Jars World : Music : Tim's Reviews
Back
Much Afraid
a review by Tim
The release of Much Afraid was easily the most anticipated Jars of Clay album for me. But that was the case for a lot of other people as well. In a way it was to be expected, it was the follow up to their debut album which ending up becoming a smash hit. So the pressure was on for their second one to be as good as, if not better, than the first.
When the guys started the process for their second album they decided to get someone else to produce it for them. The stress from producing most of the first one was the biggest reason for this. This along with another decision caused a lot of controversy around its release with fans. The other decision was to not follow the same pattern of success. They instead forced themselves to grow musically, lyrically, and spiritually. This meant losing the drum loops on 98% of the album. Also it led them to try and write "classic" style hymnal.
The title of Much Afraid was taken from name of the 10th song on the album, which itself was taken for the main character in the book "Hinds' Feet on High Places". The book deals with both fear and trust. I think that is what the album is about. On a side note I wanted them to call it Fade to Grey.
Regardless of who makes it, on most albums I find things I like and dislike. On this one the things I like are the deeper lyrics and the fact that it features Steve Mason playing the electric guitar for the 1st time on a Jars of Clay album. What I dislike is that the songs tend to be a little slower that I prefer and it seems like they tried a little too hard on it. This next thing is a double edged sword. The production quality on this album is almost perfect. I say almost perfect because it sounds so good that it ends up losing part the organic feel the Jars have in a lot of their music.
My two favorite songs off of Much Afraid are Fade to Grey and Weighed Down. When I finally got Much Afraid into my possession I immediately had to forward the CD to track 2. I had been dying to hear how they had recorded the new version. Needless to say I was blown away. There are two reasons why I like Weighed Down. The first one is because it was partially based on 4:7. The second reason is I find the lyrics very deep and meaningful. It has one my favorite lyrics in it. The line goes “Can a king be a king weighed down?”.
The release of Much Afraid was easily the most anticipated Jars of Clay album for me. But that was the case for a lot of other people as well. In a way it was to be expected, it was the follow up to their debut album which ending up becoming a smash hit. So the pressure was on for their second one to be as good as, if not better, than the first.
When the guys started the process for their second album they decided to get someone else to produce it for them. The stress from producing most of the first one was the biggest reason for this. This along with another decision caused a lot of controversy around its release with fans. The other decision was to not follow the same pattern of success. They instead forced themselves to grow musically, lyrically, and spiritually. This meant losing the drum loops on 98% of the album. Also it led them to try and write "classic" style hymnal.
The title of Much Afraid was taken from name of the 10th song on the album, which itself was taken for the main character in the book "Hinds' Feet on High Places". The book deals with both fear and trust. I think that is what the album is about. On a side note I wanted them to call it Fade to Grey.
Regardless of who makes it, on most albums I find things I like and dislike. On this one the things I like are the deeper lyrics and the fact that it features Steve Mason playing the electric guitar for the 1st time on a Jars of Clay album. What I dislike is that the songs tend to be a little slower that I prefer and it seems like they tried a little too hard on it. This next thing is a double edged sword. The production quality on this album is almost perfect. I say almost perfect because it sounds so good that it ends up losing part the organic feel the Jars have in a lot of their music.
My two favorite songs off of Much Afraid are Fade to Grey and Weighed Down. When I finally got Much Afraid into my possession I immediately had to forward the CD to track 2. I had been dying to hear how they had recorded the new version. Needless to say I was blown away. There are two reasons why I like Weighed Down. The first one is because it was partially based on 4:7. The second reason is I find the lyrics very deep and meaningful. It has one my favorite lyrics in it. The line goes “Can a king be a king weighed down?”.
