Reviewed by Tim Holden

Caribbean native Gardner has been pumping out gospel reggae music for over 10 years. 'Nascent' bursts forth with a sound that's an artful blend of pop, reggae, dancehall, hip-hop, gospel and soca. There is gusto and rich harmonies galore as well as rather heavy use of autotune - for effect rather than necessity but it does seriously colour the feel of the music and the wonderful use of rhythm and bass. With guest vocals from Da' T.R.U.T.H ("God So Big"), DJ Nicolas ("Touch Him"), Sean Simmonds ("We Know"), Positive ("Catch Me"), Prodigal Son ("Going Hard") and Akeisha Lewis ("I'm Still Breathing") there is loads of variety. With lyrics moving from praise and worship through to straight teaching there is something for every occasion in the 18 tracks here. And the call for sensible use of social media ("Twitter") is particularly relevant. Sherwin has not lost his touch over the years and this is a master class of how to do urban music with God front and centre.

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