Jaci Velasquez - Beauty Has Grace

Reviewed by Paul Obrey

Hard to categorise this one, and "rock" was the closest I could get. After 10 years in the music business, with her blend of Latin pop music in English and Spanish, Jaci has taken a new direction on her latest recording. Inspired by listening to the folk/pop of Leona Naess and Shea Seger, Jaci came over to London and asked Martin Terefe (Naess, Seger, Coldplay, Ron Sexsmith) to produce this album for her. Both vocally and musically it is very similar to Natalie Imbruglia, which isn't a bad thing. The album is more raw and acoustic than her usual contributions. "I'm Not Looking Down" is a great lively pop song, but by far the best track is "Lay it Down", a bare piano-driven ballad (Chris Eaton takes some of the credit for this) which displays the quality of Velasquez' voice. Lyrically the album portrays a mixture of the difficulties of life and the strength of God in our lives. Jaci has taken a gamble in this recording, which should pay off over here. Whether it is as successful in the States remains to be seen.