Last week Hillsong United their released their 9th album. I would say only about 6 of them have gained serious traction in the USA. I would also say only Chris Tomlin rivals them in number of hit worship songs over the past 5 to 7 years.
Any given weekend at my church we are likely doing a Hillsong United song. And I doubt my church is different from a lot of other churches in the world. Clearly God has anointed this group in a special way.
I think I’ve listened through their new album about 10 times now, and at least 5 or 6 of those I was really focused on listening to the lyrics and song progression. When I say favorite, I always look through the lens of whether the song could be highly effective for a weekend church gathering. Here are my top 4 songs on the new album:
- Oh You Bring– You can listen to the track here. It isn’t the must upbeat song the album and it certainly doesn’t build as big as some others but there is something about this song that just grabs me. I think it is the most singable song on the album and I love the bridge.
- Soon– You can listen to the track here. Kind of in the same vein as “None but Jesus” but piano driven instead of guitar driven. It would fit well with “You Hold Me Now” because of the focus on heaven. Love the simplicity and the lyrics.
- You Hold Me Now– Listen here. The other song with a focus on heaven. I dig that they wrote a worship song that is focused on heaven because there aren’t many. The chorus is very singable. Might be a tad too long but the bridge is sweet after it gets big.
- Tear Down the Walls– Listen here. Definitely the song that builds the most on the album. Definitely too long at 10 minutes though, at least for my taste. Not quite as singable as the others and not as strong of a message. But the song has the United stamp all over it. They have made it big time with the ability to write songs that build perfectly. They grab you and don’t let go. This song is a perfect example of that.
For those of you who have listened to the album, what are your initial thoughts?
