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Album Of The Day: Recognition by Carolyn Arends
Released 5 years ago yesterday, this is the 12th and latest album by Carolyn Arends, if my counting is correct. I first heard Carolyn Arends when she was a Christian pop/contemporary singer-songwriter in the mid-to-late 1990s. But after that style gave way to rock in the 2000s, she continued to release new music on smaller Canadian labels and I didn't hear it as much. But in 2020, she launched a crowd-funding campaign to release a new album, and I got a copy from supporting that campaign. Honestly, I haven't listened to it too much since it's release, but it's a good album and I enjoyed my listen today a lot. Her lyrics are honest, have some fun turns of phrase and show that, like the rest of us, she is struggling with life in this modern day. A highlight is "Without Music", which features Amy Grant on harmonies and a verse; it's a beautiful song about the gift music is to humanity. And through it all, Carolyn Arends makes it clear that what keeps her going is her faith in God and God's love. It's a beautiful album of new pop with a bit of a country flavor from an experienced musician, and I'm happy to have contributed a tiny bit to help the artist release it.
Release Year: 2021
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Album Of The Day: Native Tongue by Switchfoot
Released 7 years ago last week, this is the eleventh album from Switchfoot, a band I first saw play live in 1999 and have seen play live at least a dozen times more since then. On this 14-track album, there's a song or two (if not more) for each Switchfoot fan, I think. "Let It Happen" and "Take My Fire" really bring the rock from this experienced band. "Joy invincible", "Wonderful Feeling" and "All I Need" are good songs that that can make Christian feel like the band is speaking to them. But I really like the songs where the band experiments musically and calls us lyrically to think about the deeper things in life. The title track encourages us to speak in love, our native tongue, and not just use the words others taught us to say. "Voices" also challenges us to silence all the advertising, social media, and other voices and listen to the voices that count. "Dig New Streams" is an excellent song that first sounds like a slow song but then suddenly changes into a rock song and even morphs a few more times, while also challenging us to try something new. And "Prodigal Soul" is a plea to God for help that I identify with a lot. This isn't Switchfoot's best album, in my opinion, but it's still a quality set of songs from this longtime band. I'm looking forward to hopefully a new album from Switchfoot in 2026!
Release Year: 2019
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Album Of The Day: Skin And Wind by Charlie Peacock
Released 5 years ago this past Thursday, this is the 9th vocal album from Charlie Peacock, who started his career as a solo artist nearly 50 years ago. (If you want to count instrumental albums and his West Coast Diaries and other rare recordings, it's a bit more complicated to count which album this is.) In the '80s he was a pop singer with a bit of a jazz/funk vibe, and in the '90s he mixed that with a bit more of a Nashville sound, and in the last 15 years it even has a bit more of a Louisiana blues in it too. This album is a quick 10 songs and I like the second half more than the first though it is all good. Peacock is less preaching the Gospel in his music of the last few decades but on this album reminiscing about his life and the lessons he's learned. A few years before this album was released he released a jazz album and one of the bonus tracks was an early version of "The Captain", which is my favorite song from this album that gets stuck in my head often. It's a song about old age and ailments through the metaphor of a ship's captain; that in the end the body has the ultimate say, even if your mind is there still, being "the captain of the ship that's going down". In the end, "Faith, Hope & Love" is the title of the final track, the most important part of Charlie's life and it's a great place to end this album. Skin And Wind is a laid-back album from a music veteran who is still making excellent music and is one of my favorite artists.
Release Year: 2021
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Album Of The Day: Muteamath by Mutemath
First released 20 years ago today at live shows only and available later in the year online and through Warner Records, this is one of my favorite albums of all time. Mutemath created a masterpiece that combines frenetic drums, pounding bass, layers of keyboards and excellent guitar work to build a unique sonic landscape that you would think could not be reproduced live, but it was actually a spectacular live show as well. I'm not sure what exactly I would call this as far as genre, but maybe "electronic rock" fits. The opening song, "Typical", is a burst of energy that propels the band through the rest of the album. "Noticed" delights with some little bits of audio that are so creative. "Stare At The Sun" starts the middle of the album, which is my favorite, as it is the most epic and experimental part. The song's lyrics finish and it transitions seamlessly into "Obselete", an instrumental jam that relies heavily on the bass and drums. "Break The Same" begins with a bang and is a lengthy declaration of our shared humanity, complete with lots of shouting of the chorus line from lead signer Paul Meany amidst the organized cacophony of the band. And "You Are Mine" is a beautiful love song, no matter if it's to a lover or a higher power—I'm not sure which was the band's intention. The version of this album on streaming is the version released on Warner in November 2026, which includes "Control" and "Plan B" from their earlier EP as well as ends with a slightly reworked version of their instrumental jam "Reset", which always wows listeners. Mutemath continued for another decade or so before disbanding over strained relationships, sadly, but this is still their finest work, in my humble opinion.
