Hillsong

In case you haven’t noticed yet, Hillsong has become quite the worship music franchise. I’ll bet it’s difficult for many congregations to go a single week without singing at least one Hillsong-related tune on Sunday morning. Furthermore, it’s nearly impossible to flip around the dial and miss a TV commercial for one of the many worship compilations that include “Shout to the Lord” on it. “Shout to the Lord” is, of course, Darlene Zschech’s signature song, and Zschech is also the most recognizable member of Hillsong. But Zschech receives relatively little camera time during this latest release. Instead, solo singing spots are spread among Joel Houston, Brooke Fraser, Mike Guglielmucci, and others. But because Zschech is oftentimes a power ballad singer, her somewhat conspicuous absence leads to a slightly more rocking effort. And this is particularly good news for the kids.

The inset for this latest DVD quotes Isaiah 42:10, which reads: “Sing to the Lord a new song. His praise is from the ends of the earth.” And it makes you wonder how these musician/ministers consistently come up with ‘new song’ after ‘new song’. But, indeed, this live DVD contains 14 fresh praises. The disc opens with Houston’s “Your Name High”, and the energy level mostly remains high — like God’s lifted name — from start to finish. High powered musicality is matched with rock concert-like lighting, which also gives this disc wonderful visual appeal as well.

Brooke Fraser is quickly becoming the new female face of Hillsong, and she’s represented twice during this work. Her first appearance is with “Desert Song”, which is a mid-tempo rocker with a guitar line that wouldn’t be all that out of place on U2’s “Joshua Tree” album. Her other contribution, “You’ll Come”, teaches Godly patience as Fraser sings, “I have resolved to wait upon the Lord.” Fraser’s musical backing for this latter inclusion includes surging electric guitar and steady drums. “As surely as the sun will rise you’ll come to us,” she assures during the song’s chorus.

The best song on this latest Hillsong edition is perhaps its simplest one. “You Are Here (The Same Power)” includes these uncomplicated, yet comforting words: “The same power that conquered the grave / Lives in me.” Anyone who has seriously read the book of Acts will know exactly what this lyric means. It’s easy to forget that the power of the Bible is also available for Christians today, and this song offers a refreshing reminder of what great things the Holy Spirit can do through us.

All of these songs are brand new, by the way, unless you’re a member of the Hillsong congregation. The only familiar song sung is “Turn Your Eyes upon Jesus”, which is performed briefly toward the concert’s end. But I have a feeling some of these works will become popular church songs before long. It’s hard to predict worship music success, but many of these tracks have memorable hooks, and hooks are – after all — the primary predictors for pop song hit-dom. It may be blasphemy for some to analyze praise music like you would judge lightweight pop music, but we can only use the tools at hand. And because these songs have melodies that stick and lyrics that speak to the heart, they have great modern day hymnal potential.

Tagged as: Hillsong, This is Our God

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