Reviewed by Paul Keeble

Song for song the singing, playing and production on this nicely packaged album are all excellent. It's a tight sound, with some neat production touches like bits of studio chat left in. Vocals are handled by Ben Mell, who also wrote all the songs, with wife Jessica providing razor sharp backing which reminded me of Deacon Blue. Anyone remember them? Oh well. Changes of pace and arrangement such as on "Where Are You?" (honky-tonk piano that actually benefits a song) and "Love Me First" help maintain interest, and the introduction on "Less Bitter" is a thing of beauty, one of a number of nice moments. However, the bit of "God Save Us All" that comes before the count in. . . Er, no. The lyrics are uncliched and direct, with little or no imagery or poetry, but strangely effective nonetheless in a didactic sort of way. Most are about the writer's personal spirituality, maybe with a bit of a bias towards the dark side. There are some probes into deep areas, such as "Convince Myself" which addresses self-deception, something we're all prone to. "I've made a god in my image/I've seen him do mighty things/He justifies what my conscience cannot/He lets me do anything/But he's terrified of light." After a while though I found myself wishing for a bit more light and joy and songs looking outward rather than inward. "'Less Bitter" comes close, but still contains another bit of self-analysis. After five or six plays of this album I have to confess that I cannot remember any of the melodies. This isn't necessarily a bad thing as over the years a number of bands, to whom a hook was no more than something to hang a coat on, have managed quite nicely without their songs having any. However, it might be something Constant Recourse would want to look at, maybe by trying some band collaboration on the writing. This isn't a bad album, but it didn't grab me. I think this group of people have the God-given talent and potential to get to a higher level in all aspects of their music. The way there will involve a bit of faith-filled experimentation and pushing the envelope. Go for it.

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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