Allow me to introduce you to a devout young Christian named David from Waco, Texas.
No, not that David. What kind of maniac do you think I am? Forget Korresh. I'm talking about David Crowder, the young worship leader with "ironic hair" who fronts an ironic band. Why is it ironic, you ask? Well, just look at these guys. Judging from their names, their hairdos (especially Mr. Crowder's), and the instruments they play, you'd figure that they're some sort of funky jam band. Sure, they're known for that at times, but to be honest, they don't have nearly as much in common with the Dave Matthews Band as a lot of their press materials would have you believe. Sure, their lead singer's name is David and their band is rather uncreatively named... but nope, not too much similarity beyond that. But they have a DJ... so maybe they're a funky modern rock outfit like Incubus? Nope, try again. (I hate imitators anyway.) As it turns out, the David Crowder Band is a worship band.
Oh come on, don't roll your eyes at me like that. I know, you're probably sick of hearing band after band that purports to be something new in an overcrowded genre and then turns out to be more of the same. That's a fair complaint. Fortunately, it only sort of applies to the DCB. While it may be unfortunate that the "interesting" instruments such as turntables and violin aren't nearly as much of a driving force behind their music as your average adventurous listener might expect, it's still true that the band's music has personality. Much like their musical big brothers in Delirious?, these guys strike a pretty good balance between the upbeat, electrified numbers and the mellower, acoustic numbers, but they don't sound like the exact same pieces of music we've heard from every other worship leader. The songs seemed more carefully and artfully composed on an artistic level, and while simplistic lyrics are often at odds with this practice, the DCB still strikes me as a band of "musicians' musicians".
While I didn't much care for the band's mostly mellow sound on their last outing, Can You Hear Us?, I had to admire their attempt to mix an acoustic singer-songwriter sort of vibe in with more modern, electronic pop-type sounds, and I also appreciated their ability to cover everything from a Sinead O'Connor song (!) to a classic hymn and make it all flow reasonably well. Illuminate, their second disc for Sixsteps Records (an imprint headed up by Passion founder Louie Giglio), does an admirable job of stepping things up for the band - they let loose on a few more tracks, and even the slower numbers tend to have a pretty cool "vibe" to them. It's a tough mix to describe, and the group manages to throw a lot of different musical ideas at us over the course of sixteen tracks (some of which are simply snippets of other songs). Other than a few rehashed ideas from their last CD, and Crowder's tendency toward simplistic lyrics, this all amounts toward an album that is more than just a good batch of songs to listen to - it's a worship experience that affirms God's ingenuity in creating humans who, like Him, are able to be creative.
Sparks Fly
One of the aforementioned "snippets" actually opens the album - this brief track is basically the opening line of an unfinished song, which is quickly cut off by electronic noise, much like how "I Need Words" led into "Our Love Is Loud" on the last album.
Revolutionary Love
Desperation leads us here, leads us here
Illumination meets us here, meets us here...
Speaking of "Our Love Is Loud", this song seems to want to re-enact the success of that one with its pounding drums, buzzing lead guitar lines, and video game-type noises provided by either DJ Mike Hogan or keyboard player Jack Parker (at times it's hard to tell where one ends and the other begins). I suppose it's not exactly the same thing, even if it has a similar melody and repetitive lyrical structure, but in any case, it's a good way to get things bouncing along. Even if David's words are a bit simplistic and his vocals take a bit of getting used to, there's something unique about hearing him sing praises to God while synthesizers are bleeping along in the background. Despite the sometimes thin sound, I do really enjoy the malleability of the band's style.
O Praise Him (All This for a King)
How constant, how divine
This song of ours will rise...
The record's first single has a fun electronic intro that reminds me of Disneyland's Main Street Electrical Parade. That soon segues into a simple acoustic guitar strum, backed by some light interjections from the DJ, over which David begins to sing a song about offering a joyful noise up to Heaven. Somehow that message rings truer with the interesting musical backdrop that the band manages to provide - and it's easy to guess that this song, with all of its repetitive sing-along parts, would translate well to a corporate worship setting (see the latest recording of Passion's OneDay event for proof). The song runs for over five minutes, giving the band plenty of time for a guitar solo, a jubilant chorus, and a soft fade to an acoustic ending. While a bit clich�, there's something about the joy in songs like these that just seems more genuine that your usual praise & worship fare. A bit of the band's sense of humor is revealed in the song's history - due to the various repeated phrases in the song, they didn't know whether to name it "O Praise Him", "He Is Holy", or "All This for a King", so they put up a poll on their website with 4 possible names, one of the options being a joke. Two of the options ended up being a near-tie, so they chose to use both. (Personally, I preferred "Boot Scoot Boogie #2", and if they hadn't pleaded with fans to pick between the serious options near the end of the poll, I might have gotten my wish!)
Skies Intro
This 30-second track is a sweet little guitar-and-turntable intro that leads effortlessly into "Open Skies".
Open Skies
Let us dance, let us sing
It could be heavenly...
