Worship Musician Magazine February 2025 | Page 20

NEW MUSIC

NOW HEAR THIS | Gerod Bass

REND COLLECTIVE Folk ! Pt . 1

CANYON HILLS WORSHIP All To Jesus 1 . Abide In Me 2 . What I Was Made For 3 . Better Than I Ever Thought 4 . Silver Or Gold 5 . Reap That Joy

For more than 20 years now , Irish worship rockers , Rend Collective have been blessing the church with their rambunctious style of high energy worship continually stretching the boundaries of what is considered Sunday appropriate worship music . Their honest love of God and His people mixed with their unique sound and desire to spread the Gospel to whomever will listen have always been what makes Rend just a little bit special . Their recent EP , Folk Pt . 1 stays true to form with a five-song sample of new material that definitely will have you begging for more after the last track .

Interestingly , this little EP begins quite a bit different than most Rend albums with the groovy but intimate , “ Abide in Me ” which features rhythmic acoustic notes , subtle banjo , shakers , piano and plenty of southern charm . Frontman Chris Llewellyn reminds us that when we cast our cares on Jesus , He always comes through . This is a wonderfully written and delivered song that will give balm and peace to a troubled soul .

But of course , it isn ’ t long until the real Rend Collective style rises to the top on the 2 nd track , “ What I Was Made For ”. Speedy acoustic strums , funky bass lines and violins push the tempo up to 135 in this song about how God has a purpose for every soul on earth . Here , we are encouraged to seek the heart of God and not only find our special purpose , but to go forth and use our gifts to share the Kingdom of God wherever possible .

The thematic heartbeat of the EP is found in the energetic and memorable , “ Holy Trouble ” which is a call for the Holy Spirit to come and bring holy revival in our lives . Although I wouldn ’ t necessarily say this song would be easily adapted and learned for Sunday morning worship , it is the antithesis of bold faith we are called to by Christ . The chorus is a crying out for the Holy Spirit to wreak havoc with the nonbelieving world by ; “ rattling cages , kicking over tables and starting a holy riot ” all in the name of Jesus . And while I ’ m not sure how these lines will be taken in a world that constantly accuses the church of being “ in-your-face ” and judgmental , these lyrics are not written to the non-believer , rather they serve as a call to the Body of Christ to live loudly for the Gospel .

Folk , Part 1 is a well written and executed EP from Rend . There are more than a few songs here that would be fun to introduce to your congregation . There is no doubt that the boys from Northern Ireland are at it once again , writing songs of true joy born out of a genuinely bold faith while at the same time showing their more introspective side and reminding all of us that our God is fun , and His love never ends .

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