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Chillout A Time to Worship (Waterfront)
Released March 2004
reviewed by Russ Breimeier
Sounds like
the relaxing "electronic new age" of Delerium, Moby, and Groove Armada with worshipful intent and vocals similar to Dido and Sarah McLachlan.
At a glance
Chillout's not a bad idea and succeeds in creating a quiet atmosphere, but the familiar songs have been tampered with to the point where they are frustratingly unrecognizable.
Track Listing |
1. I Belong to You
2. Lovely Day
3. I Can Only Imagine
4. Return to You
5. I Will Be Your Friend
6. I Trust in You
7. Above All
8. Jesus Freak
9. I Will Not Fear the Fire
10. Reason for Being
11. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
12. The Heart of Worship
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As rightly noted by a friend of mine, Chillout would be a horrible name for a band. Fortunately, it refers to a genre of music similar to modern new age that's been popularized in Europe, as anyone familiar with Delerium, Groove Armada, Moby, and Chemical Brothers will attest. Now it also represents a series of worship albums that serve as the foundation for the newly established Waterfront record label.
This is being marketed as something new and unique to Christian music, but it's actually been introduced to America over the last five years. We've already witnessed releases from Apt.Core, Rivertribe, Andy Hunter°, 2001's Soul Lift project, and a handful of worship albums through Vineyard. You know the drill: soft drum loops, swirling keyboard pads, relaxed bass, some acoustic guitar or muted trumpet, and unobtrusive vocals intentionally reminiscent of Dido or Sarah McLachlan.
Here's where things differ between other chillout projects, mainstream and Christian. While this series is more relaxed and true to the spirit of the genre than other Christian projects, it doesn't rely on original material. ChilloutA Time to Worship uses familiar favorites like MercyMe's "I Can Only Imagine," U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," Lenny Kravitz's "I Belong to You," and if you can envision a mellow version of it, dc Talk's "Jesus Freak." The other CD available, ChilloutThe Worship Xperience (ugh), includes Bob Dylan's "Serve Somebody," The Beatles' "The Long and Winding Road," and worship standards like "Power of Your Love" and "Here I Am to Worship."
Using well-known songs in this way is not a bad idea. Unfortunately, most tracks consistently borrow a single line from the original melody to set it up, only to continue with the same lyrics set to an altered melody. It's one thing to abandon song structure for the sake of creating atmosphere, but these songs are virtually unrecognizableisn't this a form of false advertising? Other tracks modify the words ever so slightly to fit a mainstream song into a worshipful context. There are plenty of other projects available that do a better job than this. The Chillout albums succeed in creating a relaxed musical ambience conducive to worship, study, and work, but expect to be disappointed if you're looking for an album of varied sounds or familiar favorites.
Note: though reportedly available in stores, at the time of this writing, Chillout was only available online at www.chilledworship.com.
Chillout A Time to Worship (Waterfront)
Released March 2004
reviewed by Russ Breimeier
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