Bec Simpson

April 25, 2018April 25, 2018

Album Review: Andrew Serino – The Golden Thread

Partially paid for via crowdfunding website IndieGoGo, ‘The Golden Thread’ is Portland, Oregon singer-songwriter Andrew Serino’s first full-length album. An incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, Serino has been in bands for most of his life and made a name for himself on his local scene, as well as auditioning for American Idol. He plays every single instrument on the album, resulting in a time-consuming recording process that took many months to achieve. Now finalised and released, it’s an album that Serino has a right to be proud of, and will certainly get him some of the attention he deserves further afield from Portland.

‘Wake Up’ is essentially the opening track after the short ‘Introduction’ and it certainly sets us off with a bang. It’s a thumping, fist pumping post-hardcore/emo rocker that will sound familiar to fans of the likes of At The Drive-In, Fall Out Boy and Anberlin. “I know that feeling, believe me,” he admits in this catch and feel good song exploring the bad habits we can all easily find ourselves falling into, urging the listener to “wake up” and fight their way out of it, or even perhaps, to wake up and see the light!

Andrew Serino – The Golden Thread

‘Arrogance’ goes further down into the pop-punk style, as does ‘Broken Record’, which has the slick, modern feel of current Paramore and Panic! At The Disco, with yet another catchy chorus. Serino has said it’s “his version of a love song”, and it’s a track that could be taken at face value as an actual love song, or it could easily be a love song to God. It’s up to the listener to make up their mind and take from it what they will. Serino readily admits he’s like a broken record because of how often he talks about the subject of the song, declaring he “will try to find the tallest mountaintop just to prove what I’d do to show my love”.

‘Honestly’ is a stand out track, featuring an appearance from Justin Abel, who produced the record but has an excellent voice too! It’s got more of a metalcore/emo Pierce The Veil type feel, as does ‘Deal With It’, a fast-paced hard rocker.

“I’m not a perfect person, I’m not a perfect person man, I’m trying to stay humble and I do the best I can” Serino sings in the title track ‘The Golden Thread’ which finishes off the collection of twelve songs, before screaming, “don’t let me stay broken” in a desperate plea to God to help him. It’s heartening to see someone unafraid to expose their fears and imperfections in such a way, and readily admit that we can’t all be perfect Christians. Towards the end of the song, there’s a repetition of the chorus from ‘Wake Up’, which echoes the theme of the album perfectly. It feels like the whole thing is calling society to open their hearts to God and allow him to heal and help us.

Both ‘Unwavering’ and ‘Shadows’ show Serino’s softer side with beautiful soaring power ballads and swirling soundscapes, the latter of which features a duet with his wife Heidi. With lyrics such as “I question what is real but you fight for me still” and “I’ll always love you cause you have found me”, again, it’s ony of those that could work as a simple love song to his wife, or a love song to God, which makes it a perfect fit for believers and non-believers alike.

It seems to be a recurring theme in the style of his writing. Anyone could enjoy Andrew Serino’s music, and that’s the beauty of it. For those ‘in the know’, the lyrics have multiple meanings. They work on the surface as regular songs, but you can also easily see the spiritual nuances that are clearly important to Serino. Presumably the hope is that this way of writing will cause secular listeners to think on different levels and dig a little deeper, a subtle evangelising tactic which has merit and does actually work.

In short, it’s an excellent debut album with lots of potential for future growth. Andrew Serino is a vibrant, exciting songwriter with an important message delivered in an accessible and fresh style.

8/10

March 30, 2018March 30, 2018

Album Review: The Bigger Picture – Jerry Fee

For those unfamiliar with Jerry, he’s a thirty-five-year-old singer-songwriter from Spring Hill, Tennessee and this will be his third full-length studio album, having released two EPs prior to that back in 2014. To think he’s released so much music over a four year period is certainly a testament to his prolific songwriting and recording. He has already garnered comparisons to twenty-one pilots, Imagine Dragons, TobyMac and Mutemath, which may give readers an indication of what to expect here – twenty-five minutes of unadulterated synthy-pop goodness.

The album opens up with the funky ‘Learning To Love (Like You)’, which definitely sounds like some kind of 80s throwback, with its toe-tapping beat and infectious chorus, it wouldn’t sound out of place on a Wham record. Except it’s about Jesus, which obviously makes things a lot better – “remedy’s got a name: Jesus”. It definitely sets the tone for the rest of the album, immediately making you want to get up and dance, or at least rock about in your seat a bit.

Title track ‘The Bigger Picture’ addresses the important issue of how easy it is to drift our focus away from God in the busy, over-commercialised and sin-centered world we currently occupy, with Jerry begging the Lord to help him see that “bigger picture” and “lift the veil away” so that he can better walk in the light.

‘Stars (More Of Who You Are)’ has a bit of a reggae feel to it, and again starts with a bit of an 80s island throwback, with plenty of pop synths and delicate guitars, then moves to a rap in the middle, crossing genres into hip-hop. The uplifting and positive chorus declares that God is “proven in the stars, written on our hearts”, the theme of the message here being that evidence of the Lord’s works is all around us if we open our eyes and hearts to see his blessings and receive his grace.

‘Color The World’ was the first single off the album, which Jerry has described as being about “this life, our one time around, is our one shot to ask God how we can join Him in making the world more beautiful – to colour the world”. It’s upbeat in its electro-pop style, with a solid rhythm section and slick production.

This collection of eight delightful songs finishes off with ‘Never Gonna Quit’, with a synth riff that you can’t help bopping to, and a determined message that “fear will not rule me” and with God’s love we can achieve anything.

