Review: "Saviour King" by Hillsong

As promised, this is my first review of new Worship albums. This is my first "public" attempt at putting my thoughts down for others to read. I decided to start with this particular album because it has single-handedly changed my worship life. I literally listen to this album everyday! I have it on my iPhone and listen to it when I'm showering or while going to sleep at night. I love worship and I think this album exemplifies where "corporate" worship is going in the future.

As I have aforementioned, this album is called "Saviour King," and it is the newest release from the worship team at Hillsong Church in Sydney Australia. This is the same team that brought us such great songs as "Shout to the Lord" and "Mighty to Save." I personally have liked every album they have put out, but I feel that this is definitely the best album they have made to date.

One thing that I would really like to note about this album, and other Hillsong albums for that matter, is that the songs on the album are not written by one person, but by a group of very talented songwriters from the church. Some of the writers are worship leaders, but some of them are not. Some of the songs are written by drummers, bass players, or friends, and they are so powerful that the church, as large as it is, has been changed by their writing and relationship with God that is evident through their lyrics. While all of the songs are great, I would like to review a few my favorites:

"Here in My Life" - This is my favorite song on the album. I really like songs that tell a story. This song talks about struggling to understand God's power and how God finds us in even the toughest circumstances. The chorus is very powerful. It says, "You are my freedom, Jesus, You're the reason, I'm kneeling again at your throne. Where would I be without you here in my life." Musically speaking this is more of a power ballad with a great chord structure and excellent dynamics. Melodically speaking, it is a very easy song to learn and should definitely be sung at churches across the world.

"Hosanna" - This song is written by Brooke Fraser. She is a very talented song writer. She is originally from New Zealand and moved to Sydney after signing a record contract with Sony Music Entertainment New Zealand. Her newest release in 2006 called "Albertine" is fantastic, but I prefer her worship writing to her solo project. For this particular tune, the chorus lyrics are taken from a song that was written in the early 90's called "Hosanna in the Highest." While the melody has been reworked, the message is still the same. The verse lyrics talk about how a new generation is rising up within the church and is growing stronger in God and really understanding what Jesus did for us on the cross. It talked about how Jesus' blood washed away our sins and how we want to declare that to the world! This is song is a ballad, but it does have a great steady rockin' vibe to it. It is packed with tons of energy. In addition to that I am a huge fan of Brooke's voice and I really enjoy hearing her sing. She has sung on a few worship leader's albums. She sang with Tim Hughes on a song called "Clinging to the Cross" from his recent "Holding Nothing Back" album. This is another song and album you should check out if you have a chance. You should definitely keep and ear out for this 24 year old New Zealander. She is definitely going to make a huge impact in the "Post-Modern/Next Generation" worship scene.

"In the Mystery" - This is a great driving song written by Joel Houston, who is the son of Brian Houston the lead pastor of Hillsong. The cool thing about Joel is that he doesn't look like your typical "worship leader." He's got kind of a scruffy look to him. He has long hair and a few tattoos on his arms. Looks can be deceiving. When it comes to song writing and delivery, he is one of the best. Now I have to admit, this is a great song but it took a while to grow on me. I really didn't like this at first, but now it is one of my favorites that I would love to do, along with "Here in My Life," at my church. This song talks about declaring the power of God's name, praising God, calling out to Him and running to Him. The chorus really hits on God displaying His love for us and how we are alive in the mystery of this thing called God's love. It's weird how we don't always understand how God can love us as much as he does, but none the less the God of the universe, Creator of all things, would send His Son down to earth and live among us just to die for us. That is truly a mystery to me, and I feel that this song definitely tells our generation about this part of our history as a church.

All in all, this album rocks. I prefer the more thoughtful worship tunes, but there are tons of rockers on this album. Overall the level of musicianship on this album is outstanding and awe inspiring. There are about 4 or 5 different leaders that all deliver spectacular vocals and really bring you into worship. I also have the DVD of this particular worship concert and I have to tell you, you can see the spirit of God in the place just by watching the DVD. Imagine a stadium filled with 30,000 people praising God with everything that have. The first time I watched it, I had chills from the second song through the end of the concert. This is an inspiring bunch of people that are changing the world one album at a time.

Coming up next week, I will be reviewing Steve Fee's newest release "We Shine." Stay tuned for that...