Thanks to Logan’s post a few weeks ago, I have been introduced to an absolutely fabulous worship band called Kings Kaleidoscope (hereafter KK). If you’ve never heard of them, go buy their album, Becoming Who We Are, right now. I did the very same thing after reading Logan’s review and I am so glad that I did. In this post I won’t rehash Logan’s analysis of the main reasons that make KK (#1) so good,...
Sufjan Stevens’ new album, Carrie & Lowell, has been out for over a month now, but I’ve only had the chance to listen to it for the past week. I had pre-ordered it a while back and mistakenly assumed that it would automatically download to my account and so I spent a few weeks wondering when it would do so. Once I finally did the google I realized that I had to take action myself. Nay...
A few days ago while driving, I was listening to a few hymns I hadn’t listened to in quite some time. I was singing along to the songs, trying to remember which words went with which verse. My mind was drifting and I wasn’t really thinking about the music until I heard myself mess up the following lyric. Jesus I am resting resting In the joy of what Thou art I am finding out the...
I am a creature of habit. I like routine, rhythm, and familiarity. Change and transitions are difficult for me. Sometimes my desire for routine makes me less open to trying new things. I’m also a music elitist, and I think there are certain types of music that are far superior than others. I normally listen to indie rock, acoustic singer-songwriter music, folk, alternative, hardcore/metal, Christian worship music, Disney music, and jazz (which is a pretty...
Gather ‘round ye children, come Listen to the old, old story Of the pow’r of death undone By an infant born of glory Son of God, Son of Man The world seems really, really messed up right now. The truth surely is that it’s always been this messed up, but we just have media outlets to highlight the depravity, to showcase murder and make celebrities (as awful as that sounds) of terrorists. Truth is,...
“Follow Your Arrow,” the catchy tune by singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves, has found a home on country music radio and is getting love from those who embrace its message: be who you are, live for the moment, stop caring what people think. Like many of today’s chart-toppers, it tends to clash with my beliefs. But that melody, those sweet-as-honey vocals make it hard to change the station. So I sing along, critiquing the worldview as I...
Switchfoot is one of my favorite bands of all time. Each of their albums is like meeting a new friend – at first, I’m not sure if we’re going to connect like I hoped we would, but over time my appreciation deepens to the point that my life is different because of our friendship. I admit that was a bit cheesy and the analogy isn’t perfect, but I still love their music, for a variety...
This Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, as it is Ash Wednesday. As we enter into this season of Lent to prepare our hearts in reflection on the passion week of Christ and Easter, I think about the value of this season of lament that is found in the liturgical calendar. In recent years, I’ve come to really value this season of Lent as a space to lament and reflect on God’s presence with us in...
Music is a powerful vehicle for memory and expression. I remember learning the order of the books of the Bible through songs I learned in AWANA as a kid. I can still sing these songs, and many songs that I learned in Sunday School. Song lyrics like, “Yes, Jesus loves me, the Bible tells me so,” or “The B-I-B-L-E, Yes, that’s the book for me!” and “Father Abraham, had many sons, many sons had Father...
Megadeth has recently released their fourteenth album, Super Collider. An event like this is a big deal for me because Megadeth is my all-time favorite band. I’ve seen them live three times; I even caught both a guitar pick and an arm band from Dave Mustiane at one show. Classic metal is my staple when it comes to music, and Megadeth has been far more consistent than any other metal band in creating solid music. For...
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