Lift-Off to Love
Posted September 27, 2010
By AmandaDeWilde_NRT, Staff Reviewer
Group 1 Crew is back from their “outta space” studio with an album that transcends earth’s atmosphere.
It’s not too hard to decipher the meaning behind the new album name. In an interview with CCM, Manwell described it this way, “God’s love is so big that it does not fit on this earth. It’s literally out of space. It surrounds the earth.”
On top of creating a record that portrays God’s unimaginable love, the crew was determined to serve their audience something fresh and out-of-the-box. Though the songs from Outta Space Love are replete with the style that fans have come to love and expect from G1C, they certainly give you a taste of something new.
“Live It Up” initiates our space ride with carefree lyrics that encourage you to live your life to the fullest. This song could possibly be misconstrued to mean “living it up” in a life of sin, but if you really listen to the lyrics you’ll find that’s as far from the meaning as you can get. It’s about making your life count, having fun, enjoying the little things. Basically it’s a call to be happy and content with what God’s given you and to realize that everything about your life “is blessed and oh so evident.”
“Need Your Love” and “Walking On The Stars” are beautiful love songs to the Savior, appropriately more mellow than some of the other tracks and perfectly worshipful.
With a message about life a little deeper than that of the opening track, “Let’s Go” reminds you that although life isn’t a box of sweet delights, it’s given to us for a reason and it’s up to us to use it to change the world. A cameo appearance by the legendary TobyMac makes this song an extra treat.
“Lean On Me” (not another cover of Bill Withers’ popular song) is about Christ-like friendship. Being there to hold someone’s hand through the tough times, to listen to their problems, and encourage them with the hope of Christ. This is followed by the light-hearted “Beautiful,” which persuades girls to view themselves in a positive light and know that God sees them as beautiful in the way that He made them and in the way that they serve Him by showing kindness to others.
“Transcend” is probably one of the best hip-hop tracks, a definite dance number that boldly claims the group’s goal to rise above the jabs of critics and love them no matter what. This flows in nicely to the title track, a metaphor about taking people to outer space to experience God’s love.
The desperately intriguing “Please Don’t Let Me Go” will take you back to earlier Group 1 Crew days with a sound and meaning similar to their popular “Forgive Me.”
Hopeful romantics will adore the song “Wait.” This catchy tune is a perfect theme song for people waiting for the Lord to bring that special someone across their path.
The first song ever released from the album (even before the Spacebound EP) is the mega-fun “Breakdown.” Group 1 Crew describes a breakdown as the part of a song that you can’t wait for –- your favorite part. So how creative is it to write a song that’s one big breakdown? It lives up to its name and is likely to be one of those songs that always has you holding your breath in anticipation.
As the album wraps up, it certainly doesn’t wind down, keeping you movin’ to the very end while “telling you what the goal is” with “Manipulation.” This is the crux of the record, the very heart and reason behind all of Group 1 Crew’s music. They produce hot beats and rhymes not to get famous, to get attention, or to get recognition. Their music is a ministry. They make stuff that Christians will love and can share proudly with their friends, saved or unsaved, being confident that the message will make its way to the heart by way of a highly pleased ear canal.
Believe me, this is a record and a group that you can trust to that end. View All Music And Book Reviews By AmandaDeWilde_NRT | View AmandaDeWilde_NRT's Profile
|
