Louder Than The Music

Matt Maher - Saints And Sinners

Artist:

Matt Maher

Title:

Saints And Sinners

Type:

Album

Released:

17 Mar 2015

LTTM Rating:

Your Rating:

Review

Sunday roasts are a highlight for many. That irresistible opportunity to pile loads of variety high, and at the end of it feel like you'll never need to eat again, and possibly won’t be able to move either. Matt Maher has served up a huge platter here, covering a big range of topics based on “quotes, prayers, scriptures and characters throughout the history of the church that have been a prophetic voice,” as the artist explains.

The meat of Matt Maher’s latest trip to the studio is the song Because He Lives (Amen) that could possibly make songwriters everywhere...
Read More Sunday roasts are a highlight for many. That irresistible opportunity to pile loads of variety high, and at the end of it feel like you'll never need to eat again, and possibly won’t be able to move either. Matt Maher has served up a huge platter here, covering a big range of topics based on “quotes, prayers, scriptures and characters throughout the history of the church that have been a prophetic voice,” as the artist explains.

The meat of Matt Maher’s latest trip to the studio is the song Because He Lives (Amen) that could possibly make songwriters everywhere throw their hands up first in praise but then in resignation, as he seems to have found every good line available and used it. The song is as vast and spacious as watching an Olympic stadium being built in time-lapse video. But songwriters please don’t despair: thankfully we worship a God who is never empty in the words and songs department so don’t give up just yet: there’s plenty leftover for you. We must move onto the rest of the album, but before we do, it needs to be said that the mark of the song is shown by the unplugged version. I can see no reason why any church would not want to pick this song up and run with it whether as a band or on a solo instrument, the only stumbling block being some solvable disagreements across the UK about how to correctly sing Amen. However you want to say it, what a great word it is when it’s sung like this. Four letter words have become a much bleeped out commodity in music these days: it’s great to hear one that is heard and understood this clearly.

Like a good family gravy recipe, the album makes you generally feel at home, occasionally providing some odd flavours making me a little unsure if I should be worshipping or merely listening. “Rest”, an new interpretation of a much sung Psalm 23, is a lovely stripped back Nashville tinged duet, “Garden” recorded live has a similar vibe, these intimate moments being enhanced by intimate production. “Glorybound” respectfully hints at an epistle received from our dear brother Springsteen; the samples on the soulful “Sons and Daughters” are effective but may weary a little with listening; “Borrowed Time” fades in to lead us out into American Rock territory, where clocks are ticking and worlds are spinning and “Firelight” conjures up images of being sung on a lonely porch somewhere. There’s no denying that these songs are delivered authentically, intimately and convincingly.

I’d heard 40 seconds of Deliverer and was already singing along as if it's always been there on the iPad. Someone clearly knows what they’re doing in the songwriting department at the Maher table, as this beauty starts small, building with chunky guitars into a familiar big flag waving chorus. But hold on: who ordered handclaps, strings and a change of tempo? It ends as a fantastic refreshing song from someone who desperately needed a deliverer and has found it. If we all sing the song together like we really meant it, it has enormous potential.

"The Invocation" is only a minute and a half long but provides the most atmospheric, almost solemn, moment. “Instrument” follows a traditional musical recipe but uses familiar words that we all nod to, saying “yes that’s right”, but then realise perhaps we don’t really live them out. It’s a powerful song, made more powerful by the heldback production to keep the focus on the words. “The Waiting” sounds like it’s going to repeat what we’ve heard, but heads off in a different and unpredictable lyrical and musical direction and hats off to Matt for this as it cleanses the palette just as a lot of it was beginning to taste the same, before heading into that “Because He Lives” masterpiece.

Overall there are more gourmet moments than sprouts left on the side, and the centre-pieces are enhanced by intimate production at just the right moments. Musically it’s like a whistle top tour of the States with nods to names and faces that are in most people’s music collections, giving a taste of church and radio cooked flavours as you go.

Give thanks, tuck in, and say Amen as you feel led.

Review by Phil Aldis

LTTM Rating 3.5 Out of 5 Stars
Standout Tracks
Deliverer
Instrument
Because He lives

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