Shaun Groves

Item: White Flag
Author: Jonathan Avants

White Flag

(2005)

Reviewed by Jonathan Avants

Discogs Apple Music TIDAL Spotify

Label Rocketown RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2005

ccm worship

I've found myself rooting for Shaun's third release; I've kept up with CMCentral's column written by Shaun over the previous weeks, giving readers a chance to see what it was like to go through the writing and record creation process. And with White Flag only a few weeks away from dropping, is the final product a success?

Shaun makes an effort on this recording to combine a rock/alt edge with worshipful lyrics and pop melodies, using the Beatitudes as a basic theme to string everything together. Though many of the lyrical themes are covered in an effective way--such as "What's Wrong With This World," which almost brilliantly switches the usual "the world needs to be saved" theme to "I'm what needs to be saved"--I find myself disappointedly unimpressed by the melodies throughout the recording. Many of the louder tracks exude the rock grittiness that is sure to please on a basic level but don't reveal too much depth over repeated listening. The slower songs are a tad more effective, with some almost genuinely beautiful musical moments within them, even if they do sound a bit forced lyrically in other places (see "Heaven Hang On").

I don't think this guy is without talent; just listen to the hooks in "Amen" or how close he gets to crafting stunningly beautiful moments in "Sad Song" and "Narrow." The Beatitudes concept also adds a level of creativity and depth to White Flag that many Christian artists simply never try to achieve. I don't want to take for granted the effort Shaun has obviously made on this disc as is made obvious by those points. I firmly believe White Flag is a genuine step in the right direction, but his songwriting and overall melodies need a little more work to make them stand out. It isn't a failure, but I can't give White Flag an honest recommendation, either.

2.5 tocks