Worship music is an ever-growing trend in Christian music. Many artists and almost all record labels are jumping on to the worship bandwagon. Some of the modern worship music is good, some of it is bad. To be honest with you, though, I personally feel that there is more bad than good. A lot of contemporary praise and worship music is poorly produced, and the same songs are used over and over again. Even the lyrics on some songs are too shallow to really be taken too seriously.
Exodus is a various artist compilation disc that features some of the best worship music that has come out of the Christian music scene in some time. Almost every song is a winner, and all of the songs point heavenward. The line-up features quite a few of Christian music's biggest names, and the producer, Michael W. Smith, did a great job of giving all of the attention and glory to God instead of the artists featured on the album.
The first track is mostly instrumental, with a choir singing a few words toward the end of the song. The instrumentation is excellent, and the song really puts you in worship mode, although I must admit that the song, called "Exodus", may cause you to use the skip button sometimes.
The second song is an acoustic song performed by Christian super group dc Talk. "My Will" is one of the group's best songs to date, as the lyrics and vocals are both done well. "Needful Hands" is another acoustic song, this one done by Jars of Clay. Dan Haseltine's vocals are not as good as on some of the group's newer material, but the song is an album high point nonetheless. Other top picks include Cindy Morgan's "Make Us One" and Smith's cover of Rich Mullins' "I See You".
The most famous song on Exodus is, no doubt, Third Day's rocking performance of "Agnus Dei". Third Day's instrumentation and Mac Powell's rich vocals are wonderful, but the lyrics to the song are too unimaginative and shallow for my liking, and despite the fact that this song has become a popular choice for many churches, I do not think that "Agnus Dei" is really that great of a worship song.
Packed with both some weak and some strong songs, Exodus is a good worship record, all in all. Rock fans might still prefer to worship with Delirious?'s Glo or Third Day's Offerings, but people who just want some quiet praise music may find Exodus to be a great addition to their CD collection.
Josh's Score: 3.5/5
Other coverage for this album
The Lighthouse Unsorted 1998Reviewed by Bert GanglMichael W. Smith has nearly always included either classic hymns or self-penned praise standards such as "Great Is The Lord" and "How Majestic Is Your Name" on his own albums. That and the fact that, as of late, he has been filling in as worship leader for Billy Graham's evangelical crusades, makes Smith's new Exodus project seem a fitting and logical next step. The new album, a 12-song project…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Dave LandselI think most modern "praise and worship" music is a tacky American cultural thing. I was raised a snob, you see, in the highest of high church environments. Ours was not a church where one waved one's hands in the air during Sunday Service, singing "Our God Reigns," and it was our business as youngsters to scoff at those that did so. I'm over that, mostly. I must admit, however, (with the…Similar sounding releases
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