Review: Remedy

They sample Super Mario Brothers sound effects (see below), they encouraging the people who come to their concerts to bring towels and socks to be distributed by homeless charities, they record in a studio called The Barn Behind Crowder’s House… David Crowder Band are a bit out of the ordinary. And praise God that they are, for with their fearless and wide-eyed creativity they have followed 2005’s A Collision with another album that excites and inspires, showing that there’s more to originality in Christian songwriting than finding new words to rhyme with Jesus.

David Crowder Band are perhaps best known in the UK for their contributions to the excellent Passion worship albums, but that only gives a taste of what they are about musically. Songs can be led by guitar, piano, or even samples – experimentation that would seem trite if it were not so consistently successful. Intricate loops or just banging a drum really hard and really loud – the Band use whatever they think will work, and usually it does. Giving musical reference points is difficult, such are their idiosyncrasies. Rather like the secular Arcade Fire, there is a wildness and eccentricity that many people wouldn’t go to on their own but realise its value upon discovering it through others. The marked difference of course, is the hope that this band possess. Theirs is orthodox truth expressed unorthodoxly.

Remedy is not a typical Christian worship album, it serves a different and vital purpose. It doesn’t have the immediacy of a live album, and that is part of its strength. It pauses and ponders (“I don’t know what to do with a love like that. / And I don’t know how to be a love like that”), wonders and worships. It may not have all the answers but it will encourage those with questions, showing that they’re not alone and that the journey is precious, enthralling, and satisfying.

A man once said, “Since we are made in the image of the Creator of all that exists, and because we know this, Christians ought to be the most creative artists working on the face of the planet. To make this happen, we need teachers who can model a kind of fearless willingness to use their God-given gifts to inspire and amaze others, all the while asking for power and guidance from God.” David Crowder Band do exactly this.

A version of this review originally appeared in Youthwork magazine.