Reviewed by Paul Kerslake

This is the debut release from a West Midlands-based trio you may well have read about in Cross Rhythms. This is a delicate gem of an album, Rory Thompson's stunning, soaring voice ably supported by his wife, Sarah, on vocals and Paul 'Meds' Meadow on bass. The 11 songs here have genuine crossover appeal, as already evidenced by being picked up by Radio 2. As Rory said, "Because of the kind of venues we play most of the people who listen to our music are typically non-Christians. What we wanted to do was strike a balance between being about faith and about having a relationship with God in a kind of setting where people who aren't Christians wouldn't feel turned off by the music." The title track is a gentle acoustic number with some exquisite guitar playing, "Talk To Me" is a rousing, almost bluegrass song. "Tonight", the opening single from the album, is an urgent, heartfelt call to step back from life and to see what you're really living for. All the tracks on this album manage to stay gentle and primarily acoustic driven while also remaining interesting and memorable, helped in no small part by the gifted songwriting and musicianship. Supporting the core trio are keyboard maestro Mark Edwards and guitarist Dan Wheeler (who also takes the producer's chair); the project was mixed by Grammy Award winning Kipper of Sting fame. This is an exceptional, hotly anticipated debut that will appeal to music lovers across the board and deserves to do well in both the Christian and mainstream marketplace.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.