Kerrie Roberts is the newest signee to the Reunion Records roster. Upon hearing her debut single, "No Matter What," on my local Christian radio station, I knew I had to check this girl out. The song is instantly catchy, and displays a synth-laden pop sound, without forsaking powerful lyrics with catchy beats. In other words, this song was right up my alley.

Naturally, after hearing "No Matter What" a handful of times, I was really looking forward to her album. However, with the sound that the single displayed, I came to expect a slew of poppy, upbeat tunes, a few songs tailor-made for radio, and a couple of stirring ballads thrown in for good measure. However, I was way off.

The album only has two (yes, just TWO) upbeat songs; the aforementioned "No Matter What" and another song called "Outcast." These two tracks are easily the highlights of the record, and it makes a person wonder why they were so skimpy on the pop tracks. "Maybe I'm Afraid" could possibly be filed as an upbeat song, especially when compared to the other tracks on the album. It's one of those that sound like it was destined to be a radio single, and I expect that it will likely be the next single from the album. Its structure is honestly pretty generic, but it does have a very catchy chorus.

At first, I was really taken aback with the fact that the remaining seven songs were all ballads. On the first listen through the album, only two of the ballads really stuck out, "This Love Doesn't Run" and "Keep Breathing." However, this is one of the albums that I consider a "grower album"... that is, it takes repeated listens to really sink in. After listening to it a handful of times, I slowly started to like more and more of the songs, until I eventually liked almost every song in the bunch. "Unstoppable" is one of my favorites now, with haunting production that sounds like it could have placed easily on Charmaine's new album Love Reality. "Love Comes Down" and "Savior To Me" are two other nice ballads worth mentioning.

Although it does have a slow pace that can grow a little boring after a while, Kerrie Roberts is one of those albums that you can really start to appreciate. Kerrie's vocals are stellar, sometimes drifting into Natalie Grant territory, and the writing is superb as well, especially for a pop album. With "No Matter What" quickly climbing the charts, I think Kerrie will definitely be a new artist to watch out for. I just hope that Kerrie's next album will be more balanced, and have a little more of something for everyone to enjoy.

- PReview date: 7/28/10, Review date: 8/21/10, written by Matthew Watson of Jesusfreakhideout.com