Reviewed by Tony Cummings

One of the surprise CCM smashes of 2000 was the self-titled debut by ZOEgirl (in fact it was the most successful debut in Sparrow Records' 25 year history, selling over 300,000). Cynics would say they were slickly marketed at a time when the American Church was crying out for a sanctified version of Britney, et al. But that rather misses the point that just about all teen pop is a stylised musical confection with its musical elements - fulsome harmonies, switched leads, hummable hooks and bright, bubbly production put to songs that merge pop, R&B and dance elements. Here, Chrissy Conway, Kristin Swinford and Alisa Girard make considerable improvement on their debut thanks to some excellent production from Tedd T and catchy songs, some co-written by the girls themselves. Lyrics include biblical takes on dating, self image and personal evangelism while Chrissy Conway's exploration on "Forever 17" of a devastating event in her hometown - the death of a teenager at the hands of a drunk driver - is a moving reflection on the fragility of life. Similarly, Kristin Swinford's "Plain" speaks with empathy to girls brought down by the magazine-model standards of beauty. The R&B bass line on "Nick Of Time" and the Euro dance-tinged "Even If" will both get the feet moving while the pop dance bubbler "Ordinary Day" will sure be a hit on Cross Rhythms radio. Maybe a couple too many ballads but apart from that this is biblical teen pop of high quality.

REAL LIFE
Spotlight
ZOEgirl were quizzed about their ministry and songs.

Tell us a bit about the song "Plain".
(Chrissy) It talks about how special girls bothered by their looks are and how important they are to God. We played a concert where we'd only gotten through the first line when we looked out and saw girls all over with tears running down their faces. That was a turning point for us and we knew this issue had to be addressed.

(Alisa) It's such a sad thing when a girl goes about destroying her body in order to try and make it look perfect. We've all done stupid things to make sure we look how we think we're supposed to look. We have a song on the end of the album called "The Truth". It talks about how our life is so worth the price Jesus paid for us. When I look into the eyes of some of these kids, I see something so worthwhile. I see a person who was called by God to be something. I've always loved makeup and I would have never gone a day without wearing it. But the Lord really worked in my heart this year to show me that I don't always have to wear makeup to be beautiful. I realised I had overcome a big obstacle when I wasn't intimidated to go outside or to the store without makeup on. And now I don't care, because you know what? God made this face.

How have things changed since ZOEgirl started?
(Alisa) We've gotten to know each other so much better and our group has really found its identity. We found that identity by looking into the eyes of teenager after teenager and hearing about what they were relating to and what they were struggling with. Our songs have been greatly inspired by the people we've met.

Are you comfortable with having become teenage evangelical role models?
(Chrissy) Anyone who is put in the spotlight is being looked up to by somebody. Somebody's buying their albums, somebody's putting their posters on the wall, somebody's buying their outfits. I think that comes with the territory and we are willing to take that on. Alisa's father always tells us, "If you girls don't go out there and be that role model, somebody else will." And we don't know who that somebody else is, or what they're going to be teaching. So we definitely feel a big calling to be those leaders to these kids.

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