Kutless’ “To Know That You’re Alive”: A Review
GENRE: ROCK
LABEL: BEC RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: JUNE 24, 2008
RATING: 4 OUT OF 5
Nutshell Version:
“To Know That You’re Alive” is without a doubt one of Kutless’ strongest releases, and could easily render itself candidate for Album of the Year. One of the album’s strong points is that it remains versatile to both heavier and more melodic tracks, and with that said, the future seems nothing but positive, and “To Know You’re Alive” will expectedly be well received by both fans and critics alike.
Full Version:
Most Christian music listeners are familiar with Kutless in one way or another. Whether it’s their slightly rocked rendition of “Better is One Day” from their worship release, their grungy self-titled, which saw the success of rock singles such as “Your Touch” and “Pride Away”, or their commercially successful sophomore album “Sea of Faces”, it’s hard not to know something by Kutless.
With their rock anthems, slower ballads, and worship tracks, they’ve accumulated quite a large and diversified fan base, appealing to both young and older. While some didn’t take well to their fourth studio release “Hearts of the Innocent”, their fifth and latest, “To Know That You’re Alive”, may be what wins listeners back.
Ironically enough, the album opens with one of the weaker tracks on the CD. Initial impressions may be grim, as “The Feeling” carries a feeling of rehashed previous material. (Recall “Shut Me Out”) However, things take a turn with a brief musical interlude, “Sleeping City”, and the powerful “To Know You’re Alive”. Micah’s vocals shine throughout this quasi-opener, as he sings and screams, reminding of the group’s earlier days. Following is another powerful track “The Disease & The Cure” which by now works to overshadow any negative first impressions.
Continuing with “Complete”, a song which rivals their best melodic songs on “Sea of Faces”, “To Know You’re Alive” begins to shape itself as a strong release. Lyrically Kutless remains true to their calling, writing with an unabashedly follower of Christ perspective. Highlights such as “You”, the experimental rocker “The Disease & The Cure” and the aforementioned title track solidify Kutless as a key force in the Christian music scene today.
“To Know That You’re Alive” is without a doubt one of their strongest releases, and could easily render itself candidate for album of the year. One of the album’s strong points is that it remains versatile to both heavier and more melodic tracks, and with that said, the future seems nothing but positive, and “To Know You’re Alive” will expectedly be well received by both fans and critics alike.
Track Listing
1. The Feeling
2. Sleeping City
3. To Know You’re Alive
4. The Disease & The Cure
5. Complete
6. The Rescue
7. Promise You
8. Guiding Me Home
9. Overcoming Me
10. I Do Not Belong
11. Loud
12. Dying To Become
13. You
please post the song clips!
great review, btw. :]
dg
June 11, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Ha! We’ll we can’t post the clips, but we will feature a brief snippet in our upcoming podcast, which will be up this weekend! We’ll also have an interview with members of the band posted here in the next week or so.
C. E. Moore
June 11, 2008 at 3:49 pm
that’s cool. hopefully that brief snippet will include all the songs or at least tktya, i do not belong, promise you, dying to become, and/or you. really wanna hear those songs and can’t wait any longer for this cd! :]
dg
June 11, 2008 at 8:10 pm
Thanks for the great review
Also, for me at least I think The Feeling is one of their better songs. It’s got that stuck in your head thing going for it. Plus for a harder rock album like tkya kinda is The Feeling is a great song to start it off with.
Amber
June 12, 2008 at 10:49 am
where’s the podcast?
dg
June 16, 2008 at 1:11 pm
We got a little behind. It’ll be posted this Wednesday evening. Schedule conflicts and whatnot. But, it’ll definitely be up by Wednesday afternoon! You really want to hea those tracks, huh?
C. E. Moore
June 16, 2008 at 4:58 pm
of course!
wish the cd was being released tomorrow….can’t wait another week for it. ;]
dg
June 16, 2008 at 6:28 pm
well, i’ve finally heard the whole album [as of last night]. wish the songs were longer, but that’s a moot point now. i liked all the songs up until overcoming me. wish james would have went with a diff riff/line, but the breakdown near the end was pretty sweet. i do not belong is the 2nd best song on the album right after the title track. loud was a complete waste of a song, imo. dying to become was totally not what i was expecting, and i was pleasantly surprised to hear the shredding guitars and the soloing in the middle of the song. you was another song that felt like it was just ‘there’ to close out the album. this album, to me, was a transitional one and i hope the guys continue maturing and growing in the direction they took with this album, but SOF remains my fav album from them. hopefully they either go back to sprinkle or another producer who’s all about the metal/rock. 4/5.
dg
June 23, 2008 at 10:45 pm