divad23's Full Review: Lay It Down by Jennifer Knapp
This was a highly anticipated album for me. I was skeptical when Jennifer Knapp first slipped onto the Christian music scene a few years ago. I figured there were enough people tapping into the lone-girl-with-a-guitar rock genre, and I was perplexed when she ended up on tour with Audio Adrenaline and the Supertones. Unfortunately, I showed up late to that show and missed her, but apparently it was just her with a guitar - no live band. A friend of mine, convinced he was gonna hate it, ended up loving it, and bought her first CD Kansas. It caught on like wildfire among my circle of friends, and we lamented having to wait through the rest of '98 and all of '99 without much of anything new from her. Then came Lay It Down at the end of February 2000 - finally!
For the uninitiated, Jennifer Knapp is an unassuming young songwriter who came to Christianity in college and began writing simple songs to reflect all of the lessons she was learning and the ways in which she was experiencing God. Sounds pretty simple, especially when most of these songs revolve around her and a guitar, and fairly straightforward Christian lyrics. Something about her folksy, almost country rock style just caught on - she wasn't trite, she was darn good!
So, how does this album stack up against the immensely successful Kansas? Well, to be honest, it took some getting used to. At first I was hugely disappointed. The brilliant pacing of her first album just isn't there. Where Kansas jammed through a good two thirds of the CD before slowing down to a more relaxed pace, Lay It Down eases in and gets going a little more carefully. So don't listen expecting rocking songs with attitude like "Undo Me" or "His Grace Is Sufficient". Don't expect another veritable hoedown like "Romans". That's just not the approach she took this time. But let me tell you - taken individually, these songs are darn good. You just have to forget that she has already penned a slew of classics that are hard to live up to the second time around. Here's a breakdown of all the songs.
A Little More This isn't the best choice to lead off the album with. Don't get me wrong, it's an awesome song about receiving a grace we can't earn, and its melody is very pretty. I first heard this on the WoW 2000 CD, and that version was rawer - it rocked. I blame that version for raising my expectations so high; making me think this album would rock more. This version is smoother, with strings in the background, and it doesn't go from loud to quiet as much as the rock version does. She probably just re-recorded it so people wouldn't be getting the exact same version that had already been released on WoW 2000 and Listen: Louder. Perhaps it would've worked better around track 3 or 4.
Lay It Down This track has a little more attitude, and a fairly country-influenced electric guitar lead. It settles into its 4/4 groove and she hits you with some interesting lyrics right off the bat: "Seeing as I found a rock in my pocket/Seeing as I found a glitch in my soul". The chorus doesn't soar as high or stick in your mind as much as some of her other songs, and something about the tempo makes me feel like it could be just a teeny bit faster, but this is still a great song. By the end, I feel like I want to be line-dancing to this one, and that's actually a good thing, since I hate most country music and yet line-dancing is the only type of dancing I enjoy, so I like having music I could happily do it to. Be listening for some "Yeah"s after each chorus that eerily invoke Alanis Morissette.
Usher Me Down This is where I started getting annoyed at first. I expected the pace to continue building, and she slowed down into this calm ballad. I don't like this one as much as the others; it just kind of shuffles along. I also can't figure out the chorus "Why wait for You to usher me down", because during half the song it sounds like she is waiting for God and during the other half it sounds like she is saying she doesn't need to wait for God to take the initiative. Perhaps this song would have worked better with firmer percussion - but there I go expecting Kansas again.
Into You Aha, here we go! Well, sort of. This one hits you with a killer electric guitar riff, but settles into a slower tempo than you might expect from the opening. Don't get me wrong, this is a great song. I believe it's the current radio single. It seems somewhat autobiographical in nature, depicting an unlikely character who is a "skin art junkie", an "easy scare", and a "wannabe hero", but in the end simply wants to know God better. I just love the attitude of this song - yeah, I try to act tough and I may look funny and I sure don't have it all together, but I'm still a Christian and I'm trying my best to love God. So there. It ends about as abruptly as it began - nice work Jennifer!
All Consuming Fire Okay, now this one had to really grow on me. It has an odd bossa nova type feel to it, and the lyrics are a little heavy on the Christian lingo than what I'm used to from Jennifer. But after a few listens, it will get stuck in your head. Lyrics like "Alpha and Omega, Prince of Peace/You're my King of Kings/The Great I Am, Jehovah Jireh/Who cares for me/Holy One, the Holy Father/The Blessed Trinity" seem a little weighty for such a musically lighthearted song, but try singing along. It's actually a lot of fun, the way she sings it. That ends up being the real strength of a lot of these songs - singability.
You Answer Me This one creeps in with just a guitar and Jennifer's voice, and builds into a musically dark bust beautiful verse that moves into an inspiring chorus. The strings come back for this one, but seem a little better placed (probably because the rock edge of the song didn't get sacrificed as much to do it). You can just feel her relief over finally hearing back from God after pouring out her heart and having nothing left to offer. The guitar solo in the middle of this song is pretty sweet - not fancy or flashy, but solid. My only complaint is that the same guitar gets cut off when the song ends far too abruptly. If that provided a good transition into the next song, I wouldn't mind. But it really doesn't.
You Remain This is probably my least favorite song on the album. Musically and lyrically, it just kind of wanders. It would stand out among a batch of faster songs, but as it is, it's one ballad too many for the project. It's not a bad song - we've just heard much tighter compositions out of her.
Diamond in the Rough Jennifer Knapp covers Shawn Colvin. This one made me go looking for the original, and let me tell you, I think she outdid it (and without any notable lyric changes). This is the best song on the album, in my opinion - it tells a tale of the desperate search to find the lost innocence of youth. Her determination makes it passable as something she would have written on her own (though you can tell otherwise just because there's no directly spiritual content in the song, which doesn't bother me at all, but is a contrast to the rest of the CD). The mandolin that is generously sprinkled throughout this song cheers me up every time I listen to it. It's nice to hear a good combination of live and programmed drums in this one, too (though it would be out of character for Jennifer Knapp to use too much of the programming).
When Nothing Satisfies The promised duet with Margaret Becker. If you didn't know, you might not be able to tell it was her. Maggie B. pretty much takes a supporting, echo sort of role on this one. Again, we have the mandolin really making the song fly, and since this is a slower song, it really adds to the simple beauty. The two voices echoing each other on the "Hold my hand"s are a lot of fun for my girlfriend and I to sing along with. Kudos to Margaret Becker for collaborating with a younger artist (who is arguably now more popular) and not completely taking over the song. This is a good pick-me-up when you're depressed - a reminder that sometimes nothing in the world will make you happy, but God is still constant.
Peace The closing song - just Jennifer and her guitar. It really does a good job of wrapping up the record (though what's with there being only 10 songs that last 35 minutes???). It might suffer a little from more typical Christian lingo, but knowing that Jennifer is a fairly new Christian, it sounds totally genuine and not contrived like it may out of some veteran artists. "He is my light and my salvation/Whom have I to fear?" A quietly bold statement ends a beautiful song and ultimately, a great album.
My verdict: Give it a few chances. It won't hit you over the head like her first album did, but let these songs soak into your brain. I guarantee they'll stay there. I look forward to seeing Jennifer combine these wonderful melodies and some of the elements that diverge from her first album (mandolin, more electric guitar) into a sweet third album that rocks and mellows in all the right places.
TRACK REVIEW SUMMARY Excellent: Into You, Diamond in the Rough, When Nothing Satisfies, Lay It Down, You Answer Me Good: A Little More, Peace Decent: Usher Me Down, All Consuming Fire, You Remain Weak: NONE Skippable: NONE
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