Reviewed by Matthew Cordle

Chris Carrabba, aka Dashboard Confessional, has won some considerable acclaim in some circles since leaving Christian band Further Seems Forever, and this is his most recent collection of 12 songs. This is slightly hard to pigeonhole in terms of style, a kind of acoustic punk pop rock - all guitars are acoustic and many tracks also feature no drums, and this creates a dichotomy as the ensuing clean acoustic style belies the undercurrent of anger and resentment that underpins most of the lyrics. Musically it is well recorded and produced, with particularly lovely sounding guitars, but Chris' whining voice is an acquired taste. However, my main problem with the CD is that there is not a shred of Christian sentiment, ethics or emotion, let alone theology, and this cannot be classed as music that is honouring to God. The overwhelming emotion is negative: with lyrics such as "I need your skin to ruin me" and "I will never tell a tortured soul they're burning by my side" as well as repeated use of knife-stabbing metaphors and seeming references to self-destructive relational behaviour I cannot recommend this at all.

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.

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