Reviewed by Chris Tozer

Any good encyclopaedia of Christian rock music (not that such things exist) will tell you that a few years back John Schlitt replaced Greg X Voltz as lead singer of never ending Petra. Although still very much the band's trontman, early last year he launched a debut solo album 'Shake' upon an unsuspecting public. By all accounts the public remained unsuspecting as 'Shake' barely caused a ripple in the CCM pond. So, what of this, his second attempt? Well, don't be fooled by his hair style on the jover but turn instead to the lyric sheet, complete with Bible references. The words give the game away, personal, poetic and original they are not. Message friendly in true Petra fashion, the songs cover the well worked themes - God's big, friendly and all knowing; the Devil's bad; discipleship is costly and we all need a helping hand. Naturally, songs about Clinton, the poor and AIDS aren't likely to gain radio airplay across the Atlantic. The music is very much in the traditional state of the art rock vein of a band soon to celebrate their silver anniversary. Ironically, two surprise songs stand out. The acoustic "We Worship You" and the country flavoured "There Is Someone" show another dimension worthy of commendation. Petra fans will love it all. Everyone else can move on to the next review.

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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