The band strips things back a little bit here to create more of an organic, college-rock-friendly short of sound on this track that is basically an update of one of the happier Psalms. "Praise Him under open skies, everything breathing, praising God" - so goes the addictive chorus. Mike Hogan steps out from behind his DJ kit to give us some flourishes on the violin here and there, which is a nice touch to an already fun song, and drummer B-Wack gives the tune a strong percussive backing when needed. For some reason this track sticks out in my mind as the album's "summer song".
Intoxicating
And I've lost my mind, I'm sure I'll find
Need to apologize for my lack of inhibition
For my belligerent condition
But with You this near I'm dizzy...
This might be one of the rare tracks where comparisons to the Dave Matthews Band are allowable. David leads the song off with a light but playful acoustic riff that mirrors DMB classics like "What Would You Say", except that his fingering gives the song more of a minimalist framework. The title is an interesting choice, since we all know Mr. Matthews has dedicated a song or two to the virtues of alcohol. Mr. Crowder takes that same swagger and applies it to a song based around the classic (if somewhat cheesy) metaphor of being drunk in the Spirit. OK, so his rhymes during the verses are amateurish, but I love the way he plays with the song's time signature, suddenly breaking out of 4/4 into a loopy chorus of "la dee dah"s in 6/8 time. I know it sounds rather hokey, but it's actually quite infectious. My only complaint here is that the song seems to have too light of a touch at times - I suspect they could really jam on this one in concert if they wanted to. Interestingly, the song officially ends near the 5 minute mark, but a synthesized rhythm bleeds back in, over which the song's acoustic riff is repeated in a "Glo in the Dark" sort of segue. (Go check out Delirious?'s Glo album if you don't know what I'm talking about.)
How Great
How marvelous, how brilliantly
Luminous, You shine in me
And who can fail to give You awe
To fear You, God, so sovereign and strong...
One of this album's strengths (at least in my mind, it's a strength) is that it's tough for the casual listener to tell when the track has changed at several points. Once "Intoxicating" winds down, David picks up with a gentle intro to this song without missing a bit - this provides more of a continuous worship experience rather than just a simple set of songs. His words here stand out a little more, as he repents from worshipping "little gods" that he's now become bored with, and turns his attention to the real deal. It's too bad that the chorus devolves into a simple repetition of "How great Your love for us/How great our love for You", though. I guess it just seems odd to juxtapose God's love with us with our love back for Him, which is honestly pretty measly in comparison. That trifle aside, this track benefits from the help of guest producer Zach Lind, who is better known as the drummer for Jimmy Eat World. Apparently Zach is a Christian, and he randomly stumbled across the band's music and decided to shoot them an Email. When David got it, he was convinced someone in the band had played a practical joke on him - but it was for real, and Zach managed to hook up with the guys to produce a track. (You can bet the Christian media is gonna milk that one for all it's worth.) You can definitely hear Zack's influence during this song's bridge, where the percussion takes on a pattern similar to JEW's song "Your House".
No One Like You
And how could I ever deny the love of my Savior?
You are to me, everything, all I need, forever...
It's actually surprising that there hasn't really been a ballad yet at this point - the band chooses to venture farther into upbeat territory, delivering one of their most carefree and rocking numbers yet. A catchy start-stop guitar pattern is employed during the verses, and David sings in between the forceful chords. Some listeners will probably find this approach to be too happy for its own good, but I think this group is at its best when it sounds like they're having a blast doing what they do. Those who aren't really into modern worship music will likely be irked at the fact that the entire song is built around a simple "duh" statement - namely that there is no one like our God. I mean, sure, it's a basic theological point of Christianity, bur part of me is left feeling like, "OK, so God's unique. So what now?" after the song is finished. But I love the little bit of studio chatter that was left tacked on to the end.
Reprise
Another "spontaneous" moment gets captured here - David is gently playing his guitar and singing "There's no one like you", and then it fades out.
All Creatures #2
Thou burning sun with golden beam
Thou silver moon with softer gleam...
I can tell that a number of people - including fans of the band - are gonna complain about this one. I'm all for contemporary re-recordings of hymns, and the DCB's slow, acoustic-driven take on "All Creatures of Our God and Kind" manages to be reverent while putting a new spin on the song, but there's only one problem. THEY ALREADY RECORDED THIS SONG! Sure, the version on Can You Hear Us? was rather weird, but it was also unique. I don't know why they felt the need to re-record it again. Why not choose a different hymn, especially when this one's dying of overexposure due to the City on a Hill series and a few other sources? Having said that, this version is an improvement on the old one (even if it ignores the rhythmic nuances of the original composition), which was driven mostly by electronic noise. It's just more listenable. Perhaps the first one should never have seen the light of day, then this one wouldn't feel like a re-hash.
Only You
Take my fret, take my fear
All I have I'm leaving here...
Remember those old worship albums where the front half would be the upbeat "praise" songs and the back half would be the mellower "worship" stuff? I think that's what the DCB is going for here, because most of the back half of this album is more pensive. The gentle 3/4 beat and David's chorus of "I will worship You Lord, only You Lord" do make this song veer dangerously close to their old song "You Alone", but the group manages to give it a little bit of flavor by looping David's voice back over itself until it sounds like he's singing a duet as the rest of the band falls away near the end. The band definitely has a flair for unpredictable song endings and transitions, which is always something I can appreciate.
