I used to be a really big DC Talk fan. I was probably the most disappointed person in the world when I heard that DC Talk had become a rock group. And when I say disappointed, I mean disappointed, as in so disconsolate I refused to listen to any of my numerous DC Talk tapes(this was B.C.--Before CD player, at least in my house), watch any of their new music videos, and I certainly wasn't going to buy their new album.
DC Talk may not have been the greatest rappers in the world, but at least they were popularizing a small and generally mis-represented genre of music--gospel rap and hip-hop. I proclaimed(to my family at the dinner table) that I was never going to listen to the "sell-outs" again in life, in a rousing inspirational speech, after which my younger brother threw peas at me.
Then I heard the song "Jesus Freak". Its grungy guitars drew me in, and the hypnotic weirdness of its vocals kept me in. The lyrics--about being a Jesus Freak--piqued my fifteen-year-old, just-became-a-Christian, wannabe-a-revolutionary thirst for a label to stick on myself.
Then I heard the first rap verse. "Hey! This is DC Talk! I have to turn this off! This is terrible! They have sold-ou--hey, this is kind of good."
The rest, I suppose, is history. I'm still a big DC Talk fan(although I still think they owe all of their rap-era fans an apology for pulling a truly dirty stunt!). The resulting cross-over album was just too good to pass up.
It includes hard-rockers such as "Jesus Freak","Like It, Love It, Need It", and the opener, "So Help Me God". All three boast loud guitars, straight to the point lyrics, and more melodic vocals than most rock groups can boast of. Member Toby McKeehan, who used to only rap, pops in some breathy vocals that sound surprisingly good. (DC Talk is more or less a vocal group anyway--as far as I know, none of them play any major instruments on this or any other album.)
There are also a few cute, middle-ground rock-pop pieces that benefit the most from DC Talk's singing talent. The stand-outs among these are "Colored People" and "Just Between You and Me", both of which I heard on mainstream radio before I heard them on Christian radio. That attests to their crossover quality, at any rate. Both are interesting songs, helped along by layered vocals, soft-rock music, and ambiguous wording that leaves the listener wondering whether these songs are "Christian" in the sense of theme or only in the sense of artist?(Think of Sixpence None the Richer's "Kiss Me", if you know it, and you'll see what I mean.)
Musical third base is rounded out by a few covers. The first is of the '60's Broadway staple, "Day by Day" from Godspell. I love the original, and I have only a few things to say about this DC Talk version. First, I really like the added lyrics, since they round out the song for modern listeners unfamiliar with the Broadway version. Second, they murdered the original(probably dropped a guitar amp on it or something). It isn't even recognizable as the same song, which may have been the point, but wow...
The second cover is of Charlie Peacock's "In the Light". It's remarkably true to the original, and Charlie Peacock even slips in a few sweet guest vocals towards the end.
The album slides into home plate with a few songs that brand this as a uniquely DC Talk creation. "What Have We Become", "In My Mind's Eye", and "What If I Stumble?" are all a little hard to define musically. They're rock, but more of the U2 stripe than the grunge sound accomplished on much of the rest of the album. They have some of the most straight-forward lyrics of the album, knocking down the potential for cross-over, but musically, they are probably better than any of the crossover stuff. "What Have We Become", especially, sets a spooky, convicting tone that comes across as enjoyable at the same time as it makes you uneasy.
There are a few interludes, mostly played for laughs, that aren't at all exceptional. There is a very interesting poem, however, that shows up as a hidden track, penned and read by singer Kevin Max Smith. It's thought-provoking, to say the least.
DC Talk may not have made their early fans happy with their switch to rock, but they pulled it off very well. A combination of darker musical undertones and lyrics more introspective than anything on their earlier albums makes this doubly worth checking out.
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