Helga17's Full Review: Higher Definition by The Cross Movement
As some of you who have followed my reviews may remember, Cross Movement’s album Holy Culture was the first rap I had ever found to be genuinely enjoyable. Since I wrote that review, I have had the opportunity to see Cross Movement live at Creation, which was just an incredible experience. Actually, their live experience is really much better than their album experience.
I like a wide range of music, but I tend to migrate more often to rock than most genres. I really do enjoy Cross Movement when I’m in a mood for variety. My favorite thing about them is their depth of lyric. It is obvious that these guys have a solid theological base, and they understand what they are saying. I do not always completely agree with all of their theology, as I personally follow a slightly more “reformed” theology, but that’s just knit picky details. One of the other things I liked about this group from the very beginning is the way I can feel the Philadelphia vibe in their music. I’ve lived in Philadelphia for four years now, and there’s something about their sound that just captures this location. I think that the DJ’s overall did a better job on this album than on Holy Culture. Since my first good exposure to this genre, in Holy Culture, I have experienced much more of the hip hop scene, and I have found that this group has a couple weaknesses. The biggest one, in my opinion, may be a stylistic choice on their part, but if it is, I don’t like it. It is that their rhyming words are too stressed. There are some artists who seem to be able to slip the rhymes in there in a more subtle way, but it’s almost like this group puts extra emphasis on every rhyming word. While this is not quite as prevalent on this album as it was on Holy Culture, it’s still a little much when I compare it to some other rap that I’ve heard.
Background on the Group
The Cross Movement is composed of four members: John “The Tonic” Wells, William “Ambassador” Branch, Brady “Phanatik” Goodwin and Virgil “T.R.U.-L.I.F.E” Byrd. The group formed in 1994, and in many ways has set the standard for Christian hip hop. Recently, many of the members have released solo albums, but they have continued their ministry as a group. In fact, their ministry extends beyond releasing albums into their Cross Movement Ministries center in Philadelphia, which is actively taking steps to reach some of the roughest neighborhoods here in Philly.
The Overall Sound
Well, it was pointed out that I did not address the actual sound of the music on this album, and at first I thought the person had to be mistaken, but then I reread my review. What I found was that I addressed it a bit, but in a subtle way, and I can see how more clarity could be wished for, so you get this whole paragraph on the sound. When I say the album has a Philly vibe to it, that says something to anyone who listens to rap on a regular basis. Rap in the U.S. is like accents in Britain. An experienced ear can listen to just a couple minutes and tell you exactly where the person is from. It's really difficult for me to pinpoint a good way of defining this, but I will do my best. Rap takes on the flavor of the neighborhood in which it was born. Georgia rap has a more laid-back, deep, slow feel... like it's a summer day in Hotlanta. New York rap tends to remind me of the guy who did advertising for micromachines in the 80's... or like a high-strung person talking on a cell phone while stuck in gridlock. Rap from the L.A. area has the intensity of a Hollywood romance and the danger and disjointedness of the 1992 riots there. To describe the Philly vibe, I have to describe the city. Philadelphia is a city with a rich history that does not live up to its potential. It wastes, is disillsioned, but still has this existential feeling of putting on a good face and pretending that life is good. Of looking like you hope the Eagles or Phillies might do well this year, even though you know they've already blown it and and still pre-season. It's a tough looking city with a soft heart. How does this affect the sound of the music coming out of Philly? The most well-know Philly rapper among non-rap circles I know of is Will Smith. Remember the theme song to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air? That was more of an 80s or early 90's Philly vibe, but it helps you get the picture. The 2000 Philly vibe is a little more serious, and not as childishly happy. Even Will Smith's more recent music reflects this change. Now to get to Cross Movement specifically. Their lyrics are really the forefront of their music. They are clearly pronounced, and easier to understand than lyrics of other cities, but still provide syncopation that compliments what are usually pretty standard backbeat mixes. The pacing is not as slow as the Southern rap and not as crazy fast as New York rap. Melody is not stressed at all. It is all about the rhythm. Even when there is a little bit of melody, it is simple, kind of like an urban nursery song and only for a line or two. Their music is about rhythm and lyrics, and has only enough actual music to hold the rhythm and lyrics together. Cross Movement has a vibe, within the Philly style that is all their own. All their songs sound a lot alike musically, with rhythm and lyrics being what sets the songs apart from each other. It is the Cross Movement sound, which has a Philly vibe in the hip hop genre known as rap. Hopefully that helps. Now, on to the spcifics of the album.
