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ALBUM REVIEW |
Wakeup Sleeper:
The Turning (EP)
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| Artwork/Design: 7 |
| Production: 8 |
| Continuity: 7 |
| Sound levels: 7 |
| Songwriting: 7 |
| Overall Rating: 7 |
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| Website: Wakeup Sleeper |
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James Chester’s interest in music took root around the same time most youngsters first discover FM radio (or, in the case of the present day, get their first iPod). Unlike many of his junior high-aged peers, though, who were busy memorizing the words to the songs on the Billboard Top 20 pop and rock charts, Chester was hard at work investigating the artists who made their home within the Christian praise and worship camp. Before long, the young Philadelphian was leading worship at venues ranging from his college and home church to local youth-oriented retreats and rallies. By 2006, he had recruited guitarist Aaron Gotwalt, bassist Frank Lukesh and drummer Adam Ryan to record the full-length album, Increase the Decrease, which was released under the James Chester Band moniker.
The latest outing from Chester & Co. comes on the heels of a group name change to Wakeup Sleeper in August of 2007 and a newly-structured lineup, which now features Phil Marsalona (guitars), Evan Smith (bass) and Jesse Lous (drums). The opening track of the Turning EP, “Let Everything,” serves up an appealing slice of pop-friendly modern worship, a la Sonicflood and the Hillsong United releases, laces it with the energetic, wall-of-sound aesthetic favored by groups like Delirious, and embosses the result with U2’s anthemic, arena-friendly pop/rock inclinations for good measure. The verses are peppered with a handsome salvo of harmonics – which, themselves, recall the Edge’s own work on the first few U2 albums – while the transition between the restrained verses and all-out choruses serves to keep the proceedings interesting. On the lyrical front, the highly parallel wording (All my life/ All to you/ All my strength/ All for you) functions surprisingly well to heighten the song’s underlying rhythmic content.
The slightly more restrained middle cut, “Speak to Me,” is carried agreeably along by an attractive, pseudo-Beatlesque melody and the occasional well-placed falsetto vocal. The pleading chorus (We are a generation/ Desperately waiting for you/ Come/ Come/ Come/ Oh, God) is both honest and heart-rending, making its point, like “Let Everything,” by the skillful use of repetition. Equally impressive is the language of the final verse (Make us a people/ Moved by truth/ Give us a heart/ That loves like you do), which is both perceptive and convicting. |
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| The EP-closing “Glory” begins with a swirling, semi-ambient intro similar to that of U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name,” before settling into to a bracing, all-out sonic barrage that calls to mind the chorus of Sanctus Real’s equally engaging chart-topping single, “I’m Not Alright.” The track’s droning, almost dissonant, melody line casts an alluring net over the listener, and, like the most invigorating works by everyone from the Who to present-day garage revivalists like the Strokes and Vines, the song teeters often on the verge of blowing apart at the seams without ever actually doing so – a rare and beautiful feat, indeed. |
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| The album is not completely without its flaws. The 4:45 running time of “Glory” is a less than ideal fit for the song’s semi-lumbering character, the sum total of the two rendering it a bit long in the tooth near the end. Similarly, the EP’s unrelentingly mid-tempo groove may come across as a bit sluggish for music lovers enamored with peppier, up-tempo fare like “Every Move I Make,” “Days of Elijah” or, well, anything from Lincoln Brewster. That being said, the relatively slower pacing does help to establish, and maintain, a consistently reverent feel across the length of the album. And listeners willing to take the time to appreciate its genuine, from-the-heart lyrics, topnotch musicianship and sparkling, full-bodied production will find that the Turning’s songs are every bit as appealing as their more animated cousins, and that the EP itself is a splendid and thoroughly refreshing effort that does its newly-christened authors exceedingly proud.
– Bert Gangl for SockSpider.com
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