Until We Have Faces

No, sorry, I'm not writing about the book. (Wrong blog anyway) Time for a review of an album that came out early this year and has really been growing on me lately.

I often mention RED in the same sentence as Skillet and Thousand-Foot Krutch. Like their better-known contemporaries, they play a brand of "Christian metal" with excellent songwriting and generic-enough lyrics to appeal to secular audiences. They distinguish themselves with their blend of symphonic-tinged alternative metal and their vocalist's blend of sung and screamed (largely sung) vocals.

The musical and lyrical approaches of "Until We Have Faces" go hand in hand. "Feed the Machine" opens  the album with a heavily distorted, dissonant guitar riff, creating a harsh, dystopian atmosphere that is nonetheless entertaining in its deliberate ugliness. The largely distorted or screamed vocals emphasize the often draining, demanding, and futile nature of modern life. And this is a Christian album?

Next, "Faceless" addresses the loss of our true identity in Christ if we fall away from Him. Despite the overall Christian perspective of the song, I think everyone can identify with the tension in lines like "I'm not myself, feel like I'm someone else/Walled-in and faceless, so hollow inside". This tension builds on the dark world laid out in the opening track. Musically it's less nightmarish than "Feed the Machine", but still excellent aggressive, melodic alternative metal on par with anything secular bands are producing.

"Lie to Me (Denial)" deals with regret for past ways of life and the aftereffects of lies and betrayal, either from ourselves or others. Musically it's one of the better tracks, with a great, heavily symphonic chorus that exemplifies RED's current style. "Let It Burn" is somewhat slower and mellower musically, and sounds like an agonized plea to a God you want to believe is there. "Buried Beneath" turns up the volume again, and continues building the tension off the previous tracks. The lyrics deal with life crisis, breaking down, and building life on a faulty foundation.

After the anguished darkness laid out in the first five songs, the symphonic ballad "Not Alone" bursts onto the scene with the answer, a reassurance from God that "I am with you, I will carry you through it all". The beauty and positivity of the song couldn't contrast more sharply with what came just before. The first step of convincing anyone of the truth of the gospel is convincing them that sin really is a problem, and a similar setup approach is seen in this album.

And then we're right back to the dark songs. "Watch You Crawl" is sung from the perspective of none other than the devil himself, a gleeful taunt on his power to destroy us. If the whole album was inspired by the similarly-named work of C.S. Lewis, this song could have been inspired by The Screwtape Letters. "The Outside" is a response to this threat, rebuking lies we allow to drag us down. The relentless guitars and driving tempo of the song parallel the fury of our struggle with sin.

"Who We Are" is the kind of upbeat, fist-pumping ballad that would make Thousand-Foot Krutch jealous they didn't think of it. "Best Is Yet to Come", another softer song, is even more hopeful, expressing a deep hope in a glorious future that can only be explained by the concept of eternal life. This song has really been giving me hope lately. Finally, the quiet piano ballad "Hymn for the Missing" seems a bit out of place, ending the album on an uncertain note of loss, possibly of a relationship.

"Until We Have Faces" has a sharp dichotomy running through it. The first half is about the darkness, futility, and ultimately despair of life (or lifelessness) in a fallen world. The second offers a positive alternative: a relationship with Jesus Christ, which, while not without its own challenges, ultimately offers hope and an eternal promise. But this album is much more than just a gospel pitch. Songs like "Feed the Machine", "Lie to Me", and "The Outside" are excellent modern metal and deserve a listen whatever you think of the lyrics. I highly recommend this album to anyone who enjoys metal of all kinds.