Higher Definition Civilian Affairs
This song begins by calling us to attention. It is about life as a soldier in Christ’s army, and how as Christians we are all called to “steer clear of civilian affairs” in this war of the “flesh versus spirit.” The beat in this song is straightforward one-two, one-two, and has the feel of a very urban march.
Redefined
In contrast to the straight beat of the last song, this one has a very off-balance feel. There are two different beats that flow together nicely, and serve to emphasize the theme of the song. It starts by saying that “This is the tale of two cities.” In reality this is the hip hop version of St. Augustine’s CITY OF GOD. It talks about the juxtaposition between living in the City of Sin and how to redefine that life by living for the City of God. The lyrics that hit me hardest were:
They taught you to aim for nothing and look
you hit it dead on the button.
And we say it’s all good just ‘cause it’s all hood
If only we all could live like we should…..
So ‘til that new Heaven and Earth comes down
Let’s show’em how we represent Heaven on Earth now
It’s Time
This song comes in strong with a well-defined beat. It’s about how our time here on this earth is short, so we need to decide what we’re going to do with this part of our existence. It’s a nice little ditty, but not as lyrically deep as some of their songs, and also not as interesting rhythmically.
Hey Y’All
The vibe for this song is one of my favorites on the album. The beat has a subtle complexity that perfectly compliments the delivery of the lyrics. This song is about how God’s light shine’s where God is, and that light is needed everywhere. The hook is great, and the lyrics are fun to sing along with.
This Lord’s the blesser – yep - and He’s the blessin’
He likes flexin’ ‘cause He’s perfection
You see these perfections in each direction
After seein’ them things look bleak I’m guessin’
’Cause you see’em and you see you need correction
Then you feel like the writer of Psalm 12
The godly’s no more--it’s so raw it seems like people just want hell
Lord You Are
The first couple of times I listened to this album, this was my least favorite song… but I think that the reason I didn’t like it was that it was not what I was expecting from this group. It has grown on me, and now I really love it… in fact, it is now one of my favorite songs ever. Most of Cross Movement’s songs have an element of spreading God’s love in dark places. This song is not one of those. This is purely a praise and worship song. The lyrics are fantastic, and the vibe is perfectly worshipful hip hop.
Hip-Hopcracy
This is a very funny song, with a very poignant message. It is also very well mixed, with the DJ, using tracks from prior Cross Movement albums to create a wonderful beat. The song is about, as the title would suggest, words and deeds aligning themselves. The lyrics of this song overflow with fun plays on words. My favorite is “I did see a guy pull out a knot and start speaking in ones.”
Card Shark
The lyrics for this are so artfully written that the first time I realized what they were saying, my jaw dropped. They use a deck of cards as a metaphor where the Queen of Clubs is “dressed to kill,” the Diamond King “flashes his bling,” and “Jack be nimble, Jack be quick,” in scamming everyone he knows. The only card worth holding is the King of Hearts. The lyrics hold much more depth than my little description can relate, but they are well worth checking out. The beat is nothing special, but I really like this song.
Questions
This song addresses the fact that everyone’s soul yearns for answers to a few simple questions, like why are people evil, why do good people suffer, and what makes wrong wrong? After asking a series of really difficult questions, good, Biblical answers are offered. This song is ok, but not my favorite on the album.
