Jeff Nash was living a rough life when Jesus found him and turned him around. Nearly a decade later, Nash is leading worship with his wife at their home church and releasing music as Psalmist. His latest release is The Sound of Forgiveness, a 10-track offering that mixes praise with the gospel story of Jesus. In general, the lyrics don't break much ground; it offers a lot of standard fare worship lines. There are moments where Nash presents a unique angle, like on "OverLow" or "Passed Over," the latter of which contains the great imagery, "The anger of the Lord, it came to my town/...it passed by my house/I thank God there was blood/On the posts of my door." Musically, Nash jumps between rock and piano driven ballads. Oftentimes his voice reminds me of a young David Crowder. For the most part, the songs stay within the genre, though "Kingdom Come" brings a nice change of pace and a welcome guitar solo.

The main flaw of this album is its repetitive nature. Yes, repetition is a time-honored tradition in worship, but many of these songs feel like they overstay their welcome. Still, that's not to downplay the heart behind the record. The Sound of Forgiveness is very much a genuine expression of worship. At no point does this feel like a cash grab or simply following a trend. Nash is trying to be a Psalmist that leads the listener into worship of the Savior. Given some better recording equipment and shorter tunes, this Psalmist's next album could make for a great worshipful experience.

- Review date: 9/27/23, written by John Underdown of Jesusfreakhideout.com