Christian Rock Reviews

Flyleaf – Memento Mori

jape — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:21:41 +0000

I bought this CD a while back and I should have written this review immediately because this CD was every bit as good as Flyleaf’s previous work. Their unique sound and vocals bring a freshing change to some of the other sounds in their genre’. Lacey’s vocals are so unique that the first time I heard their new single, Again on the local radio station, I knew that a new CD was on the way.

Lead vocalist Lacey Sturm describes this CD as “This album feels like an emotional rollercoaster. While listening to it, I was holding my breath at points. The issues definitely got heavier and a little more intense.” – original article.

I’d recommend this CD to anyone liking Rock or Alternative Rock. The lyrics are clearly Biblical in nature, but they are not overpowering on their message of faith. In fact many of the local secular stations are also playing Flyleaf’s music these days.

Type: Alternative Rock
Lyrics: A
Sound: A+
Song Diversity: A
Overall Rating: A

August and September Upcoming Releases

jape — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 02:06:21 +0000

I’ve decided that I want to write in this blog more often and keep it updated with New Releases and current news in the Christian Rock world. I will see if it is something that I can actually keep up with, but as of today, that is my goal.

I’ve found some information online that I have filtered through and posted here for upcoming Christian Rock. If you are a reader of this blog, please link to me or put me on your RSS reader, if you don’t mind, it will help me get my site indexed further on Google and other web search engines.

August 24, 2010
- Jeremy Camp – We Cry Out: The Worship Project – BEC Recordings – EMICMG
- The Showdown – Blood In The Gears – Solid State Records – EMICMG

August 31, 2010
- Casting Crowns – Until The Whole World Hearts Live – Beach Street – Provident
- Klaus – Prepare The Way – Pure Worship

September 7, 2010
- Anberlin – Dark Is The Way, Light Is A Place – Universal – EMICMG

September 14, 2010
- The Afters – Light Up The Sky – INO Records – Provident
- Disciple – Horseshoes & Handgrenades – INO Records – Provident
- Caedmon’s Call – Rising Up The Dead – Independent Release
- Barlowgirl – Our Journey…So Far – Fervent Records – Word

September 28, 2010
- August Burns Red – Home CD/DVD – EMICMG

Stryper – Murder By Pride

admin — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:40:26 +0000

I was excited to see Stryper’s new CD come online a few months back. I was hoping for another reform in the awesomeness of their previous release, Reborn. Unfortunately, I wasn’t satisfied.

Don’t get me wrong, and I still a Stryper fan, and for any fan this CD is a good addition to the collection. I just didn’t find anything outstanding on this album. Their previous work including the title-cut Reborn, which was the main song the local radio station played at the time of the CD release. It was a great re-introduction to Stryper. And the new mix of I.G.W.T was a very nice update.

Murder By Pride just didn’t do it for me. I found the sounds to all sound basically the same as their older work. I Believe was a good track, but the others just seemed “normal” So I am somewhat disappointed. I hope their next release is much better.

Decyfer Down – Crash

admin — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 22:20:33 +0000

Picked this up on Amazon.com the other day. I am kicking myself for not getting it before now, what is wrong with me?? This CD dropped in January!

Decyfer Down, much like RED, outdid themselves on their second CD. I heard a lot of melodic tones in this CD, but at the same time I am hearing the lead vocalist sounding like a 1980s hair-band singer. He carries his notes and vocals to a small extreme which resembles Stryper or someone in that genre.

Crash, the title cut, is definately the best song on the CD, but that doesn’t mean that the others aren’t any good. The 3rd track, titled “Fading” is quite good. Lyrics, vocals and unique music and rhythms all.

If you like LOUD guitar, solid vocals, grounded lyrics and a just good overall sound, especially for driving music, I recommed this CD. I turned the iPod up all the way, attached to the car stereo when driving, and I almost have to roll my windows down. And that isn’t enough.

Secret and Whisper – Great White Whale

admin — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 04:00:45 +0000

This CD ROCKS. I bought it about 2 weeks ago and I have listened to it about 7-8 times, that is with all the other new CDs that I have bought and been listening to also. Had I not had so many new purchases, I probably would have listened to this even more.

Secret and Whisper’s new CD is unlike anything I have heard before. They have a very unique sound, I can’t really compare it to anything else I have heard. Their sound is unique, but this doesn’t stop them from mixing-it-up and expressing themselves uniquely in each and every track. I am quite impressed with the new sound and band that I found, which I heard here on the local radio station, originally.

