Reviewed by Jonathan Langley

In the late '90s you could have been forgiven for thinking every Christian rock band played ska. That has (sadly for some) changed. Today, it seems, it is the turn of screamo, that ubiquitous hybrid of emo and hardcore, to breed a million Christian bands from its fertile soil. From the first arpeggiated chords and opening throaty screams of 'Waking Giants' you know what Life In Your Way are all about. Screaming and clean vocal cycles play out over blends of distorted rhythm and liquid lead guitar as songs about struggling faith, loss and grace unfold with a mixture of naïve simplicity and poetic obscurity. Life In Your Way thankfully avoid the whiney tone of many of their contemporaries and make good use of spoken word passages and anthemic semi-choral chants on this immaculately produced album. Moments of sublime beauty (a refrain of: "I will never leave you" on "Help! The Arm Of The Almighty"; the refreshingly empathetic sentiment of Judas) and epic crescendos worthy of any bombastic stadium rockers make this worthy of a space on the shelf next to Underoath despite a lack of comparable hooks. Also, look out for a delay-heavy rendition of "Be Thou My Vision" hidden in one of the tracks.

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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