"I was riding down a Nebraska highway a couple of years ago with Wendell Berry stories in my head and a new baby in the back seat when the phrase first occurred to me: ”in feast or in fallow.” Watching the fields go by in neat rows, I thought of crop rotation as a metaphor for my own life, mirroring the internal weather that governs the changing seasons I spend as a songwriter and caregiver. In that moment, “In Feast or Fallow” emerged as a record title, a tiny seed of inspiration, and now this new crop of hymns has finally come to fruition." -Sandra McCracken
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Hymns are enduring musical expressions communicating doctrine, scripture and truth whether they be religious or otherwise. J. S. Bach felt “church music was designed to deepen the worship of God and to embellish His service…” and further iterated “the aim and final reason, as of all music… should be none else but the Glory of God and the recreation of the mind. Though these thoughts seem old-fashioned and hymns are seen as too traditional, hymnody is still practiced and some still practice the craft of hymn-writing. Sandra McCracken’s latest project, In Feast or Fallow follows in the tradition of 2005’s The Builder & The Architect and further assures her place in the pantheon of modern hymnodists such as Matt Redman, Michael W. Smith, et al.
In Feast or Fallow pays respectful homage to the songs that are deeply-rooted in the Christian faith tradition. McCracken and her producer/musical peer/husband Derek Webb’s approach is one of simplicity and reverence. The music has an organic, acoustically-based foundation. Modern instrumentation and contemporary musical structuring is not eschewed but through each cut, it is evident that the lyrics are the focal point and the music serves the mood and truth of the lyrics.
Author, singer and actor Andy Griffith said, “hymns are companions for life travelers,” and the songs of In Feast or Fallow breathe with a companionable life given voice by McCracken’s emotionally inflective vocals. If you’re willing to take a chance, “those moldy oldies” of your great-grandparents might just become favorites. Sara Groves and Derek Webb are the obvious comparisons. Others include Gungor, Bethany Dillon and Watermark.
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