Musically fetching Americana worship service
Despite Delmore’s credentials as a worship service leader and his record label’s ministry-through-music charter, you’d be setting off in the wrong direction in comparing this to anything Christian Contemporary. As a musician, Delmore is full of rootsy twang and organ soul, and he sings in a powerful, hoarse voice that’s full of emotional cracks. Think Tom Petty, Ryan Adams or Mark Erelli. The album opens with the ragged vocal of “Mercy” giving an initial sense of dissipation, but the lyrics reveal the singer basking in renewal rather than wallowing in desperation. The drawn-out refrains of “Hallelujah†conjure the allusive biblical glimpses of Leonard Cohen’s like-titled song, but the cry here is one of forgiveness. Delmore’s testimony is powerful, but even with superb Americana sounds to grab secular ears, the monothematic glorying of God will quickly wear out its welcome from the unconverted. Songs of praise resonate powerfully with believers, but they resound as blind faith outside the circle of the saved. Unlike the then-recently-converted Dylan of Slow Train Coming, Delmore appears here fully formed as a religious being and fully steeped in the liturgy. The result is an album of praise that’s anchored to its own faith, rather than the joys and travails of life from which religious conviction is born. Delmore’s music is compelling, as is his voice, but secular listeners will be disappointed by the lack of insight into the experiential roots of his religious beliefs. These songs preach well to the converted and will catch the ears of many others, but the only converts will be those already teetering on the edge; perhaps that’s part of Delmore’s musical mission. Worship leaders who want to bring these songs into their services will find lyrics and chords on the enhanced CD of this release. [©2008 hyperbolium dot com] 