Once again, only after having chewed on this album for a week or so have I been able to write a review. I'm still not sure I haven't missed something, but I'm going to go ahead with it anyway.

I could probably say the same things I've said before about DW's music about this album, as with anything Derek Webb does. Full of depth. Wholesome truth. Challenging, to say the least. Music that's compelling but still simplistic. I think even Derek would emphasize that the notes are merely a canvas here for the thing that's full forward on a DW album-- It's always his lyrics. The music takes some new strides here, though... some Beatle-esque orchestra hooks and horns that really give an artsy feel to the songs. I'd call that a new step forward musically. There's another step forward too... and that's the step that I think Derek always takes with a new album. It's one that I wait expectantly for, that always helps me grow in my own faith... and that, of course, is the level of challenge that Derek is offering compared to the last one. I heard him sing the song "Rich Young Ruler" at a concert last year, and I thought it was one of the most compelling and confrontational songs I'd heard from Derek. Basically saying that we abandon a more perfect faith for affluence is a tough message in America. "Come on and follow me- sell your house, sell your SUV; sell your stocks and your security and and give it to the poor..." As Derek states in the chorus, God asks for the things we just can't give him.

There are some social issues tackled here too, something Derek usually doesn't doo. "My Enemies are Men Like Me" (a song whose title is already a challenge), mostly centered around nonviolence. The death penalty and war are addressed, Martin Luther King audio is included. The chorus brings it home to a center of love and compassion, though-- "so how can I kill the ones I'm supposed to love? My enemies are men like me. So I will protest the sword if it's not wielded well, cause my enemies are men like me." There'e usually a song that sticks out to me immedeately when I get a new DW album... I can't say there really is on this one, though. It's kind of a balanced effort, a buffet of sorts. I think Derek's first shot at a love song, "I Hate Everything But You," is certainly of note. "A New Law" and "A King and a Kingdom" seem to be the two that most frequently get stuck in my head. "New Law" speaks volumes to the fear that often keeps us from growing in our faith, while "King and a Kingdom" reminds us that our first and greatest loyalty is to Christ. That song also has my favorite line on the whole album: "There are two great lies that I've heard, the day you eat of that tree, you will not surely die-- and that Jesus Christ was a white middle-class Republican, and if you want to be saved you have to learn to be like him."

When we saw Derek in concert last year, he said that he wanted this album to be themed around the "Rich Young Ruler" song. I don't think that's really what the case is here. If I were to pick a theme for this one, I'd have to call it relationships. The ones that we share with one another and with Christ, but also the ones that we should with the needy and defenseless. It's a bold reminder that we're accountable to Christ to love others, not just because it's the 'Christian way,' but because it's what someone who's gotten a new heart would naturally do. It seems right on time for where I'm at spiritually, so it's really made a connection with me. And again, there's something for everyone on here. It's a no-brainer for me to recommend this album, not just for its goodness, but because of the goodness that it can bring to the listener.