Rend Collective, a 15-person Christian band from Bangor Ireland just released their newest album, titled Good News. Their unique sound defies what normally falls into the Christian genre. This album definitely fits into their band’s roots.: “It developed from a group of people trying to do Church for people who didn’t like Church or didn’t like Christians.”
Good News has a whimsical sound to their tracks, and is reminiscent of Mumford and Sons with that folksy sound and the almost bluesy voice of the lead singer. The website bio explains that they recorded the album around a beach bonfire. The quality of sound is that of a studio recorded album, but the songs have a feeling of a lively get together. Their website also boasts of a “controlled chaos and infectious wildness” of their performances. Each track has that feel as you can feel the joy in each track and want to dance along with it.
In their first track, “Life is Beautiful,” it opens with an orchestral sound of instruments tuning. It has a nice segue into the album as each song features a different instrument.
In “I will be Undignified,” it opens with their string instruments of a fiddle and banjo. This track has a very Mumford & Sons feel to it. It has a fun dance rhythm to it, but slows down and simplifies with the instruments on the first chorus, making the lyrics really drive home their meaning. “I will be undignified. I will praise the Lord my God with all my mind. And I will leave my pride behind, and I will praise the Lord my God with all my life.”
“Rescuer” was their big single of 2017, playing throughout churches and radio stations. In comparison to the first tracks, it’s one of their “slower” songs, but it still has a lively tempo and a catchy line “He’s our rescuer. We are free from sin forever more. “ It’s a nice transition piece to the next 3 songs that have a mellow tempo.
“True North” is another fun song as it opens with a ukulele and catchy hook “You are my True North.”
“Weep with Me” is another mellow song, but one of my favorites. Its featured instrument is an acoustic guitar, and only 2 voices throughout that has a beautiful harmony. The joining piano and violin are so soft, but compliment each other so well, they’re nearly undetectable. The reprise features just the violin in a beautiful melody. It almost makes it an entirely different song as it has a sombre feel to it.
As their website touts “This isn’t the science of modern worship or the formula of industry: this is The Art of Celebration.” This album has a celebratory feel as the vibe of a beach bonfire is translated into the music. The arrangement of the tracks has a great ebb and flow of fast and slow songs. This is a great album to have playing in the background with the folksy sound and the beautiful instrumentation. And as a Christian album, it’s definitely very SFW.
