David Crowder Band "Can You Hear Us?
Title: Can You Hear Us?
Category: Alternative Praise
Artist/Group: David Crowder Band
Rating: 5 / 5
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Okay, first thing's first. Get this album. It rocks!
I came across the David Crowder Band (DCB) last fall at the Passion Experience Tour in Trenton, NJ. Their version of Matt Redman's "Undignified" brought down the house!
You might not know David Crowder the singer/song writer, but we here at Emmanuel are familiar with him through his songs, "You Alone (I'm Alive)" and "Make A Joyful Noise/I Will Not be Silent" (Passion 98 and Road to OneDay, respectively). David is the worship pastor at University Baptist Church, in Waco, Texas. With Charlie Hall (Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) and Chris Tomlin (Woodlands United Methodist Church in Woodlands, Texas), David Crawder rounds out the three "core" artists from Sixstep Records.
DCB can be summed up in one word: creative. David Crowder, the lead singer, even looks it. Lanky with a gotee and spikey hear, he doen't actually "look" like your typical pastor. His "look" would fit right in with the nocturnal crowd on South Street.
Stylistically, Can You Hear Us? has an origianal alternative-rock-praise sound. Several songs begin with "static pops" simulating a vinyl record, scratches from a DJ, ambient sounds from the guitar and keyboards, and some really cool sounding guitar licks.
"The [album] has two themes," Crowder says. "First, there is the fact that sometimes we all feel disconnected from God, so we confront that condition several times. Second, and more often, there is the breakthrough realization that we are really living in the constant presence of God. And when we realize that, we can't help but get excited!"
There is alot of excitement on this album, as reflected in the raw emotion of "Our Love Is Loud". But the CD actually starts off with a short acoustic song called "I Need Words" - a song writer must admit that words are not enough to describe our awesome God.
"God of Creation" - a toe tappin' melody, dreamy female vocals, and atmospheric keyboards. It's a love song to our creator God, and how all things beautiful and wonderful really point to Him, echoing His beauty, power and majesty. He really is worthy of all our worship.
"All Creatures of Our God and King" is a remake of the hymn of the same name. It's a mix of old and new, with organs, drums and the "pops" of a vinyl record, added for nostalgias sake. This style really adds to the tried and true lyrics that have whethered the centuries: "Praise, praise the Father praise the Son; And praise the Spirit Three in One; Oh, praise Him...."
God of Wrath. God of wrath? You mean God of love, or mercy or faithfulness, don't you? Nope. Can one really sing praises of God's wrath? This song describes all of God's attributes! Even His wrath. But of course, the song doesn't remain there.... I really love the Nine-Inch-Nail-esque intro and the dangerous undercurrent of the guitar, and how the mood of the song changes in the refrain:
My love for you
My heart for you
My life for you
All I am for you
This song has a lot of depth. And sometimes we need to listen and sing the songs over and over again before we "get it". Let me explain.
The first time I heard "God of Wrath", the intro sounded so cool, but I could not sing the chorus - I don't know, I guess I wasn't in the mood to sing "My life for you" etc.. But after many days of listening, there was a break through when I imagined Jesus singing the refrain to me: "my love for you, my heart for you, my life for you.... when I heard Jesus speaking to me, I could only bow my head in silence, letting His words flow over me: I saw Jesus on the cross for me. I was reminded that He loves me. He gave His heart to me. He gave His life, and everything He is, for me. Only by first realizing that Jesus gave Himself to me, could I then give myself to Him. The refrain then becomes my own. The words then become my own words of worship.
Theologically: I don't know if this was the song writer's intent, but this song reminds me of Exodus 34:5-7, when God revealed His glory to Moses:
"...The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation."This seeming contradiction was what God revealed to Moses when Moses asked to see God's glory. God's glory wasn't some demonstration of raw power (earth quake, lighting, super nova, etc), but a proclamation. That He is incredibly gracious and forgiving, but at the same time, He will punish all those who are guilty! In other words, He is a God who forgives and a God who punishes. This passage is very confusing until you remember that the center of Christianity is Jesus on the cross. For on the cross, God forgave and He punished. He forgave us and He poured out His wrath on Jesus. Our God is both a God of forgiveness and of wrath. And the cross is His glory.
Finally, there is a track called "Undignified" 33 seconds into track 11. Based on 2 Samuel 6, this song reflects the unrestrained joy of King David when he was bringing the Ark of God to Jerusalem. As you may recall, Michal, David's wife, was disdainful of David's "vulgar" dance. There is a great lession to be learned here. Sometimes, we Christians are so up tight. I don't know how you express true joy but I bet it's not in sombre silence. Think about it. When we are before the presence of God who delights in us - because when He sees us, He sees Jesus, our substitute. How much does God, the Father, love Jesus? When we are before the presence of the most beautiful, the most wealthy, the most powerful person in the entire universe and He absolutely adores us, and calls us His own, we can't help but celebrate with abandon. As King David replied to Michal: "I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes." For David, the reality of God was overwhelming. Can it be anything less?
Checkout their website: www.davidcrowderband
Discography
Mark
Kim
3.24.02
picture: circa 1974
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