Drew Reese's EP is now available at http://drewreese.bandcamp.com. A great worship album from a passionate and anointed songwriter and worship leader, this contains compelling versions of both Chris Tomlin's "Awakening", and Matt Redman's "Facedown", together with 3 self-penned songs from Drew.
My review of this album is here.
A brand new worship EP by Drew Reese will be released tomorrow, February 8th, and Drew has given me a preview copy in anticipation of the release date. This EP contains more powerful, piano-lead worship, encompassing all of Drew's passion and fervour for the Lord. Entitled "Redemption", the EP includes 3 of his own songs, together with new versions of Chris Tomlin's "Awakening", and Matt Redman's "Facedown".
1 Chronicles 16:29 - "Give to the Lord the glory He deserves! Bring your offering and come into His presence. Worship the Lord in all His holy splendour."
Worship music can often almost give us visual glimpses of the Lord's power, might, and beauty. The verse above tells us to worship the Lord in all His holy splendour, but in order to do that some of us need some idea of what that is like. The "23rd Psalm" at the start of the EP showed me some of what this is like, of how great it is to be able to worship such an awesome God.
Just as in the first album of Drew's that I came across (Next Door to Eden), here we find contemplative piano-lead worship, seamlessly crescendoing into powerful choruses. The beauty of this album lies in the simplicity of it's production, at many times the orchestration consists merely of piano, vocals, and some strings. This is particularly apparent in "Awakening" - a subtle arrangement, this resists the temptation to replicate previous versions and instead goes down the route of contemplation and heart preparation.
The first two songs on this album sound as if they could have been written at any point in time, by any of the major hymn writers in history. They are, in fact, brand new, and have been written by Drew. Both are effectively sung scripture, there is very little in the verses that is not biblical, though the arrangements, production, and integration all make them sound as if we've been singing them for years. Hopefully, in a few years time, this will be the case, for here I believe we can take some inspiration from Drew's lead, and place hymns to the fore in our times of worship. At a summer conference last year I was touched by their use of hymns, and particularly praise choruses in times of worship, and feel this is something worth remembering when preparing songs to sing to the Lord.
The EP ends with a stirring version of Matt Redman's "Facedown". In my opinion, the best aspect of this song has always been the bridge, which alludes to the light of the Lord's glory. Within the Chronicles verse quoted we are asked to "Worship the Lord in all His holy splendour". For me, the light of the Lord's glory is the most powerful image of Him, radiant and resplendent. To worship Him is an honour, one that Drew holds in high regard, and this passion is prevalent throughout this album.
Drew's album will be available for download from tomorrow (February 8th) at http://drewreese.bandcamp.com.
This album has quickly (and I do mean quickly), made it to the top of my most played albums in my collection. The superlatives have been flowing freely in the past couple of months - several artists are releasing their best work ever - and Chris Tomlin can happily add his name to this list.
I'll make no bones about it, I'm a huge fan of the way Ed Cash approaches production, and when I read the previews of this album I was a little concerned that he wasn't going to be producing the whole album. I can categorically say however, that by ear alone, I couldn't tell you which tracks he has produced on this album - the quality is sublime throughout. The use of loops is effective yet subtle, and the warmth of the crowd vocals (especially on "Our God", "I Will Follow", and "Majesty of Heaven") provides a great corporate feel to the sound - an important aspect for congregational worship.
The formula for a good Chris Tomlin song - strong, descriptive verses, a powerful chorus, then a tag/outro that takes the song yet a notch higher is once again plain for all to see. From the opening track we see a pristine example - the power that is in the final refrain -
"And if Our God is for us, then who could ever stop us?
And if Our God is with us, then what could stand against?"
is a true insight into the "angels' song" we hear mentioned time and again in worship.
Like many previous Chris Tomlin albums, this is an exceptionally accessible album, which remains a key aspect for me. Chris has existed for a long time now on leading people into worship with songs that are musically accessible, rhythmically strong, and melodically sound. I can see many songs on this album being used in the same vein, indeed, both "Our God" and "Awakening" feature on the latest Passion conference album in this very format.
I put this album on as soon as I got it, there is always an expectancy of quality, power, and anointing with Chris, but to be honest I was never quite sure how he was going to top "Hello Love" - itself an astonishing collection of worship songs. These matters are always open to debate, but I think that this album is comfortably on a par, and the "new song" aspect of it just tips the balance for me at the moment. The vocals on this album are simply stunning - play it loud, and play it over and over again.
Standout Tracks:
"Majesty of Heaven"
"I Will Follow"
"Our God"
