Reviewed by Ian Thomson

The Australian aggregation have come to be synonymous in the world of worship music with passion, determination and a generic, guitar-driven rock worship. That said, 'Tear Down The Walls' is a good album. It harnesses the songwriting capabilities of a large number of young and not-so-young musicians from within the Hillsong youth ministry, which lends a certain variety to the music featured. The familiar energy of United is evident in the early and late sections of the worship set, with Reuben Morgan and Scott Ligertwood's anthemic "Freedom Is Here" getting the ball rolling, and Joel Davies and Braden Lang's passionate rock track "Yours Forever" bringing things to a screeching but scripted halt. In the mid-section, the mood is gentled down with more reflective contributions, such as Brooke Ligertwood's "Soon" and Sam Knock's "Arms Open Wide". It is good to see a minimum of recycled material here. Admittedly, both "Desert Song" and "Your Name High" have already been released on the 'This Is Our God' album, but after 'The iHeart Revolution' was released as a live album featuring a huge swathe of pre-released material, United fans will be glad to have something slightly different here. Top track from the album? Brooke's vocals alone have to make "Soon" pick of the bunch, but it is a tough call.

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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