmon's Call really shines throughout the album.
5. Any other feedback (good or bad)
As a correlary to my previous comments about the production quality of
the album, I must say that the A&R choices seem a little over-done.
The song choices on the album seem a bit too perfect, if you will, and
lack the organic, natural honesty of the songs you'd find on earlier
Caedmon's Call albums. I suspect this is due to record label changes
or increased popularity of the band or some other related factors, but
it's a little disconcerting. I feel like I'm listening to an American
Idol release or something as I listen to this album; it's all just a
bit too thought-out, as if every detail was planned as a piece of a
giant marketing puzzle.
It's hard for me to miss, for example, the connection between "Great
and Mighty" as the first single chosen from the album and the recent
popularity of a song such as Chris Tomlin's GMA-nominated "How Great
Is Our God." Those two songs are so similar in style, lyrically and
musically, that it's hard to imagine that "Great and Mighty" was not
both written and recorded in order to take advantage of the popularity
of "How Great Is Our God" on Christian radio. The fact that it's a
three-way co-written song is a major tip-off to something along these
lines; it just seems as though this song was contrived as a bit of a
marketing tool rather than as an expression of worship. Don't get me
wrong, it's a great song... but great songs can have less-than-great
intentions.
I just wonder whether Caedmon's Call has lost some of the passion and
honesty of their early career. I remember hearing "Open Letter" many
years ago and thinking, "Wow, here is a band that is not bogged down
in the industry part of the Christian music industry." This new album,
however, has me wondering a bit whether Caedmon's Call should listen
to their old material and ask themselves, "Can you still see from
whence you've come?"
Of course, the very fact that I am partaking in this little
free-album-for-feedback effort proves that I myself am giving in a bit
to the industry side of things. This is a fabulous marketing choice,
but I wonder whether the deepest intention of this album was to get
music in the hands of worship leaders or to get product in the hands
of consumers. I don't think these issues will really be evident to the
majority of listeners. I have a bit of an inside view, since I am
actually a music industry studies major at my university.
Anyway. I've rambled too much. It's a nice album, overall.
In His love,
Nate
Answer:
I'm still formulating my response to the album, but there are some similarities between what I think of it and what the above Nate thinks of it.
Originally Posted by Nate Anyway. I've rambled too much. It's a nice album, overall.
Ya think (in regards to the rambling...) ???
Nate
Answer:
I agree, but I do have to say one thing: you're right, Nate, about CC bowing down to the industry on this CD. The reason why is because after their critically acclaimed yet sparse selling "Share The Well", the record company wanted a tighter rein and control over what kind of songs were put on the next album.