Home: Kim Walker Smith and Skyler Smith: an album review by Kirk

Artists:  Kim Walker-Smith and Skyler Smith  (wife and husband)

Album: Home (2013) Jesus Culture Music.

Genre:  Adult-contemporary with a neo-folk edge.    Home is rightly described as a Christian worship album, but if you listened without hearing the words, you might first hear it as a series of passionate love songs...And it indeed it is......aimed straight out of this world into the next.

My recent discovery of the music of Kim Walker Smith is a bit like Columbus discovering America.   I thought I had made a big discovery… but a whole lot of folks living on the continent already knew she was there.   ((And now... a couple of weeks later, I am simply shaking my head... How could I NOT have known about KWS..  Now, this review sounds kind of ignorant.:))

I confess, when I picked up the album “Home” by the married couple,  Kim Walker Smith and her husband Skyler Smith, I had never heard of either person (nor of  Jesus Culture Music)    All I knew is that the cover art said “This could be music you"ll like”  --  and it was on sale.

There is this adage, never judge a book by its cover. I thoroughly reject said advice, as I find the cover is part of what makes a book enjoyable.  Same goes for music.   Great music in a bad package is less good in total, and average music with a great cover is a tad bit better, as the package frames the experience.   But that is a different idea.

I bought Home, because the cover, featuring a couple on the porch of a country home… looked kind of arty and smart, minimalistic and rootsy.  I saw a subliminal nod to the painting “American Gothic.”   I liked the guy’s glasses… (they are kind of like mine.)   Beyond that,  I thought the female looked ever so lovely with her straight blond hair, minimal makeup  and Laura Ashley dress…  Her pensive look suggested this music might be thoughtful and restrained, while her dark roots under the blonde, suggested the possibility of an indie vibe :)

I was about 69 percent right. 

Smart, yes.   Restrained.  Sort of.    Rootsy. Just a touch.

Some folks might call this folk, but that would be a stretch.   The  instrumentation highlights strong piano throughout and includes dallies with instruments like the banjo and cello… but  the sound is just too big for folk and too "rockless” for pop.  All in all, the sound is what I call “Adult contemporary with a real-music underbelly.”  Or something like that.

And though the music throughout is excellent, that is not what drives Home over the top.

    

First, there is that voice.

Hers.  And His.   Of the two, hers is the knockout punch.  But there is chemistry when these two twine other that is simply magic.

(I am not sure if this is good form, but if you want to hear Kim and Skyler sample this Youtube upload: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-thXGxaCN8

When I think of couples who stand out in duet I think of Billy Preston and Syreeta Wright (With You I am Born Again), or… in more current terms… the music of Joy Williams and John Paul White (The Civil Wars) or Glen Hassard and Marketa Irglova (from the movie Once.)   These couples tap something primeval in the human soul. 

As is, I think Skyler sounds a little like the lead singer of Cold Play, or maybe Glen Hassard, (soft, earthy, heartfelt.)  however,  Kim does not sound like Merrketa.   Not a difference in beauty or skill, but a difference in volume and vibe.  Kim simply belts power and tenderness and passion.  I might even call hers a “Diva” voice, but it is without the saccharine silliness or sensual vibrato of many of our current sirens.   Perhaps it is the message, but her voice just sounds powerful and pure.  Like a river, out of the city of God….

All of which is a set up for the greatest strength of Home.

Home is a worship album.  It it not so much intended to be listened to, but to be listened with. Home reaches deepest when we (whatever our vocal skills) jump in the seat and drive with Kim and Skyler as fellow worshipers.   It took a few listened to have these tunes soak into my being, but it time, I was there with them, before the throne.

(Thoughts on the major themes: to be developed.)

Thank you.

I noted at the beginning that Kim is already known by a lot of folks. I had no idea just how many, but a quick survey on Youtube shows that Kim has been a vital leader in live, dynamic church worship for some time.and affiliated with a group called Jesus Culture*   In fact, if we looked at the number of videos in which KWS is  a part, then multiplied those videos by the number of folks who have watched them, we may find is that Kim is one of the most loved Jesus singers ever.   So what do I know.

You can hear a body of her work here:   (As is, I seldom listen to Christian radio, as I find much of it intolerable.   So I miss some things.  Vital things.  (but not much?)

