Ah, marketing. Marketing people are the geniuses that bring you cool promos, special offers and those tempting pre-purchase specials. So, you can only guess who's made the latest Third Day offering available to the public.

Third Day's quietly released 2002 EP Carry Me Home has received little to no hype whatsoever. This little gem is being offered by some retailers as a bonus for ordering the band's latest releases Come Together (November 2001), and their Offerings live DVD/Video. Sad part is, if you have either of those already, you need to pay full price for them to get this must-have. So the question is... is it worth it?

Carry Me Home opens with the rocking title track, an upbeat tune featuring the signature Third Day southern rock flavor. Considering the band has not released these tracks before that serve as b-sides, it's puzzling why they haven't made a complete album. The next two tracks treat the listener to a portion of the band's 2001 "Offerings Tour" with rousing live renditions of joyously apocalyptic "Sky Falls Down" and the ever worshipful "King of Glory." "1000 Years" opens with a guitar riff reminiscent of Sarah Jahn's "Lullaby," but quickly becomes Third Day's as lead singer Mac Powell's vocals enter and the riff melts into the pop rock ballad. The folkish song experiences a schizophrenic moment as it breaks into a slow guitar solo and mood change before swinging back into its previous tempo complete with a banjo. The EP comes to a close with "Cross of Nails," another upbeat and raw Third Day rock tune musically reminiscent of something that might have been heard on their 1999 Southern Tracks project.

Carry Me Home excites me. The only problem I found, is it seemed almost like a tease as I wished it were longer. But the mix of live hits and new tracks was a nice touch. It's a collection of 5 excellent songs that a Third Day fan should not dare live without if they wish to be considered a fan. Buy Come Together again if you have to and give it to a friend. Spread the Third Day love, but make sure you carry this project home!

- Review date: 8/28/02, written by John DiBiase