Jekyll & Hyde
Petra
--- David Bruce Murray
Label: Inpop
Website: www.petraband.com
Producer: Peter Furler
Song Titles: “Jekyll & Hyde,” “All About Who You Know,” “Stand,” “Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda,” “Perfect World,” “Test Of Time,” “I Will Seek You,” “Life As We Know It,” “Till Everything I Do,” and “Sacred Trust”
“Petra Means Rock.” For the past several years, that slogan has been questionable when it came to the Christian artist known as Petra. I first discovered Petra when they were at their peak, professionally speaking. They were selling out large arenas with their brand of gospel rock and roll in the 1980s. Loud guitar riffs and intricate keyboard parts competed with the lead singer for space in their musical framework and they even had background vocals with good harmony.
Unfortunately, in the 1990s, Petra became a shadow of their former self. It wasn’t just that their sound went out of style; they actively pursued other sounds they thought would be appealing in the new marketplace. Although they caught the edge of the praise and worship wave and ride that for a while, other efforts sometimes bordered on abysmal. They reached the ultimate low with Double Take, a project where former Petra hits were re-worked to the point that only the words remained the same. It actually won a Grammy in 2000, but the Grammys are notoriously clueless when it comes to gospel music.
A year or two later, along came the Newsboys’ Peter Furler and Inpop Records. Petra helped the Newsboys get started, and now it was Furler’s time to return the favor. Longtime Petra fans had been clamoring for a real rock project for years, so Furler in his wisdom decided to give it a whirl. You might say he chose to “dance with the one that brung” them.
And so we come to Jekyll & Hyde. In this project we have loud guitar riffs, and I mean TONS of loud guitar riffs. When you hear the first few notes of the first cut, you know immediately that Petra has finally got back to making genuine Petra recordings. If anything, it has more of a raw quality than their previous work. It isn’t exactly a return to their sound of the 1980s, but it has the same type of energy.
What’s different? For one thing, there’s very little if any synthesizer. The emphasis is on Bob Hartman’s guitar work and John Schlitt’s vocals. Another difference is that the energy level is consistent from the beginning of the CD to the end. Previous Petra recordings would always have a ballad or two aimed at radio.
Standout tracks include the opening title cut with its strong lyrical hook. “Stand” has an encouraging lyric for Christians that should help reaffirm their convictions. A Newsboys influence can be heard on “Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda.” Rhythmically, it’s similar to the Newsboys song “Step Up To The Microphone.” In addition to production, Furler played drums and sang background vocals for Jekyll & Hyde. Fellow Newsboy Phil Joel also contributed BGVs.
“Sacred Trust” might be viewed as a promise from the band to stay faithful to their calling:
"You’re trusting us to be bold.
The story has to be told,
To every nation and tongue, young and old.
I’m gonna shout from the hill.
How could I ever be still?
I’m gonna let the chips fall where they will."
Sounds like a good philosophy to have. In fact, it sounds like a good principle to apply to the actual sound of the music in the future as well . . . bold, loud, and regardless of potential popularity, letting the chips fall wherever they happen to fall. I said all that to say longtime Petra fans will enjoy Jekyll & Hyde.
Rating: 4 Stars