I am also surprised that the Kim I hear on Youtube and the Kim I hear on Home, are slightly different women.   Kim on Youtube is sheer tidal wave of energy and passion.   Home shows Kim in somewhat quieter mode. Still powerful, but restrained.    There is even the hint of majesty.  (Note: Syler and Kim are much aware of how this music differs from Kim's larger body of work.  See their thoughts here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_br5RS5O07U#t=91

I suspect, given the compound name (Walker Smith) and the dominance of the Kim Walker name on Youtube, that "Smith" may be a more recent addition to Kim’s world.   But that union seems to have infused a maturity and beauty to what was already a passionate world.

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There is one more thing I wanted to write about this album that I may regret later for its candor.  I hope it is not unseemly, but it is just what came to mind when I heard the song the Relentless Pursuit...

There is probably no more humbling and sublime words that a groom might hear from his beloved than “Do with me as you will.”   These are not words of licentiousness… but surrender in a climate of absolute trust (the groom will only ask that which is good. ) There are moments in this album that suggest that level of intimacy between us, the bride,  and Christ our eternal groom.  This is an invitation to be ravaged by the lover of our souls, with full confidence that our undoing will be our greatest gain.

Ps.  I heartily recommend this album.


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Addendum:

In searching around the internet, I came across one group (Appraising Ministries) that is critical of the Jesus Culture (as a ministry) and the larger church community in which Kim Walker Smith and her husband operate.  I questioned whether I should even note the criticism, but I want to be rigorous, honest with self, and careful of what I put into my heart.   (The Critics of Kim Walker Smith work from a Reformed perspective, and  take issue with the strong Charismatic foundations of Jesus Culture and the Smith's  supporting church.)  As is, I am neither equipped, nor eager to get into that debate, but I will confess that I too am wary of things I have seen in the signs and wonders circles.    But here is the rub.   At what point, or upon what issues should I,  as a "patron of the arts" or as a consumer of gospel music, break ranks with others over very real differences in doctrine or ethos?  I suspect each person will have to make up his mind on where he draws his boundary lines.   I know for instance,  that I thoroughly enjoy and am deeply ministered to, by the works of Roman Catholic troubadour, John Michael Talbot.   I also know that I am critical of Roman Catholic theology at foundational points.  As for content, I do sometimes hear things in the music of JMT with which I might differ, but by an large his music is such that I, as a son of the Reformation, find deep nurture and common ground.  The same would apply to this music.   I simply do not hear anything in the music as presented that should cause me to pause.  Indeed, I hear things in this music that should be common ground for all who seek to love God with heart and mind.    So, while I will keep the concerns of Appraising Ministries before my eyes, I stand firmly behind my initial recommendation.

Audrey Assad: Fortunate Fall

Artist:  Audrey Assad

Album: Fortunate Fall ( August 2013)
Genre:  Piano driven ballads given to direct and intimate worship of the Living God.

This quality image was "borrowed" from the Internet.  I do not know whom to credit.  If you object to my use of it here, please let me know and I will remove it, or credit - pronto.

Quick Spin:  Fortunate Fall features a collection of Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs by Singer/songwriter/pianist – and now producer – Audrey Assad, as she empties her heart in fully satisfying acoustic-colored worship of a plaintive hue.   She invites us to drink at the well.  I left fully satisfied. 

*****   I can't really type a half star, but I don't need to.  This gets the full 5.  
I am Just a few listens in, but Fortunate Fall is headed to Desert Island status, that is… one of the dozen or so albums I would take with me to restart civilization.

My wife and I sometimes have this discussion about the feminine ideal in terms of physical appearance or dress.   I try not to say too much about physical appearance (because I don’t want to get busted) but then I offer my thoughts on dress.

Women, I say – are served best by a modest, figure flattering dress…  

In short, I like the look of something we call “Peace-Corp Chick” (sounds like Sheek).   Such a woman should have flowing hair…kind of wavy.  Maybe red.   Or perhaps she has straight black hair or an Afro.  And if she has grey, she lets the grey remain.   The looks is simple.    Linen tweed blouse-soft pastel, peasant skirt with earth tones, perhaps a muted floral design.  And sandals.   Beyond that, she rides an old school bike with a bell and woven basket, with tulips  flowing over the edge and a book by Dostoyevsky.   As for lipstick… ever so faint.  If she wears any kind of stuff about her eyes, we sense the glow but must not know it.   And of course.  Nice teeth.   You know.  Simple.  Elegant. Earthy.

Then my wife proceeds to tell me just how unnatural… and how very expensive that look is.   “It takes a great deal of money to look like your "little hippy-librarian.”