None of these songs particularly sound like overly in your face worship music, but if you actually pay attention to the lyrics, the meanings behind them are very clear. It’s the type of music you could play to a secular friend to try and bring them to salvation and it wouldn’t totally freak them out (hint: you should try that)!

The musicianship is of a high calibre, the instrument choices diverse, the vocal delivery spot on, and with the occasional dabble into different genres, it’s certainly an enjoyable little album that shows promise of more in the future.

Jerry Fee is an artist who’s still making a name for himself in the industry but is definitely one to watch out for. His releases can be found on Spotify, Apple Music and all the usual digital outlets and are well worth checking out. Wind your way over to his Facebook too and hit like to support an up and coming Christian artist.

Rating: 7/10

January 19, 2018January 19, 2018

Album Review: Remedy Drive – The North Star

There’s a common misconception amongst non-believers that Christian music is all about praise, worship, and gospel songs; that it’s over sentimentalised, cheesy, and mentions God or Jesus in virtually every line, and therefore would have no appeal to anyone usually interested in secular rock or alternative. In this new music section of Godinterest, we hope to dispel some of those myths by exposing and reviewing some of the best rock, punk, hip-hop, urban and alternative albums, singles and EPs that fall under the Christian moniker.

These days, a growing number of bands and artists are moving away from Christian record labels and shirking the generic label of “Christian band”, opting for a more subtle and insidious approach, creating music and lyrics that appeals to a secular audience and sometimes perhaps, on the surface, pass as a regular songs. But dig a little deeper and the faith and purpose of these artists shines through, and by using their God-given creative talents to spread the Word for those who might not normally get to hear it (ie. not preaching to the choir), these unsung heroes of the Christian music world deserve a little bit of accolade for the good work they’re doing.

This week, pop rock trio Remedy Drive released their seventh studio album under that name, since changing it in 2006 from Remedy. The band are unashamedly Christian and their faith is clearly a big part of who they are, with plenty of little biblical references littering the lyrics here and there (the title being one of them – The North Star), but the album itself actually focuses on a specific and important issue the band wishes to expose and discuss. “We’re making a rock and roll album to shine a light on slavery and injustice” they stated on their Kickstarter page which was launched on September 27^th, 2017. Within a month, they had astonishingly raised $37, 361 with the help of 515 backers. Remedy Drive might not be topping the charts, but they clearly have a dedicated and loyal fanbase willing to show that through their donations and continual support.

Lead vocalist and songwriter, David Zach, who was a founding member of the band way back in 1995 has spent the past four years out in Southeast Asia and Latin America, “finding evidence of sex trafficking, using covert gear to capture that evidence and then partnering with local authorities to make raids”¦Our goal was that the devastating reality of slavery and injustice would find its way onto this album. We need your help to get these songs out there. Songs that have been inspired by the courage of ordinary people in history and today that are fighting against injustice. Songs that I hope and believe will inspire ordinary humans to live like Martin Luther King Jr. said with a “dangerous unselfishness”.” Dangerous unselfishness seems like a familiar concept from the Bible, and of course, one that should be encouraged and worked into our lives as Christians if we are to fulfill God’s desire of living in his image and being as ‘Christlike’ as possible.

This is actually the second album of theirs along the same theme, with the 2014 album Commodity also addressing the same issues. The North Star could perhaps be seen as a Part II to that, although it stands on its own as a great album with some memorable tracks.

Having quickly and easily achieved their monetary goal, the band recorded and released the album entirely independently, having split from their label, Centricity (a Christian label), back in 2013/14. Since then they’ve been doing just fine on their own and consistently putting out high-quality music in the alternative genre. These guys are pretty hard to classify in terms of styles. The beats are funky and up-tempo, with shimmery guitars, harmonious vocals, and some electronic elements but also heavier sections with screeching guitar solos and thundering bass.

“You don’t look a thing like Jesus Christ to me, you look like self-righteous apathy”¦” mocks Zach sarcastically on Warlike, a dirty half-rapped rocker criticising the capitalist, nationalist and consumer-driven societies we’re all currently a part of whether we like it or not, asking how we became this way, and why we put money and possessions before other people.

One of the highlights and reoccurring themes of the record is the chorus of Sunlight On Her Face. It’s probably the most depressing of the various tracks, and details the story of a fifteen-year-old American girl trapped into a life of prostitution in a foreign country, praying and wondering if God will answer her. The chorus is catchy and stays with you, particularly as it’s repeated again in the final track, a sort of reprise of the song entitled Sunlight On Her Face (Cello).

Remedy Drive

Remedy Drive – The North Star

Remedy Drive

It’s not always an easy listen, but it’s not supposed to be. Although the music is often jaunty and happy sounding, with catchy choruses and beats, borrowing from different genres, even a touch of hip-hop with the occasional rapped lines (see You Got Fire, Warlike), but the lyrics are sometimes sad and dark, describing the pain and suffering of those trapped in sex trafficking. Despite the dreary subject matter, there is a definite message of hope, and that if we work together (and with God’s grace) we can overcome these situations and put a stop to what’s going on. The record is definitely designed to make people think, and it does that. Hopefully, it will encourage people to take action too – “give me action, not your words, one spark catches a fire, one voice becomes a choir”, as Zach sings in Brighter Than Apathy.

The North Star is also genuinely a really good pop/alternative album, but the best part about it”¦is the fact that it’s not just that. Remedy Drive has something to say. They’re delivering a positive message to the masses, and one that will surely make a difference to all that hear it. Keep up the good work, guys!