THE AFTERS
Never Going Back To OK
www.theafters.com
Review by Josh McConnell

It has been three years since the debut of the Texas-based band, The Afters. Founded by four co-workers at a local Starbucks, the rockers found quick success and critical acclaim. Now the band has returned with their greatly anticipated sophomore disc.
Titled Never Going Back To OK, The Afters’ second major label release sends listeners back into familiar territory. Over the course of the album’s 12 tracks and 42-minute lifespan, fans of the band will hear the sound of the infectious pop-rock melodies they have come to know and love. Dan Muckala (Backstreet Boys, Mandy Moore) also drops his signature super-slick production capabilities onto the disc to further influence its pop tendencies.
Though it is hard to pinpoint specific similarities to other acts, The Afters feel like an all encompassing conglomerate of bands such as OneRepublic, The Fray, and Keane, as well as a hint of U2 and Coldplay. Though the music and lyrics may seem contrived and run-of-the-mill at times, its fun and catchy songs will keep you coming back.
Never Going Back To OK should be a welcomed addition to the libraries of most pop-rock fans.

JACI VELASQUEZ
Love Out Loud
www.jacivelasquez.com
Review by Mark Weber

Jaci Velasquez made a giant splash into Christian music in 1996 with her well-produced Heavenly Place album.
She became well-known to Christian radio listeners for hit songs like “If This World,” “Un Lugar Celestial,” and “On My Knees.”
Since the mid-1990s, Velasquez has released several other albums and hit songs, acted in the movie Chasing Papi and married Nic Gonzales, the lead singer of the band Salvador.
The 28-year-old new mom continues to deliver a very youthful sound, featuring her strong alto voice, on her latest pop-rock release, Love Out Loud.
Her past few releases have been directed toward the Spanish-language market, where she’s been consistently popular for more than a decade. New songs “Likely Story,” “Jesus (The Way),” and “My Alleluia” are tailor-made for English-language Christian radio.
Two of the 10 tracks would appeal to a broader audience: a duet with her hubby on “Por Escrito,” the one Spanish-language song on the album, along with “Tango,” a dance jam that sounds like Britney Spears singing along to a Santana beat.
Expect to see Jaci touring with her husband Nic and his band Salvador in the months to come where they’ll duet together before diverse audiences.

LEELAND
Opposite Way
www.leelandonline.com
Review by Kevan Breitinger

Leeland’s artful, epic Opposite Way builds on the band’s effervescent expressions of worship, reminiscent sonically at times of Travis, Coldplay and U2.
Nominated for a Grammy in 2007, Leeland’s familiar lush orchestration opens the pulsating “Count Me In,” a track thick with lyrical expectancy and a Brit-rock vibe.
Some tracks bring their debut to mind with their vertical eloquence and soul-piercing focus: the worshipful “Enter The Temple” and guitar-driven rocker “Wake Up.”
The hard-hitting title track contrasts Christ’s costly faithfulness in the Garden to our daily complacency. I fell hard for the irresistible “Beginning And The End,” Beatlesque in its melodic bounce, but once again straightforward in laying out the reality of the crucifixion.
Piano ballad “Brighter Days” highlights Leeland Mooring’s soaring vocal and looks for the hope to come, while the organic “Falling For You” is textured by thoughtful guitar nuances.
The deeply worshipful piano ballad “Thief in the Night” is stunning in its powerful simplicity, and the passionate closer “May Our Praise” reminds us how undeserving we are, and how holy is our God.
Opposite Way reveals again the supernatural gifting of this youthful band.

JOHNNY CASH
The Gospel Music of Johnny Cash
www.johnnycash.com
Review by Mark Weber

Johnny Cash was a one-of-a-kind American icon who defied categorization.
He was a rock star, an outlaw country singer, and, interestingly enough, a Gospel singer too, however not in the traditional sense.
Though Cash passed away in 2003, he remains relevant as ever because he sang from the heart with honesty and conviction.
The Gospel Music of Johnny Cash captures more than two-dozen of his faith-informed tunes on two discs. This allows today’s generation to get an aural glimpse into this legendary artist’s unique faith journey and personal beliefs played out over the course of several touching and emotionally powerful songs.
Cash loved to point listeners to the Almighty using either very traditional church songs like “The Old Rugged Cross,” “Were You There (When They Crucified My Lord),” and “When The Saints Go Marching In,” or cleverly written country tunes like “I’m Just An Old Chunk Of Coal” that left listeners smiling and thinking about their own relationship with Jesus.
Though Cash’s Gospel songs are from a different, bygone era, to this day they have meaning and make us feel good because they acknowledge both our human frailties and our divine inheritance.

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