Hillsong United - Aftermath
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Title:
Aftermath
Type:
Album
Released:
15 Feb 2011 (US), 14 Mar 2011 (UK)
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Review
I pointed out at the end of last year that the album Aftermath by Hillsong United was one of those albums I couldn't wait to hear. I have loved everything Hillsong United have done over the years, they write great songs of worship, are great musicians who play with passion and honesty, yet primarily they are like all of us, worshippers who love God and want to see people experience that love of God through great worship music.
For people who aren't familiar with Hillsong United, the band grew out from their youth team in their local Hillsong Church in Australia....
Read More I pointed out at the end of last year that the album Aftermath by Hillsong United was one of those albums I couldn't wait to hear. I have loved everything Hillsong United have done over the years, they write great songs of worship, are great musicians who play with passion and honesty, yet primarily they are like all of us, worshippers who love God and want to see people experience that love of God through great worship music.
For people who aren't familiar with Hillsong United, the band grew out from their youth team in their local Hillsong Church in Australia. In 1999 the team of musicians released their first album Everyday and since that strong start the band have released an album nearly every year, but within that time they have only entered the studio once to record an album, the rest being live recording of events they were playing at. All of the Above was the album the band recorded in the studio, this was all the way back in 2007. Now in 2011 with a new release from the studio, Hillsong United are about to show the world their latest offering, Aftermath which is twelve new worship songs from the Australian worship team.
To sum up the album before getting into the review, this is a Hillsong United album sounding like a Hillsong United album. Don't expect a massive change of direction in style. Hillsong United have a sound and style of music when they write and lead worship. That isn't meant to be a negative comment at all, the biggest difference with this album compared to some others is the band have been given time to be creative in the studio, to try and push their creative buttons and they have done this with great success, just listen to the album title track Aftermath, atmospheric and beautiful.
Aftermath starts with the track Take Heart which begins with an acoustic guitar picking, but it isn't long before singer Joel Houston softly sings over the top adding to an atmospheric feel to the song. The song builds up slowly with soft galloping drums, which sit in the background, the song isn't rushed into an obvious crescendo of noise and that's what makes this song special. Take Heart slowly takes its time to build and it's not until around 4 minutes in that the band starts to sing "All our troubles, all our tears, God of hope, He has overcome", with that song bursting into energy. This is one of those songs that lead you towards putting your hands up in praise.
Now that the album is in full swing Go powers in with the repeated lyrics "We're giving it all away". A Hillsong United album wouldn't be a Hillsong Untied album without hard hitting guitars screaming out a stunning riff and a pounding drum beat, Go is one of those songs. It's more on the edge of a 3 minute rock/pop song than any of the other songs on the album, and Go is high impact from start to finish.
One song that I missed on first play is Like An Avalanche, yet on second listen, it really stood out, don't know how I missed this stunning track the first time around. It's an outpouring cry to God with the chorus of "And I find myself here on my knees again, caught up in grace like an avalanche, nothing compares to this love, love, burning in my heart", wonderful musicianship on this song, a strong powerful track.
Creativity spills out on this album. Bones is something different musically with a lot of Synth work, a very simple song, but very effective and should be one of my standout tracks. I could name more songs and go into depth about how great they are, but with so many songwriters adding their skills to this album, each song does have a different feel to the one before. I think this album could be the most creative and daring album from the band, and I would positively recommend this album to you.
In my opinion a strange song to appear on the album is the song Awakening which appeared on the live album of the same name from Passion, written by Reuben Morgan and Chris Tomlin. It is a great song, but I wasn't expecting it to be on a Hillsong United album, saying that, it is a strong version that the band have done and it does fit into the album, just.
Overall this is another stunning album from Hillsong United, but is it the best album they have ever made? I don't know, but it's up there. The album grew on me the more I listened to it. Each time I listen, I picked out new things, maybe a new phrase I had missed on the first few times of listening. Being as this album was only their second album to be recorded in the studio, Hillsong United were able to be more creative with their use of instruments, that maybe they couldn't have live. This is a large positive, yet on the negative side of that, you could say you missed hearing the live aspect of these songs. I'm sure in the future you will, but until then, listen to Aftermath and let God wash over you with another strong worshipful album from the guys at Hillsong United.
Review by Jono Davies
LTTM Rating 5 out of 5 Stars
Standout Tracks
Like An Avalanche
Rhythm of Grace
Go Articles
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