Dave's Top Eight

1. Jerry Reed...Revisited by Darrell Toney (reviewed 6/07) (5 Stars)
2. Sounds Like Sunday by Janet Paschal (reviewed 5/07) (5 Stars)
3. True To The Call by Kingdom Heirs (reviewed 3/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
4. Revival by Gold City (reviewed 10/06) (4 1/2 Stars)
5. Get Away Jordan by Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (reviewed 2/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
6. Breakin' Chains by Three Bridges (reviewed 5/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
7. Big Sky by The Isaacs (reviewed 4/07)
8. Skywriting by Mercy's Well (reviewed 7/07)

Click title to purchase at CBD.com...click artist name to read Dave's Review. A CD will automatically fall out of the Top Eight after twelve months if no CD surpasses it before then.

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May 22, 2007

CD Review: 33 Miles-Austins Bridge

DUAL REVIEW OF 33 Miles (self-titled) and Austins Bridge (self-titled)

RATING: 3 1/2 Stars

Producer: Nathan Nockels
Label: INO Records
Website: 33milesonline.com

Song Titles: "What Could Be Better," "Come With Me," "Stand Amazed," "There Is A God," "Hold On," "Thank You," "I Can't Deny," "Salvation Has A Name," "This Is Now," "The Best Man," and "When I Get Where I'm Going"



RATING: 3 1/2 Stars

Producer: Bubba Smith
Label: Daywind Records
Website: austinsbridge.com

Song Titles: "He Will Carry You," "Dry Bones," "His Burden's Light," "He's In Control," "I Am Free," "This Is Love," "I See Daylight," "Life's Too Short," "History Turned The Page," "What I Still Believe," and "Jesus, You Are"



(This review format is a bit different than my usual fare. It's more of a gut reaction to 33 Miles and Austins Bridge than a fully fleshed out review.)

I'm grouping these two particular CDs together because the artists share some similarities. Both CDs are self-titled debuts. Both are young "boy band" types with enough of a Country element in their music to draw comparisons to Rascal Flatts. In other words, both groups could be classified as "Pop/Country." 33 Miles leans toward the pop half, hailing from INO Records (which boasts artists ranging from Sandi Patty on one extreme to P.O.D on the other). Austins Bridge bends in the other direction, as you might expect from a group on the Daywind label. They also have a few Bluegrass moments, including one cut where Blues meets Bluegrass ("He's In Control").

Both CDs are infected with an clear case of debut-itus, though. In one word, 33 Miles' symptom could be called "frantic." Austins Bridge gets a two-word description: "lackluster songwriting."

I was drawn to 33 Miles because of their first single, "What Could Be Better." This cut has all the makings of a pop hit, and from what I've read, it's doing quite well on the Christian pop charts right now. The CD's general sound, though, is just too busy...too many over-produced loops of sound that repeat over and over verbatim. There's very little melody to speak of from the instruments. (At least "Hold On" gives us a brief guitar solo.) Even the vocals get too loopy at times, becoming more about driving a point into the ground than progressing musically. "This Is Now" toward the end is one of several examples. Everything is rhythm.

Austins Bridge has production quality and vocals that are closer to my personal taste. Their songs have a beginning, a middle, and an end; plus, the arrangements never bury the singers in the mix. Unfortunately, some of the songwriting leaves a lot to be desired. Where 33 Miles wears you out with recycled rhythmic loops, Austins Bridge has too many obvious rhymes. The bridge on "He Will Carry You" is a typical example: "Through the wind and through the rain, through the sorrow and the pain, When you feel your strength is gone and you can't go on."

If forced to pick one group over the other, I'd have a tough choice...fortunately, I don't have to choose. 33 Miles has more to say and they do the better job of saying it. Aside from their first single, I really like "The Best Man" and "When I Get Where I'm Going." My favorite cuts by Austins Bridge are "Dry Bones" (a public domain song with a modern fun arrangement) and "History Turned The Page" (a thought provoking lyric that stands tall due to a lack of competition).

I rated both CDs at 3 1/2 Stars. A good chunk of money was spent in the studio on each of these recordings, and it shows. Both groups have talented vocalists. Austins Bridge just needs to spend more time on song selection the next time around. Meanwhile, maybe 33 Miles can find a producer who understands the concept of coming up for air.

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posted by David Bruce Murray @ 11:51:00 PM


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