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JFH Music Review


Revive, Blink
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Revive
Blink



Artist Info: Discography
Album length: 11 tracks: 39 minutes, 41 seconds
Street Date: June 22, 2010


A quartet from the Down Under, Revive made waves early last year with their major label debut, Chorus Of The Saints; while not a perfect record by any means, it majored on a raw pop rock sound and some clever experimentation that stood out somewhat in their field. With this acceptable debut in tow, plus a replacement of guitarists (Nevertheless's AJ Cheek filling in the position), we are introduced to their sophomore effort on Essential Records, Blink.

Blink has the unfortunate problem with having too many good things to say and not enough exciting tracks to contain them. Indeed, the lyrical content in Blink is nothing but admirable; examples include "Something Glorious," which pleads for God's majesty and refuses to settle for mediocrity, while "We Were Meant To Be" makes a charge for Christians to arise to their higher calling. The listener would be much more receptive to these messages, however, if the music accompanying them was more interesting. "All Of This For You," "Hold On Love," "We Were Meant To Be," and "Love Rule Today" all have the mutual problem of having nothing musically for on which the listener can hang their hat. With a monotonous and sometimes even boring flow to the whole record, it's hard to stay involved in what's coming around the bend because of the album's predictability. And sometimes when Revive tries something different, it still doesn't improve the album's experience; "Welcome To Eternity" closes out the record on a contemplative note, and while being acoustically driven effectively contrasts it from the rest of the album, its execution is dull at best.

To the album's credit, Blink does make a grand first impression, starting out with what is possibly the band's most accomplished song to date, "Almost Missed This Moment." With a mastered guitar section and fast-paced drums, it takes everything Revive was good at from their first release and pairs it with polished production to achieve a solid track. Another potential standout is "Love Found Me." With atmospheric guitars and a driving beat, the song successfully becomes an experience without compromising the message. Aside from these particular tracks, however, Blink has very little that grabs attention to itself. If the whole album was modeled with this level of distinctiveness throughout, the record would have been far more rewarding of a listen.

Compared to Revive's debut record, Blink doesn't feel like the progression or improvement it should have been. While their sound does feel a bit more refined with cleaner production and sleeker songwriting, the raw flavor that made Chorus Of The Saints unique is no longer present, and the album feels forgettable upon its conclusion. There are indeed some aforementioned tracks that effectively stand out from the pack; as a whole, however, Blink feels only like an average, destined-for-radio CCM release that could have been much more.

- PReview date: 5/13/10; Review date: 6/20/10, written by Roger Gelwicks of Jesusfreakhideout.com



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JFH Staff's Second Opinion



Aussie band Revive returns with a mixture of some standouts and other generally forgettable songs, nearly all of which mirror sounds found on the band's debut. The lively opener, "Almost Missed This Moment," gives a clear representation of the album's theme; life can fly by without you noticing. A major setback of Revive's first US release was a lack of memorability in their softer tracks. Unfortunately, this continues to be an issue on Blink. The songs "My Hope," "Something Glorious," "All of This For You," and "We Were Meant To Be," are musically and lyrically above average, but they are also easily forgotten. Exceptions are "Hold On Love," which may start out unremarkably, but builds in strength to become a powerful piano driven ballad, and "Welcome to Eternity," which proves to be a semi-powerful closer to the album. On the other hand, Chorus Of The Saints definitely showcased the band's strength with more up tempo sounds. As was the case with Revive's debut album, the faster tracks again seem to carry the album through. "Don't Give Up The Fight," and "Love Rule Today," are solid and distinguishing, while the title track has slightly generic lyrics but still proves to be rather memorable. Blink's standout would have to be "Love Found Me," with its compelling beat and sing-along quality. Unfortunately, unlike the band's debut, less risks are taken musically on Blink, and more songs become forgettable, leading to an overall unremarkable sophomore release. - Sam Schaumberg, 6/4/10



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. Record Label: Essential Records
. Album length: 11 tracks: 39 minutes, 41 seconds
. Street Date: June 22, 2010
. Buy It: iTunes
. Buy It: Amazon.com

  1. Almost Missed This Moment (3:32)
  2. My Hope (4:02)
  3. Something Glorious (3:28)
  4. Blink (3:55)
  5. All of This For You (3:59)
  6. Hold On Love (3:36)
  7. Don't Give Up The Fight (3:14)
  8. Love Found Me (3:30)
  9. We Were Meant To Be (3:54)
  10. Love Rule Today (3:04)
  11. Welcome to Eternity (3:34)

 

 

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