Hillsong Worship - No Other Name
This is the only time I have ever guessed about an album and been dead wrong.
I'm glad I was wrong, too. As you can see from my past two posts, I don't have the most welcoming view of Hillsong Live (now Hillsong Worship). To me, it felt like they made re-recordings of the same album every year, slightly changing the instrumentation in the process.
Lyrically, this album does not differ greatly from previous Hillsong albums. For the most part, the album's lyrics focus on Christ and His sacrifice and how His Name is the Name above all other names. This is essential for a worship album, as the focus needs to be on God and not those worshiping Him. "Broken Vessels (Amazing Grace)" is a prime example of this. Besides the fact that it uses the lyrics to the hymn's first verse in an extremely clever way, it references the fact that we are broken people that God has put back together. Other excellent songs lyrically are "Calvary," "Mountain," and "Heaven and Earth."
Some songs are a little too simple for my tastes, however. "Depths" seems like a cookie-cutter of many previous songs and has very few lyrics to fill its six minute running time. "Thank You Jesus" and "All Things New" feel a little ripped-off as well with their fairly cliched lyrics. However, all of these tracks deliver their lyrics well, not making them total failures and actually somewhat enjoyable to listen to. The only song that is somewhat offensive to me lyrically is "My Story." It is definitely not a copy of anything, and for good reason. The content is not horrendous, as it talks about how we claim Christ's redemption as our story; however, it feels so disjointed that I had trouble piecing that theme together while listening to the song. That single instance aside, this is among the best Hillsong albums lyrically.
Musically, Hillsong Worship is still trailing behind Hillsong United. Zion was so ground-breaking in its sound that to me nothing from Hillsong can sound as good as it did. However, No Other Name brings some Zion-esque elements into the classic Hillsong sound that needed a revamp badly. "Heaven and Earth" is by far the best example of this, as an 80's-sounding synth takes the lead. Most of the songs have a throbbing but not overbearing bass guitar line that really adds to the emotion of the songs and makes every song sound like a little more like Zion and its throbbing synth bass lines.
One thing missing from this album are fast songs. The fastest song is "Heaven and Earth," and it is really more mid-tempo than anything. I have a mixed reaction to this because, while I cannot stand Hillsong's fast songs as a rule, the album's pace is a little ruined. It is still an incredibly engaging listen, but it could use a little more energy at times.
One more note about No Other Name before I offer my closing thoughts: I really appreciate the fact that Hillsong Worship did not decide to rehash any hits from previous albums this year. The only track taken from a previous release is "Mountain," actually, as it was a track on the deluxe edition Hillsong United's Zion. This is definitely a song that needed more attention, so I'm glad they pulled it.
Wow. I'm quite surprised I'm writing this, but I really like this album. No, it's not perfect, but what No Other Name does well, it does really well. It has solid lyrics and solid music. I can't really ask for much more for a worship album. Well done, Hillsong. I tip my hat to your good music.
Lyrics: 4/5
Music: 4/5
Overall Score: 4/5
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