Reviewed by Ewan Jones

Having supported Superhero and Yfriday and toured extensively throughout the UK and also in the USA, Scottish songsmith McKinlay is on a roll and is one of the more promising UK Christian artists around at the moment. 'This Is New' is a step away from the standard worship songwriting of his previous releases and instead it focusses on more personal songs. It's a mix of cheery country folk, slow ballads and the odd rock number. The highlights on repeated listens are opener "The Way I'm Feeling", the challenging "Leave Right Now" and the upbeat "Ride The Storm". "Badge Of Gold" is a song for a Godly mother and is unusual in its frankness. For me, the weakest song is "Fly Away" which, while honest in its depiction of pain and discouragement, is cliched (lyrics are of the "I'm sinking/I can't swim/I wanna fly away" variety) and is not up to the standard of the rest of the songs on this CD. On the plus side, McKinlay's voice is great, he's supported by multitasking musician Jamie Duffin, the production is excellent for an independent release and the cover art design by Michael Clayton is fantastic. McKinlay as a songwriter and performer has the potential to be a standout name in the UK Christian scene; think of him as a Scottish Bebo Norman and you won't be far off the tone of the tunes on offer here.

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.