November 28, 2012

You are about to enjoy a Christmas pageant in your congregation. Congratulations, and be sure to plan accordingly.

Vox Veniae began as a church plant growing out of the Austin Chinese Church's ministry to Asian students. But its members felt isolated.

Vignola and Raniolo’s dual acoustic guitars blend like espresso and gelato. From the first notes of “It Might As Well Be Spring,” the players leap with acrobatic precision from strummed triplets to descending diminished scale runs. On mellower takes—such as a medley of “Misty,” “Young at Heart” and “What a Wonderful World”—Vignola and Ran­iolo recall the frisky interplay of Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli.

As Music City songwriters, Al Ander­son, Shawn Camp and Pat McLaughlin have penned hits for Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood and Don Williams. Joined by bassist Michael Rhodes and drummer Greg Morrow, they rock and swing on the cheeky, Creedence-style stomp “Give Your Love to Me.” From the smoldering Cajun shuffle “Mamarita” to the lumbering blues lament “Ball and Chain,” this disc is joyous—sometimes shambling, sometimes galloping, always wearing its ragged edges proudly, as though channeling The Band at its prime.

Offering the elements to the unbaptized can be seen as a development and not a revolution, but it is a significant change. Is it a good one?

Radney Foster pulls off a neat trick: a live re-recording of his first solo album from 20 years ago, Del Rio, Texas, 1959. In splendid voice and backed sublimely by 17 musicians, he treats us to sweet, West Texas nectar. From the funky electric piano of “Don’t Say Goodbye” to the acoustic guitar and Dobro jangle of “Nobody Wins,” Foster fashions a reboot that stands on its own merits.

Audrey Assad’s robust voice, which recalls Paula Cole, can climb from gentle to gutsy in the same song—as it does on the opener, “Blessed Are the Ones.” Heart is a sunny pop affair, and Assad expresses herself with unadorned simplicity. On the piano-driven title track, she asks, “Why should I be lonely? / Long for heaven and home / When Jesus is my portion / And a constant friend I know.” The closer, “New Song,” builds over five-plus minutes into a satisfying coda of longing and weariness turned to praise.

Sister Carol Bernice told me once that when she milks the cows she whispers "Yah-weh" as she alternates hands milking the teats.

This Ann Arbor–based quartet blends a wide variety of Americana styles. The title track is inspired by a friend who contemplated jumping from a high bridge—but turned back.

It’s been 14 years since Sixpence None the Richer released the hit single “Kiss Me.” Little did many listeners know that the song came from a group named for a C. S. Lewis analogy concerning God-bestowed gifts. Now Sixpence has a new album—its first in ten years.

Gangs excel at finding the lost, adopting them and sending them out. Therefore, gang youth can be recruited for apostolic ministry.