Reviewed by Brendan O'Regan

I couldn't help being reminded of U2, in a good way, on hearing this album from a Southern Californian band. Good lyrics, catchy melodies and swathes of electric guitar. A sense of rock intimacy is achieved, for example on the prayer song "You Gave Your Grace". After enthusing recently about Castles In Air's acoustic Christmas album I was glad to hear that acoustic versions of two of the best tracks, "Watchmen" and "Shine Down", were added at the end of the album. They're the best bonus tracks I've come across for quite awhile. On some of the other tracks I felt keyboards would have helped the arrangements, and sure enough "Overflow", with its keyboard intro, is one of the strongest cuts here. "There Is More" is a particularly reflective song with excellent harmony vocals, while "Rise Above" is a soulful anthem.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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