A Refreshingly Diffrent Sophomore Album
Posted August 01, 2007
By Epilogue,
Two odd things about Kutless come to mind when listening to 'Sea of Faces.' Before, they had sounded exactly like the secular band, 'Creed', but were fairly original in the Christian market. This time around, they sound absolutely nothing like their last previous grunge style, but a lot more like other Christian hard rock bands, such as Seventh Day Slumber and Thousand Foot Krutch. As if taking a cue from Skillet, Kutless appears to have completely changed itself as a band for a different album
But thankfully, they sound better. The tension charged 'Not What You See' opens the album strongly, followed by the piano laced rocker 'All Alone.' Immediately, you realize Kutless has expanded musically. No longer do the songs sound like variations of each other. 'Sea of Faces' a beautiful pop/rock ballad about God's love for us, with its energetic acoustics and clean electrics is a wild departure from the monotonous grungy tracks of the last record, as is the soft worship song, 'All of the Words.'
But Kutless doesn't go soft. 'Let You In', with its catchy intro riff and heavy chorus is return to heavier form, with the unnecessary hardcore screams at the end of each chorus. 'Troubled Heart' and 'Better For You' are hard but decent rockers. 'Passion' has the best lyrics of the album; 'Nail pierced hands run with blood/ a splitting brow forced by the thorns/ Your face is writhing with the pain...'
The song perfectly describes the paradox believers have in viewing the crucifixion; one of horror and of delight.
'Treason', my favorite track, has a heart pounding riff with some witty lyrics ('Tell me a reason why this isn't a treason'). And 'It's Like Me' is the most musically complex song, with different layers of guitars providing the background for Jon Sumrall's vocals to lament his habit of holding back the truth about Christ to unbelievers.
Although most of it has been done musically before, Kutless does it better than most, and doesn't fail in the lyrics area, where they remain honest and strong. Worth the money, and will provide a few good listens, as well as a few very memorable songs.
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