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There is a hope (CD & DVD)Beating TimeTHERE IS A HOPE Hot on the heals of The Best of Stuart Townend Live (a collection of recordings from many different settings, spanning several years) comes this brand new project recorded live at The Riverside Theatre in Northern Ireland. The CD was released a few weeks ahead of the DVD and stands in its own right on a par with the studio album Monument To Mercy in terms of musical, lyrical, theological and production quality. Townend's work seems set to pass the test of time. Although half the material in this project has appeared in various forms on recordings by Townend and the Gettys over the years, it still comes across fresh and new. The song ‘You're The Word Of God The Father’, with which many EN readers will be familiar, provides a fitting, majestic and powerful opening track. The Irish flavour of the project is immediately evident, and as the programme continues, a fiddle, various whistles and flutes, and beautiful Uilleann pipes maintain a lucious Celtic feel. This seems to work particularly well with Keith Getty's tunes, but I guess that should be no surprise! The standard of musicianship is outstanding. Yet, despite its excellence, the music never detracts from the words. The dynamic range between and within tracks is impressive, but it is always a fitting response to the theme of the songs. Indeed, a couple of songs soar from a reflective whisper, to full on, but measured exuberance ... and back again. The DVD (available separately) adds a new dimension to the work. It's a very professional job, with great lighting and photography. But even though this is a staged event, there is authenticity in the corporate worship. As well as the 14 tracks of the CD, there are three bonus tracks, plus a nice ‘behind the scenes’ featurette in which the integrity and unselfconscious nature of the musicians comes across. Townend's is not the only voice heard. As well as strong backing vocals, there are guest leads from Kelly Minter and Aaron Keyes. But Townend has a hand in all the writing, and it shows! There is plenty of the strong theological content, expounded and applied, that we have come to expect from his pen. Townend is a hymn writer in the classical sense: his multiple verses have structure, substance and development. There's lots of to get your teeth into, plenty to chew on, and the music just makes it easy to digest. Loved before the dawn of time, All the chains of Satan's curse So with every breath that I am given It is likely that we'll be singing this and ‘Communion Hymn’, ‘My Soul Finds Rest’, ‘Hear The Call Of The Kingdom’, and ‘Let The Earth Resound’ for years to come. But the next ‘In Christ Alone’ is probably the title track, ‘There Is A Hope’, with its majestic tune and feet firmly on the ground. There is a hope that stands the test of time, In a word: yummy!PGDH,
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