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| Friday, August 29, 2008
Music > Review of New Creation Church's worship albums Within this article :A. A Brief History of Worship Songwriting Culture in Singapore (80s to 2000s) B. Case Study : Local Worship Music @ New Creation Church (interview with Jack Ho, Deacon and Head of Music Ministry of New Creation Church) ; Review of albums Glimpses of Grace Dawn Fung reviews New Creation Church's five original worship albums. As believers, we engage in worship albums on a very personal level (more than aesthetic) because it draws us closer to God. The crux of a good worship album is good, sound theology wrapped in singable melodies, led by anointed worship bands. New Creation Church's worship albums shine when these ingredients are mixed well.  "Unleashed - Gospel Revolution" (2008)"Unleashed - Gospel Revolution" (2008) seems the weakest and I don't know if it is because they tried veering away from what works in an effort to sound boldly trendy. I understand the CD art cover wants to depict release but I only get more confused with kaleidoscopic dotted flurries. A similar tension exists in the sound. Music wise, the vocals and rifts are competent but there is a sense of overcautiousness instead of abandonment. Some beautiful moments can be found in the slower songs like 'Because Of Your Love' and 'I Stand In Worship', but they fade quickly and do not take off. Here's my suggestion for the next one: put a recorder in the middle of the youth service during worship, where self-consciousness is not as strong as in a studio.  "You Gave" (2005) "You Gave" (2005) is a beginner's gem. While the album clearly shows how you need to imitate someone in order to grow (think overseas churches with uniformed choirs), "You Gave" bowled me over because it stuck to essentials. Karen Lim, Sean Goh, Jen Tan and Ronnie Lew emerge as sensitive worship songwriters and arrangers. The lyrics extol what we read of Jesus in the Word and use clear, biblical imagery. 'Fall Afresh On Me', a repeatable track, describes God's pouring forth of love like "Rain upon my face/ Till everything I am is lost in your embrace/ Fall afresh on me". The other lyrics are obvious reminiscences of other well sung tunes, but I like it that the songwriters are not afraid to re-use popular verses like Isaiah 40: 26-31 to express their devotion. A beginner album has nothing to lose. "You Gave" simply receives from what the church has learnt.  "You Alone I Praise" (2006) Coming in third : "You Alone I Praise" (2006). This Indoor Stadium recorded album sounds really like Hills! The majestic chorus, the congregational atmosphere and huge background space are great. I'll term this effort highly charged because a huge crowd always draws out something from the band. Along the way, I found the presentation slightly performative but I suppose this may have something to do with the excitement of recording live in grand circumstances. The title track, 'You Alone I Praise' and 'King of Heaven' are most glorious. Written by Karen Lim, these songs bring to mind metaphors of cloud and throne, which work very well if your congregation is as numerous to evoke a heavenly choir.  Justified" (2007)I cannot understand the contents of "Justified" (2007) because my Hokkien and Mandarin CMI - cannot make it. Regardless, there is evident anointing in this lack of communication. Jesus sung in grandma's lingo cannot be wrong - there is a lot of heart, nostalgia and pure sweetness. I am impressed by Karen Lim's bilingual skills: 'Bless the Lord O My Soul' and 'You Are My Strength' were not translated songs but written afresh in Mandarin. When I played the album in the office, a colleague who had been listening from the next room, promptly asked to borrow. The sounds of our forefathers bring sighs to our hardened ears.  "I See Grace" (2007)List of albums from New Creation Church : Fresh Fire 1 (1994), Fresh Fire 2 (1996), Taste of Heaven (1996), A Touch of His Presence (2001), Here is Love (2002), You Gave (2005), Still Waters (2005, Instrumental), A Touch Of His Presence 2 (2006) ,You Alone I Praise (2006), I See Grace (2007), Justified (2007, Hokkien), Love's Come Down (2007, Christmas), Gospel Revolution (2008, youth) To buy the albums, pls visit https://www.destined2reign.com/onlinestore/c-6-music.aspx?IsTop=1
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