Example two.   My wife and I watch figure skating.  The couple glides resting in each other arms.  The whole thing looks so smooth and  effortless…

All of that is to say… the new album by Audrey Assad… sounds at once spare, elegant, and effortless.

Then I listen again, and find out just how much mind-bending thought, work, and talent is behind the illusion of simplicity... and the very real beauty of this album.

They say you cannot judge a book by it cover, but I disagree – For me, the cover of a book is always part of the larger book experience.   In that same sense, just savoring the packaging of “Fortunate Fall” is part of my larger listening experience. The front cover of the CD appears to hold a stylized photo illustration comprised of broken flower parts and petals.  There is river of petals, shaped like bird. And you must open the CD art before you ever see Audrey’s face.  Then the photography, of the recording session itself:   Classy black and whites that have a retro feel.   Everything here breaths quality.

As for Audrey’s voice; It is lovely --  Deeply feminine.   (I hear touches of Sarah McLaachlan or Sara Groves.  Suffice it to say, Audrey can sing really big,  but here gives deference to her quite voice.…. And singing with herself in exquisite harmony.   

   

From what I understand, Audrey herself produced this album.  I don’t know much about the process, but the pictures show a studio replete with piano, chimes, an organ, and various stringed instruments.   And while the production is certainly deeper than mere parlor music, there is a real sense that this is living, breathing music.    I am relishing the restraint.    That, and the slightly minor chord cast.   Listen for cello, bells, wind, and the beating heart.

This is my second Audrey album.  It appears that I missed a most worthy studio release in-between this and her first full-length studio release - This House You are Building. (And from what I read, I now need to find and purchase Heart.)  As is, I wrote a review of  This House -- and gave it a quality review, but also wished that she might have toned to down some of the glossier production elements.  I don’t know if Audrey’s ear has aged, but I want to publicly thank her for paying so much attention to my thoughts, and making this album just for me:)   and Now, here I am.  Fully satisfied.   No unwanted gloss.  No ready made hits for the frothy often waste-land of Christian radio.   I love, love, love the production through out, but am most surprised by the volley of sounds in “Oh Happy Fault.”   Oh, and the beautifully orchestrated song  “Spirit of the Living God.”   My soul just turned to butter.

Odd note:  Many of these songs have a sense of space.  I mean physical space. Not the 80s sense of singing in a can, but I really do get the sense of being in a room, with depth, dust and light.  A few even open into a cathedral.

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I have this theory that art is often best served by what is left out.  When it comes to song craft,  Audrey knows when to leave behind.  The songs are honed.  We hear echos of the  Psalms, Augustine, and perhaps even elements of catholic liturgy (some of which may escape me.)  But mostly, we are invited to listen to melodic prayer.  These songs are first and foremost offered to God, and we are invited to join her in the room.

Finally,  It is not often that the mere title of a work sells the package… but there are some very big thoughts behind the album title (and song)  “Fortunate Fall.”  

Which of us -- upon seeing the first-couple crack the skin of the forbidden fruit would then celebrate the Fall of the human race?   But as says Augustine (whom she quotes) :

"For God judged it better to bring good out of evil than not to permit any evil to exist."

or , as sings Audrey:

Oh happy fault, oh Happy fault
that gained for us so great a Redeemer, 
Fortunate fall, fortunate fall
that gained for us so great a Redeemer.

On a personal level, I have puzzled much over this.   Would it be better to live in a world never damaged by sin, disease and pain (and likewise never know the depths of our depravity) or..Is it better to know in ourselves the sickness of the Fall, and then experience healing love of our rescuing and redeeming Savior?   I claim the latter, though sometimes the pain is such it is hard to imagine God even making possible such choice.

But now… I am much ahead of myself. Fortunate Fall is in not a heavy-headed big-think album. I think the theme Fortunate Fall, is more of a setting. Because God is who he is, He is able to see through this current confusion to the end of the day.   He is good to us, despite our double-hearts. He is most worthy of our adoration.   Finally, God has given to some of his children, fingers, vocal cords and the inner sense to create things of great beauty.

I thank Audrey for providing a vehicle that let us join her in the shadow of the throne.


Ps.  Not sure how much longer it will be up, but you can download two of Audrey's songs from Noisetrade/ tip or free.  (One found on the album, the other a "collector's item"  -- one of my favorite hymns. 

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song to the Living God.   (image by Kirk Jordan)





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