Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

The one challenge to face a rock band with a long history is that the changing fashions in rock music mean that the best bands are forced to evolve as they go along. After two excellent albums in 1978 and 1979, the band greeted the '80s with their signatures on a contract with Light Records and released 'Colors' which helped them begin to gain acceptance in the wider Christian music scene that had previously dismissed them as flakes playing the Devil's music. In fact the Resurrection Band's radical approach to ministry and faith was something which set the band apart from the largely insipid scene around them. This second album for Light was released in 1981 and dared to talk about some of the grittier realities of life. From the empty crassness of consumerism ("Elevator Musik") through marital break up (the title cut), disability ("The Chair") and crushing spiritual struggles ("Alienated"), the band weren't afraid to tackle difficult subjects. Mixing some pop sensibilities into their hard rock, certainly made this album a little more accessible for a wider audience so that songs like "Lovin' You" and "Can't Get You Out Of My Mind" simply demonstrate Glenn Kaiser's skills at writing catchy rock songs. This fine set demonstrates that in the '80s the Resurrection Band were doing their best work!

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