Artist: Relient K

Title: MMHMM

Relient K are in my opinions one of the best bands in the Christian and even mainstream scene at the minute. They are pop/punk and have quite a few funny tracks such as ‘we are the pirates who don’t do anything’ and never stray from their Christian roots. Oh and one of their songs have been used in pimp my ride!

From their first video ‘Chapped stick chapped lips and things like chemistry’ to 'Maintain consciousness' (new song) the band never fails to make you think.

MMHMM is the newest of the main four albums and they have grown up an awful lot but in an amazing way. These songs reflect their beliefs and their beliefs are to never go with the flow and to make God a number one priority in their lives as a band.

Songs such as ‘I so hate consequences’ are ones to look out for on this album when your looking for a good Christian message. This particular song shows one of those no-brainer meanings. Consequences come with all things, and as shown in the below lyrics, you can't run from Him, He will eventually catch up with you, and always accept you back no matter how far you stray.

When I got tired of running from you
I stopped right there to catch my breath
There your words they caught my ears
You said, “I miss you son. Come home”
And my sins, they watched me leave
And in my heart I so believed
The love you felt for me was mine
The love I’d wished for all this time

Other songs to look out for on MMHMM is 'Be my escape' and 'Who I am hates who I've been' This is one of my favorite albums and is huge in America, also if you like this album (which I know you will because I have such amazing music taste!) then try ‘The anatomy of the tongue in cheek’ this is an old album but goes back to the days where they wrote a lot of random songs as well as more Christian stuff which at times is bloomin class.  (Mike Ball)

Clips from MMHMM

Artist: Toby Mac

Title: Diverse City

Toby Mac has gone solo from DC Talk and he’s doing a great job of it as well! He’s back from the studio following his hit album ‘Momentum’ with his newest creation ‘Diverse City’ serving up a bit of soul, techno, rap and pop.

From the opening track ‘Hey now’ until ‘Atmosphere’ Toby does not fail to deliver with tracks that are solely based on the Christian life and everything in between. I bought this album in America and I thought it would be just ok because I'm not that much into rap, I was completely wrong this has rap mixed with a bit of rock smooth pop and soulful melodies all put along to lyrics that involve every single person listening to the album.

Momentum may have been great with songs such as ‘Extreme days’ but songs like ‘Gone’ about a girl who’s going through some pretty rough times but found that ‘God found a way through the pain and he opened her eyes’ this is the kind of stuff I need to hear when I’m feeling a little down about the bad things that come hurling their way at me especially when the song ends with ‘you never know what you got til its gone’.

Songs to look out for:
Atmosphere
Diverse city
Trudog which is a song that involves Toby’s son rapping need I say anymore?!

Mike Ball

Clips from Diverse City

Artist: Michael W Smith

Title: Worship

When George W Bush was inaugurated as President of the United States, Michael W Smith sang at the ceremony "Above all powers".  A reminder perhaps to the President that although he may be the leader of the most powerful country in the world, there is one even greater than him...The Lord.  The title worship is true of this CD.  With titles such as "Forever", "The Heart of Worship" and "Awesome God" you just can't help but sing them out and worship God with all your heart.  A good thing about this CD is that there are a lot of songs on it that we sing in YF so you don't have to make up the words in the middle of a song because you know them already.

Clips from Worship

Artist: Various

Title: The Best Worship Songs...Ever!

Ever walked into a shop to buy a CD with a particular song on it?  Ever brought it home to be disappointed by how it was performed?  Then read on cos this CD could be for you!  This CD actually made it onto the shelves of Tesco, HMV and Virgin to name just a few and as you look at the song list and the artists that sing them, then it is easy to see why it made it the shelves of these big stores.  The songs themselves include "Here I am to worship", "In Christ alone", "Jesus be the centre" and "I could sing of your love forever".  But it is the volume of great songs accompanied with great artists and bands (i.e. Matt Redman, Delirious, Sonicflood, Darlene Zschech etc....) that really make this CD stand out.

There are even a few home grown stars in amongst this list but the one that stands out to me singing "See what a morning" is Kristyn Lennox.  A song that gets the hairs on your neck standing up as the drums build up to the chorus and she sings of the resurrection morning.

There are a few poor versions of songs on the CD but out of the 50, yes 50 songs that are on the album, they number very low.  If you want a bargain, this is the one for you.