Release Year: 2006
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Album Of The Day: Let It Echo by Jesus Culture
Released 10 years ago this past Thursday, this is the 9th album from the church worship collective called Jesus Culture and the first album by that artist name released on Sparrow Records. Like many other church groups before and since, they bring Coldplay-style arena pop/rock to a church setting. The music features pounding drums and bass lines, layers of keyboards and guitars, and lots of spontaneous playing and singing by the band on long, repetitive songs. This was recorded live at Jesus Culture Church, so the audience can be heard singing along with the large worship band on occasion. None of these are songs that ended up being popular at America's churches, as far as I'm aware, but the songs are still pretty good praise and worship. My favorites are the title track, "Miracles" and "Everything And Nothing Less". The songs may not be as deep and rich as the hymns of old, in my opinion, but it's still decent music trying to connect the modern Christian with God in prayerful music.
Release Year: 2016
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Album Of The Day: Church Clothes 3 by Lecrae
Released 10 years ago Thursday, this is the third in a series of "mixtape" albums from Lecrae that feature a bit less production and bit more freeform rapping than his normal albums. Lyrically, he does take a bit of time to defend himself from his critics, which is pretty common for an experienced hip-hop artist, but he also works to educate his listeners. "Gangland" features a verse from Propaganda and talks about being black in America and teaches some history. "Misconceptions 3" also features a few guest rappers and talks about why black America and the artists are misunderstood in a world of white, Christian music especially; it's a fast-moving dump of knowledge by some good rappers. This is a quick, 37-minute album full of raps from Lecrae and friends. Although I don't listen to it often and it's less memorable than his more produced albums, it's a solid listen of more underground-style rap.
Release Year: 2016
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Album Of The Day: 7 by The 77s
Released today digitally to streaming and available for a month or so on CD and vinyl, this is a brand-new album from The 77s (pronounced "Seventy-Sevens"), a California-based rock band that's been making music for over 45 years at this point. Their first album of original material in over 20 years, this contains 7 songs plus 4 bonus tracks from this Christian rock band. As you might expect from a band that's been around this long, it definitely has a classic/alternative rock sound, and maybe a bit of a country influence too. I haven't listened to this band's previous work too much, but I should probably listen to them more. They do have a loyal following in the Christian rock world, and it's always fun to hear a band come back and make something new and good for the fans, even new fans like me.
Release Year: 2026
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Album Of The Day: Rich Mullins by Rich Mullins
"Well there's a lot of things working against me / But I know I can't lose." Released 40 years ago yesterday, this is the first solo pop/rock album from Rich Mullins, one of my favorite Christian singer-songwriters. The mid-'80s production definitely sounds very dated to my ears, but these are early songs from an excellent songwriter. Rich Mullins does a great job putting together lyrics that clearly speaks to the hardships of life but also points to God's grace and love in the same songs, plus he's got a great gift for putting those to melodies. "Elijah" and "Save Me" are probably the most well-known songs from this album, but songs like "A Few Good Men", "Live Right" and "Both Feet On The Ground" are also great songs about the life of a Christian trying to live a simple life as an artist. Rich Mullins recorded 8 more albums after this before his death in a motor vehicle accident in September 1997, and though this is not his best album, it's a promising start and still a good listen. I love the very simple, somewhat silly cover artwork too.
Release Year: 1986
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Album Of The Day: Seven Day Jesus by Seven Day Jesus
Released after Christmas just over 28 years ago, this is the second and final album from rock band Seven Day Jesus. This self-titled album finds the band adopting more pop/rock styling compared to their debut album, with slick production and pop hooks. The first four tracks are the best, from the explosive guitars in "Down With The Ship" and "Always Comes Around" to the infectious chorus of "Butterfly" and the slower tempo of "Everybody Needs Love". But the last 6 tracks are not bad either, though the first 4 tracks shine so well. "Who I Am" definitely has a punk feel more than most of the album with some screaming and lots of guitars. Lyrically, lead singer Brian McSweeney sings of struggles in life and a God that offers solutions to those issues. It's a pretty solid '90s rock album that I've been listening to for nearly 28 years, I think, as I heard "Butterfly" and read articles on the band at that time. This album I still listen to about once a year and it brings me back to those high school days but also is still a good listen.
Release Year: 1997
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Album Of The Day: Solace by Held By Trees
Held By Trees is an English post-rock band, and by that I mean it's a band that is somewhat rock in style, but also uses a lot of other musical elements and sounds in a bit of an experimental way. This release, Solace, is their first full-length album and it's mostly a laid-back, calm instrumental album. You can certainly hear the guitars, drums and bass, but there's bits of keyboard, organ, strings, reeds, and lots more sounds in there. I'm not sure if some of them just sound like nature of animals or if the musicians are making those sounds with their instruments at some points. This is one of those bands I've only heard of in the last few years and it's been such a pleasure to find this new, beautiful music. As it's instrumental, it's often something I listen to while reading a book, but it's also great for a more focused listen too.
Release Year: 2023
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