Release Date: April 28, 2015
Two years ago I wrote a history-filled, non-review of Shane & Shane’s Bring Your Nothing record outlining my deep love for these guys and their music alongside its far-reaching impact on me. I mention it because, in this case, my personal history with the artist drastically impacts my evaluation of the record.
Back in February of last year, I saw that Shane & Shane had set up a Kickstarter campaign for a project called The Worship Initiative, a website and resource for local church worship leaders. The site would feature song tutorials, videos, Bible studies, and more. It sounded really cool. In addition, Shane and Shane revealed that they had already recorded 100 songs for the project which would also be built into their proprietary system, but would also be available in album format to project backers. They made their goal of $150,000 and the site is live – check it out.
Last year, I noticed that the Worship Initiative “albums” were being released on Spotify and Amazon. In total, the band put out 10 albums totaling 100 songs – most of them familiar worship songs from the last 20 years, but a few were more obscure. The production quality was really basic, which was at points a turn off, but understandable given the context.
So, when I saw the announcement of this record from their label, I figured that they had culled together their favorites from that project and decided to promote it as an official release. From listening to the record, it seems like I was maybe 50% right. The songs on the official The Worship Initiative album are not found on the previous independent releases, save for two “radio edits” at the end of the record. The songs here seem like they may have been favorites that were not featured previously. The production is similar, but definitely enhanced from what we’ve heard over the last year – but it’s still not the same as the tone and style of their previous major releases.
The song choice for the album is a good mix of familiar and more obscure selections originally recorded by a variety of artists. Only one original song, “God of Ages Past,” is included. I was surprised and excited to hear a couple of my favorite songs from Hillsong bands make the cut, “Scandal of Grace” and “Man of Sorrows.” This recording was my first exposure to “Forever” (originally by Kari Jobe) – which, oddly enough, seemed to be everywhere just a couple of weeks ago. While I’m not a huge fan of the song lyrically, I really like the inclusion of “You Make Me Brave” simply because it provides a welcomed and much needed change in the tone of the record. In my opinion, the best is saved for last with “All the Poor and Powerless.”
Many of the tracks on this album sound very much the same in tone, pacing, arrangement, and even lyrical content. This makes it hard for me to sit and listen to the record as a whole – but for someone who is looking to learn these songs, each individual track is a phenomenal reference tool. Still, their previous record of worship cover songs (Dare 2 Share) felt like it had a much better flow and the songs sounded far more unique.
As a complete work, it’s hard for me to call this an album. The best descriptor that I came up with is that it is more of a “resource.” While the individual songs are great, the collection of songs does not offer the same type of flow or continuity that I would like to hear in what I would describe as an album. I’m certain that the songs hold up well in the context of the overall Worship Initiative project and fans of the band will want to hear their take on these songs. I, for one, would like to hear a live recording of a setlist like this, so that I can feel more a part of the experience.
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