Dave's Review

A Maze of Grace: Avalon (Sparrow)

A Maze Of Grace proves that Avalon can deliver at or above the level established in the contemporary Christian pop market by vocal acts like 4 Him and Point Of Grace. Whether they can attain the same degree of awards and popularity remains to be seen in an industry where tastes are seemingly shifting in the opposite direction. Avalon holds an advantage in that they've largely chosen a dance oriented pop style, making their music more likely to appear in the growing club scene than, say, Newsong's.

Establishing a musical identity, A Maze Of Grace is more cohesive than Avalon's self titled debut project. The genre parade approach has been abandoned for heavily produced, high energy pop. Most of the tunes are in the vein of "This Love" and "Give It Up" from the first album. "Forgive + Forget" has a particularly infectious bass rhythm. "Testify To Love" is anthemic, addressing the necessity of giving constant praise to God. The only two breaks from the musical energy of A Maze Of Grace are the tender worship song "Adonai" and a tune from the Heavenly Father's perspective called "Dreams I Dream For You."

"A World Away" had writing input from all four Avalon members while Michael Passons and Jody McBrayer contributed to "Speed Of Light." The remaining songs were composed by individuals like Grant Cunningham, Matt Huesmann, producer Charlie Peacock, and Margaret Becker among others. While it would be nice to see more input from the group members, it's obvious that careful thought went into the song selection process. Lyrical clichés have been largely avoided. Although Avalon's debut wasn't shabbily produced, A Maze Of Grace is considerably better, improving all the other areas where the first recording fell short.