The Music of 2007

It's been a tough year for me to really pontificate on the musical offerings I've been moved by. For one, even fewer of my bands have been cranking out new material. Secondly, it's been busy on the professional front. Good problem to have, but here's the music I can claim to have enjoyed this year:

» Derek Webb: The Ringing Bell
Christian artist and agent provocateur, Webb's stuff is always worth rushing to get on opening day. I don't claim to have a greater appreciation for this than I do for "Mockingbird," but it still warrants heavy listening and serious consideration.

» Carrie Underwood: Carnival Ride
My latest addition - and one I've neglected to review for some odd reason. In some ways, the production is more generous to Carrie's talent as a singer, but the song selection doesn't quite have the feel that I liked in the first album. She'll have a long enough career ahead of her, though. I just hate the idea that I might have to wait for Carrie Underwood to really mature before I can appreciate her music more. If nothing else, it's worth appreciating on talent alone and this disc showcases that better in my opinion.

» The Donnas: Bitchin'
Great to see the gals return to their earlier form. The music is enough to make your mom or dad cringe, so I don't recommend it as a matter of lifestyle enhancement. But it's worth appreciating how much better the band has gotten musically since their indie days. Back then, they were lumped in as a punk band despite effectively playing 80s hard rock. This album is a better showcase of what I think they initially tried to be.

» Poison: Poison'd
A surprising rebound by an 80s band. It's a solid concept - don't write anything new, but play some cover tunes as only your band can. I think they put an interesting stamp on David Bowie and The Cars, personally. It's cheap entertainment, but it's still fun.

» Joe Satriani: Surfing w. the Alien (Reissue)
Not really a new release, but there's some new material in this one (video) and it warrants an appreciation given that Satriani has lasted this long as a viable touring act in an unforgiving genre of instrumental music. Technically, for me, it was "Not of This Earth" that altered my world. "Surfing with the Alien" merely convinced me that there was nothing I had to say (potentially) with a guitar that this guy wasn't already saying (really). Listening through it again, I'm probably more astounded now about how an album can have such an impact in a post-Van Halen era.

» Lakewood Church: Free to Worship
» Israel & New Breed: A Deeper Level
New material from folks I get to listen to on a regular basis at church. Both had the advantage that we got to sample the material song-by-song well before they were released. Sure, I'm playing booster here. But they're both solid releases that warrant some attention.

» Jacque DeShetler: Signal
» Josh Myers: Soul Serenade Sessions
Two indie releases from Christian artists. The first contains a few Lakewood-related musicians (and producer) helping out in the background. Great if you need a fix of female vocals with some soul. Josh Myers' CD is an instrumental that definitely hits me right where I need to be hit. In some ways, it's a throwback to the shredfests of the 80s, but it includes a bit of diversity that might help some who prefer a more modernized concept. Still, I see myself spinning this disc the longest of the bunch this year.

» Everlife: Everlife
I should probably hide this tidbit, but I really believe this is the most underrated release on the list. Everlife is , for better or worse, lumped in with the Disney girlband genre ... Hannah Montana among them. But the music here is solid and hopefully leads to a long career of making music for the kids in the band. hopefully, that includes remaining something more than the nominally Christian band they tend to be considered. Musically, they're not quite where The Donnas are right now - and certainly not as heavy. But they start off better and they're only barely able to vote.

Typically, at the end of the year, I'm a bit loathe to recap new music over the year for fear that I've not taken in enough. This isn't by any means as long a list as I might have had a few decades ago, but it's substantively better than I thought it'd be before writing this post out. And to think I left a new release by Tiffany and an early demo recording from Stryper off the list. Both were enjoyable for one reason or another, but I can't claim to have kept them on my heavy rotation list for long. Tiff's new stuff isn't really my cup of tea and Stryper's old stuff is a tad too dated to get into all over again. The listings you see above were enough to accentuate my already odd playlist while enjoying it all.