Now, normally I don’t make that big a deal of album release day. But when one of your favourite bands from your childhood releases their first album in two years, making it their sixteenth in fifteen years, it is worthy of some kind of celebration.
The band I’m talking about is one called Hillsong United. And yes, they are what you would call a Christian band.
Christian music is a topic that I’ve always been fascinated by, from its history to its relevance today in both sacred and secular culture. That’s a whole other blog post, but I do find it interesting the way in which non-religious people oftentimes react to the fact that I do listen to Christian music, on top of all the other genres I am obsessed with. It’s not really considered acceptable in any circles except the religious ones, and even though I do somewhat connect with religion, for some reason people seem to think that I only listen to its music in church, and never outside it. This is never true. I listen to Christian music the same way I listen to secular music. I’ll have Bethany Dillon and The Weeknd on the same playlist. Music is music and if I like it, I’ll listen to it, regardless of its genre, how out of culture it is or how badly written it may be (as ashamed as I am to say that).
I remember one time during a university orientation where we were asked to tell the other people in the group what our favourite type of music was. At this time, I was really into Broadway and Underoath, so I told them that my favourite music could be found somewhere between musical theatre and Christian hardcore. I never talked to any of those people again.
Let me just say that Christian music for me is defined not by any kind of band that sings songs with Christ-related lyrics, but that they are specifically bands that cater to the Christian market. Many bands that are spiritual in their songs would prefer to not be called Christian bands, which is a valid choice and why I only really use the term for those who write music first and foremost for that specific niche of an audience. It’s more a culture than it is a genre, as within it, Christian music does span every music genre in the spectrum from gospel to punk to metal.
Anyway, like I said, the discussion of all the technicalities of Christian music belongs in a different post entirely on its own. Hillsong United fall into the worship sector, which I like to simply define as music normally sung/performed as an entire congregation, music as prayer essentially. This makes sense, seeing as United grew out of the youth group at the very famous Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia. United was formed in 1998 as a sister band of sorts to the already established Hillsong Music/Live, which had released its first album ten years beforehand. Today, Hillsong musicians write music and perform for both bands, and there isn’t a clear cut division between United and Live, save for the separate albums that they put out. United’s music are generally more upbeat and experimental, while Live’s are more contemporary and traditional, but both bands do still perform each other’s music under their respective names. Their worship leaders span across Hillsong churches in Sydney, London, New York City, Kiev, Cape Town, Moscow and Stockholm. On top of that, they have released translations of their music in Ukrainian as well as Spanish. In the secular world, they may be considered unknowns, but once you enter any Christian church, they’re everywhere. I was in church yesterday and Dylan Thomas’ name was splashed across the screen. Who is he? EXACTLY.
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| This is Dylan Thomas. |
Many consider them overrated and robotic. They are often criticized for churning out the same music over and over again, and in the same vein, they are criticized for having an identity crisis, of never sticking with one genre and style and being inconsistent in their songwriting. Both of these criticisms are perfectly valid in some capacity. Though they have a talent for churning out some really catchy melodies, their lyrics sometimes tend to fall into cliché territory, making their songs seem vapid. However, I think this is the exact formula that has made their music so successful and marketable -- it sounds good and it’s general and non-threatening enough that anyone could relate to them, no matter where you are in your spiritual life.
Think Taylor Swift only in this case it’s a bunch of guys and girls singing about God instead of Tim McGraw (I actually kind of am secretly in love with that Tim McGraw song, by the way).
Since releasing studio albums on top of live albums, I feel that United have been able to expand their repertoire, exploring different techniques and styles as well as different themes. Their music is still very mainstream and accessible, but there is a new sophistication and maturity to the songwriting, as if writing and recording in studio first allows room for creativity and experimentation. It is interesting because United are definitely first and foremost a live band, and their songs are only really as good as the way they perform them. I saw them for the first time ten years ago, and then again a year after that. The quality of their live performances is definitely one of if not the best I have ever seen, right down to vocal quality, instrumentation and live arrangement. There is an energy to them that not many musicians can pull off, and the crowd soaks it up like it’s the last good life experience they will ever have. If you have yet to see them live, I’d really suggest picking up their Miami concert DVD that they filmed last year. It’s a full two and a half hour concert themed after their last studio album, Aftermath, and it feels like one entire song from beginning to end.
Despite the fact that many people, even in Christian circles, view them as the “uncool” band to like, I really do think that they are talented musicians who know how to reach their audience. They keep spiritual life and experience at the centre of their songs, without seeming pretentious or over the top. Simply put, they write and perform love songs, something that has made them perhaps the most successful worship band of all time.
Though they have been releasing live albums for over a decade now, some of which are the best-selling worship albums of all time, United didn’t actually enter the studio until 2006 with All of the Above, which some criticized for sounding too professional and lacking the aesthetic feel of a live recording. On the other hand, others were calling it a fun album that took worship songs beyond their genre without necessarily changing the essence of them. Their second studio album, Aftermath, praised by some for its slightly risqué songwriting choices and put down by others for not sounding enough like a Christian album, was released in 2011, which was around the same time they started working on Zion. From what I’ve heard of their third studio album, it’s an admirable step up from what we normally see of them. They’re experimenting with synths and soaring melodies that are sometimes reminiscent of Coldplay. The imagery of some of the lyrics is very beautiful and poetic, and the effective use of repetition and instrumental breaks make the songs highly emotional and reflective.
In anticipation for the release of Zion, I thought I’d do something I’ve never done before, which is rank the best Hillsong United songs. This was a highly difficult thing to do as there are hundreds of them, not counting the ones written as Hillsong Live. To compress the experience that is this band into a 20-song list was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do since my Calculus 12 exam, but here it is, in no particular order because I don't hate myself enough to go through that kind of torture:
- All I Need Is You (written by Marty Sampson) // LOOK TO YOU
- Take Heart (written by Joel Houston) // AFTERMATH
- Never Let Me Go (written by Joel Houston) // ALL OF THE ABOVE
- Desert Song (written by Brooke Fraser) // ACROSS THE EARTH: TEAR DOWN THE WALLS
- Till I See You (written by Joel Houston, Jad Gillies) // LOOK TO YOU
- Aftermath (written by Joel Houston) // AFTERMATH
- Take All Of Me (written by Marty Sampson) // MORE THAN LIFE
- King Of All Days (written by Dylan Thomas) // ACROSS THE EARTH: TEAR DOWN THE WALLS
- All... (written by Joel Houston) // TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH
- Bones (written by Jill McCloghry, Joel Houston) // AFTERMATH
- From The Inside Out (written by Joel Houston) // UNITED WE STAND
- Light (written by Marty Sampson) // MORE THAN LIFE
- Free (written by Marty Sampson) // TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH
- Like An Avalanche (written by Dylan Thomas, Joel Houston) // AFTERMATH
- Always (written by Mia Fieldes) // MORE THAN LIFE
- Deeper (written by Marty Sampson) // LOOK TO YOU
- Came To The Rescue (written by Marty Sampson, Dylan Thomas, Joel Davies) // UNITED WE STAND
- Break Free (written by Joel Houston, Matt Crocker, Scott Ligertwood) // ALL OF THE ABOVE
- Freedom Is Here (written by Reuben Morgan, Scott Ligertwood) // ACROSS THE EARTH: TEAR DOWN THE WALLS
- The Reason I Live (written by Marty Sampson) // BEST FRIEND
To those getting the album tomorrow, enjoy! I can't speak for everyone but it was definitely worth the two year wait.
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