Phil Wickham has been performing professionally since 2006, but after releasing two under-hyped and discredited albums, it seems he has finally found his niche in the industry. Featuring Brit-pop tinged praise and worship, it has surprised me how little commercial success he has found, with inspiring lyrics and hook laden choruses, he is definitely one of contemporary Christian music’s most talented, and best kept secrets. But with the introduction of his third project, “Heaven & Earth,” it seems all that could change soon enough. Starting with the radio ready “Eden” and ending with the acoustically driven “Heaven Song,” this is the best recording of his career, and the most exciting discoveries I’ve heard all year.
One of the most interesting things about the CD is the theme it carries. While most artists focus on God himself, this looks more to God in the aspect of Heaven and what our purpose is on earth. One of my favorites that I mentioned before is “Eden,” kicking it off with a punchy, almost techno feel, and starts the main subject right off the bat. The title track comes soon after, and with it brings an uplifting, but thought provoking chorus that will relate to listeners, and will inspire them to take action, saying: I'm climbing the fences / I'm crossing the sea / I'll cover the distance / I just want You to shine on me. Next comes the highly orchestrated folk song, “The Time Is Now,” which finds the experimental side of this performer at it’s full extent, but also creates one of the album’s most noteworthy highs.
While the first half of the running time is somewhat more impressionable, the second portion still remains a remarkable improvement on his early music, with the lead single “Safe” forming a sort-of bridge to the mainly mellow style of the later songs. “I’ll Always Love You” is another powerhouse anthem, and though it sounds more like Cannons than anything else on this attempt, there is absolutely nothing I could say against it, and when I’m on the seventh track, that is an accomplishment not outdone by many. Another amazing piece is “Cielo,” (rendered as “heaven” in Italian) again fusing both his fantastic songwriting and uplifting melodies, and then the finale “Heaven Song” tops it off with the finest use of words and instrumentation maybe in the whole project overall.
Never would I have thought that Phil Wickham would have come this far this quick, or ever. Making for one of the most surprising jumps in quality I have seen in a long time, “Heaven & Earth,” is no doubt worthy of admiration, and of your CD case. So what makes this so great? I have been asking myself this question for a while now, and have finally come to a conclusion. In the past, he has fit the mold of praise and worship, and while he has shown plenty of potential, but really never had the courage of breaking out and building something different, for the sake of risking his fans or even career. But now that he has done away with that idea, he has found a new sound that will set him a mile above his peers, and convey the thirst for difference that many listeners long for among the excess cliches in this genre. ~ Christian Lingner
5 of 5 stars
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