On In Here
A lot of Cross Movement’s songs are by primarily one member of the group, with the other members supporting. A few songs on every album are equally all of the members, and this is one of those songs. The songs where they do that are often the most exciting, although many times the more solo songs are the ones that take more risks and provide a lot of variety on the albums. This song urges listeners to join Christ’s eternal party.
So can they party like us?
Yeah, if they party righteous
But ain’t no righteousness unless you talking bout what Christ does
Jerseys & Fitteds
This song has a much darker feel than many of their songs, and the vibe is very nicely different than the rest of the album. The message is very similar to the rest of the album, but with a new twist. It seems that the lyrics of this song come from the group’s frustration with the fact that many audience members like the hip hop vibe, but want nothing to do with the message of Christ.
Big Words
This song is a work of art both verbally and rhythmically. The lyrics move very quickly, especially on the chorus and are difficult to keep up with. It is about secular rap, which has become a little more intellectual recently, deliberately hiding sinful concepts in a sea of big words. (This song is specifically critical of Kanye West.) They say that these people should get back to the small words, like sin, because if you don’t understand the small words and their implications, there is no way that they are fully understanding the big word that they attempt to use.
Epiphany
This is not my favorite song on the album. The lyrics, while very applicable, are not as smooth as a lot of their lyrics, and the rhythm feels a little disjointed to me. It is about shining our light in the darkness because the world needs light if they are going to have the epiphany necessary for salvation.
Check for Us
This song challenges seekers to check out, not just Cross Movement’s music, but their lives as a whole. Their point is that God’s light reflects off of true Christians in all areas of their lives, and not just on Sunday or while they are performing. That light is impossible to ignore once one has really checked it out. This song is one of my favorites on the album.
We
This song disturbed me the first time I heard it, because there is a reference to drugs “cause it lifts me up like hydro, easy.” At first I thought that the “it” in that sentence was the spirit, and comparing the spirit to pot was not exactly something that I could agree with. Upon taking a closer look at the lyrics, I found that the “it” was self, and that the spirit is fighting that. I’m still not sure that, for a Christian audience, the drug reference was completely appropriate, but otherwise, the song is pretty good. Nice vibe, and a message of dying to self daily to live for Christ.
My Life Cypha
This song really hits home for me, and is my absolute favorite on the album. It is a personal testimony contrasting the singer’s life before Christ(“French was my accent, every sentence I was swearing at ya.”) with his life now (“Now I’d rather read his word in the morning than watch Kath and Regis”). The lyrics in this song are consistently smooth and clever. One of my favorite lines is “Thought the Bible was full of contradictions, then I read it and got confronted with the fact the contradictions were like weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.” The mixing on this song is also smooth and great.
The Bridge
In this song, the group addresses how the Christian community is not doing a good enough job of reaching into the darkness and saving souls. They talk about how Christ is the bridge to salvation, and we all need to invite people to walk across that bridge with us. They also use the image of bridge to describe hip hop as their bridge into the darkness to reach people, and they also discuss how God always provides a bridge that leads away from temptation whenever we are tempted.
Life, Camera, Action
“Life is like a short movie clip, then you’re gone.” This song points out that we have only a short time on this earth to do God’s will, and this life is really more like a preview of what is to come, so we should do our best to seize the moment so that the eternity part of the movie can be with God.
Conclusions
I’m really happy I added this album to my collection. Overall, I’d say that this album is a slight improvement over Holy Culture. I really enjoy everything I’ve heard this group do. If you like hip hop, and you are interested in fulfilling lyrics, this is the album for you. If you are more of a rock fan, but want to broaden your Christian music horizons, this is my favorite album in the Christian hip hop genre, so I recommend this album to you as well.
The Cross Movements fifth album Higher Definition calls attention to Gods ability to broadcast clear pictures of the issues of life and correct our di...More at Christianbook.com
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.