Deliver Me
All of my life, I've been in hiding
Wishing there was someone just like You...
This song's difficult to describe. It's slow and mellow, for the most part, but the steady strumming of the guitar, combined with the keyboard chords that loom behind it, give it a bit of a dark, ominous feel that makes me imagine walking through a tunnel towards a shining light, looking back, and trying to convince myself it's all real. Perhaps it takes its cue from Delirious?'s "Obsession" (which they actually covered on the last record). Whatever the case, it sounds great until David's lyrics interfere: "Deliver me, loving and caring/Deliver me, giving and sharing." It's like he's struggling for rhymes to fill space, and the rest of the band is trying to make up for the simplicity by creating a thick musical aura around it. Interestingly, he interjects a few lines from the hymn "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus" near the end, though I can't say that it's an entirely comfortable fit with the song's chord structure.
Coming Toward
This segue might as well not even be a separate track - it just dives right back into the song's main chord sequence right after David's final whimper of "pull me through". It builds to a nice crescendo before dropping away into nothingness, but without the previous track tied to it, it probably wouldn't have much of an effect on its own.
Heaven Came Down
Oh, what a tender compassionate Friend
He met the need of my heart
Shadows dispelling with joy I am telling
He made all the darkness depart...
The band brightens the mood briefly with the album's second-to-last actual song, which has a catchy 6/8 rhythm, a tasty acoustic lick to lead it off, and a lovely mixture of organic sounds and keyboard/DJ noise. It's a celebration song of sorts, based around the symbolism inherent in the act of God becoming man and walking upon the Earth to show us how we humans can walk with God. Once again, hints of a Dave Matthews sound can be heard in the playful little runs on the acoustic guitar - think "You Never Know", only less complex. Overall, not a bad track - it accomplishes the job of injecting a final dose of energy into the album's otherwise slow back half.
Glorious Day
Yet another snippet shows up here - it seems to be a brief acoustic reprise of "How Great". There doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason as to which snippets are left on their own and which ones are integrated with other songs, but oh well, it makes the album seem longer when looking at the track listing.
Stars
'Cause I've got nothing of my own to give to you
But this light that shines on me shines on you
And makes everything beautiful again...
This mellow, folksy number closes the album nicely - it uses slightly more poetic language to make a connection between the stars in the sky and humans on Earth, places here to reflect God's light to others. That's really the theme of Illuminate, and it's actually a shame that I'm not hearing it referred to more specifically in a lot of these songs. Devoted fans will recognize this track from the recent OneDay live album, and the two versions are almost identical, with little more than an acoustic guitar and a violin to add a little bit of country flavor. It's interesting that the group ended with this one instead of some bombastic praise chorus, but then, they ended the last album with a highly danceable cover of Matt Redman's "Undignified", so I guess anything goes.
I'm surprisingly pleased with the David Crowder Band overall. Working with as many different producers as they did (the list includes Charlie Peacock, Micah Watkins, Brad O'Donnell, the aforementioned Zach Lind, and themselves), they could have easily suffered from overproduction or the usual chaos of having too many chefs in the kitchen, but instead, the songs on Illuminate gel rather well. While worthless on their own, the interlude tracks serve to add to the feeling of spontaneity, and there are even a few other pieces of songs buried within other songs if you listen carefully. It's sort of a means of taking the whole "reprise" idea into the 21st century, I guess. I don't quite think David Crowder has accomplished his goal yet of making Christian music that non-Christians will be able to get into and fully appreciate (admittedly, that's gonna be pretty much impossible for any worship-focused band), but he might just manage to pull in a few more fans who don't listen to the usual CCM stuff if he works a little harder to stay out of clich�-land next time. The idea behind Illuminate - people who cannot create their own light shining God's light so that others may see it - is a great idea for an album, and perhaps the band would have done better had they thrown in more story/experience type songs to get the message across of how the joy of one believer can reflect to the people around them. But perhaps the band prefers to be an example of that joy and that prayerful spirit - which they do well - instead of just talking about it. And I can respect that.
ALBUM WORTH:
Sparks Fly $0
Revolutionary Love $1
O Praise Him (All This for a King) $2
Skies Interlude $.50
Open Skies $1.50
Intoxicating $2
How Great $1
No One Like You $1
Reprise $0
All Creatures #2 $2
Only You $1
Deliver Me $1.50
Coming Toward $.50
Heaven Came Down $1.50
Glorious Day $0
Stars $1.50
TOTAL: $18
Band Members:
David Crowder: Lead vocals, acoustic guitar
Jason Solley: Electric guitar
Mike Hogan: DJ, violin
Jack Parker: Keyboards
Mike D.: Bass, programming
B-Wack: Drums
Website: http://www.davidcrowderband.com
(It's a rather frustrating site to try and navigate... but I guess it fits their personality or something.)
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