Great While Whale gets a 2 Thumbs Up from me and I will be anticipating this band’s tour that will hopefully come through Dallas, soon.

Type: Alternative / Rock / Melodic Rock /?
Lyrics: A
Sound: A
Song Diversity: A-
Overall Rating: A

IvoryLine: There Came a Lion

admin — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:04:03 +0000

Brand new CD from a Brand New Band. This album started out hard and fast with a pop/alternative style that some other bands try to pull off, but few accomplish. The first 4-5 songs on the CD were phenomenal, giving us great lyrics and rockin’ guitar. I thought that the middle few songs all sounded very similar; I like the sound, but I would have liked to see a little more variety in these. However, overall I think the album is quite good and I have listened to it 5-6 times already.

My personal favorites:
Be Still and Breathe (played on the local radio station in Dallas)
Hearts and Minds
Remind Me I’m Alive

Type: Alternative Pop/Rock
Lyrics: A
Sound: A-
Song Diversity: B
Overall Rating: A

FireFlight – The Healing Of Harms

admin — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 01:51:53 +0000

I heard Fireflight’s new song Unbreakable on the radio, which has been used in the new Bionic Woman show, and I decided to check out their latest CD.

The Healing Of Harms was released in 2006 but I just got it. I thought that the CD was well-conceived and had a very good, alternative rock sound. I really like the lead singer’s voice, she has a really great sound.

The songs on the CD all have a similar sound, but I didn’t believe that they all “sounded the same”. To me they sounded all uniquely different. I look forward to their next release which should drop this month.

Type: Alternative Pop/Rock
Lyrics: A
Sound: A-
Song Diversity: B
Overall Rating: A

Demon Hunter – STORM THE GATES OF HELL!

admin — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 02:42:26 +0000

In traditional Demon Hunter fashion, I had to replace 2 of the speakers in my truck after I bought this CD. I have been buying most of my music on iTunes of late, but when this CD dropped 2 days ago and they were offering a Deluxe Edition, which included a DVD, some postcards, a bumper stick, 2 extra bonus tracks on the CD, and a souvenir necklace in a commemorative package, I had to make a trip to the store to purchase the real deal.

I haven’t watched the DVD yet, so I might blog about that later, but the CD totally rocks. Demon Hunter continues their tradition of hard-hitting, guitar grinding, metal-core music and they add a couple of thrash-metal songs into this mix on this one. Ryan Clark delivers growling thrash vocals like he is famous for. This guy isn’t gonna have a voice in another 10 years, I am betting.

This CD is Demon Hunter’s 4th release and I tell you that each one gets better and better. It is worth the extra $20 (retail price of $29.99) for the Deluxe Edition set just to get the extra 2 songs on the CD, imo. But you get so much more also.

Rock on, Demon Hunter. Keep the music coming. And tour on back to The Door in Dallas, TX so I can come see your show again.

Type: Nu Metal / Thrash Metal
Lyrics: A
Sound: A+
Song Diversity: A
Overall Rating: A

Spoken: Self Titled

admin — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 01:10:47 +0000

I think my ears bled when I put this CD on.

Spoken outdid themselves on this new release. What a strong, high octane sound! They have redefined hard rock in my opinion. They start off with a bang and grind your ears with electric guitar all the way through the CD. This one hits harder than their former release, which I also liked very much. But if you want something that will make your neighbors come knocking on your door and asking you to turn it down, this is the CD for you.

Spoken’s lyrics are strong as ever, they just seemed to like to turn up their amps more on this CD.

Type: Hard Rock
Lyrics: B
Sound: A
Song Diversity: B
Overall Rating: B+

The Almost – Southern Weather

admin — Sun, 28 Oct 2007 00:53:01 +0000

Not since Todd Agnew’s Grace Like Rain have I heard such an uplifting and heart-pounding remix of Amazing Grace. I admit that the reason I bought this CD was because I heard their song, Amazing, Because It Is, on the local radio station here in Dallas/Ft Worth, TX at www.897powerfm.com.

I listened to this CD all the way through several times and found the sounds as diverse as I like them to be on a new CD. The Almost just about melts your face off on the first couple of songs, then they slow it down with a few lighter tracks also. Then comes my favorite, track 7.

This band does a phenominal job of both lyrics and sound. I think the thing that impressed me the most about them is their strong, Biblical lyrics that accompanied the hard rock sound, much like Disciple‘s early CD, This Might Sting a Little.

Type: Alternative/Hard Rock
Lyrics: A
Sound: A
Song Diversity: A
Overall Rating: A