NEW MUSIC
NOW HEAR THIS | Gerod Bass
CHRIS TOMLIN & BRANDON LAKE
Song Spotlight - “ I See You ” say ‘ Beloved I am with you ’ every moment of my life ”. Even though there is nothing really new thematically here with so many songs these days reminding us of God ’ s faithfulness , the hooks abound , and this will be a chorus that many a congregation will be singing and loving .
CROSS POINT MUSIC Never Going Back
Brandon Lake is probably one of the most sought after vocalists in today ’ s worship market . It seems like he is on every album these days and why not ? The dude is uber-talented and has a heart for leading people into God ’ s presence . Mix him with a worship legend like Chris Tomlin and good things are bound to happen . The two have combined forces on a new song entitled “ I See You ” which is a well written pop number that is sure to get plenty of radio and Sunday service air time .
The intro features the haunting sounds of Brandon Lake ’ s crisp falsetto mixed with pop beats and ethereal pads before Tomlin takes over the mic in verse 1 which speaks of the new mercies that God has for us every day . Verse two continues in the same musical vein yet Tomlin turns the lyric to a broader spectrum by reminding us that He is the God of our story and he never fails .
The chorus immediately brings the energy up as the two voices join together creating a very unique sound with the gravelly tenor of Brandon Lake mixing seamlessly with Tomlin ’ s smooth , yet older vocal tone . The theme of the song comes through clearly here that God ’ s faithfulness never ends no matter what we may encounter in this life . The most poignant line of the song also comes in the chorus as the two men boldy sing ; “ I see you in the tears that run , I feel you when the healing comes , I hear you
Brandon Lake takes over the lead on verse two and reminds me why I love his voice so much . He has this incredible mixture of warmth and power when he sings , and it seems like vocally he can pretty much do whatever he wants to . Lyrically this verse shifts our focus to the neverending blessings of God while touching on the idea that His vision is always greater than ours and that He ultimately knows what is best even though we sometimes can ’ t understand .
Chorus two follows before giving way to the bridge which is a call to worship and to stand firm in our faith no matter what storms come our way . A predictable quieter chorus follows but here the guys do a little repeat on the lines which is a nice touch with Brandon doing some cool little descant runs . A big final chorus closes the song with Lake adding more floating vocal parts .
The mixture of the legend and the hottest male vocal in Christian music right now is a fun combination and even though I was a little disappointed that this song was still so “ in-the-box ”, it is still worth a listen and if you are serving at a church who loves Tomlin , your church will eat this up and love you for teaching it . The melodies are easy to pick up and most average teams will be able to emulate this sound even if you don ’ t have all the pop bells , beats and whistles .
1 . Oh The Wonder 2 . Everything Changes 3 . No One 4 . Never Going Back 5 . Better 6 . Just That Good 7 . We ’ re Ready
Rooted out of the multi-campus Cross Point Church in Nashville , TN , Cross Point Music ’ s latest release , Never Going Back contains seven new songs birthed out of two seasons of significant trial . A Cross Point church building was destroyed in March of 2020 by a tornado and of course the global pandemic . Their latest EP is a collection of songs that explores what it means to reconnect with God and the true meaning of worship when everything else is stripped away .
Sonically the album fits well with current trends and musically there is really nothing spectacularly different from groups like Elevation or Bethel , but the writing here is pretty good throughout with the themes hitting the mark of God ’ s faithfulness through tough times .
“ Oh The Wonder ” is a catchy service opener