Travis Ryan’s debut
album is an excellent combination of driving rock guitar riffs and a solid
message that always manages to refocus our attention on Christ. Collaboration
with Grammy award winning producers, OneRepublic’s Brent Kutzle, and songwriters
Matt Redman, Jason Ingram, Brenton Brown and Dan Bailey resulted in an awesome
album that captures and holds your attention from beginning to end. The quality
of musicianship showcased throughout this project is more than enough to keep
you interested in what’s going on behind the vocals while not distracting from
the message contained in the lyrics.
This is due to Ryan’s
approach. His tenure as worship leader for Saddleback Church has cultivated a
true minister’s heart that results in a message the church needs to hear.
Beginning with the title track, “Fearless,” Travis encourages the church to
shake itself awake and drive out all fear by working to perfect the love of
Christ in our lives. Another indication of the heart behind this project is the
fact that he calls this album his “altar.” Married with two young sons, Travis
says, “If I died, these are the songs I would want my children to point to and
say: that was my dad; my dad believed that. This is an altar to God.” He’s
done an excellent job.
While the message is
strong and it’s clear the songs were clearly written with a deeper purpose, the
musicianship did not suffer. The primary musical drive comes from the interplay
between rock guitar riffs and the driving drums generously sprinkled throughout
the album. While there are no screaming guitar solos to speak of, those who
enjoy a good rock guitar riff will definitely enjoy the feel of these songs.
However, if you prefer a softer, more mellow approach you’ll that as well.
While there’s nothing groundbreaking about this album Ryan does an excellent
job of balancing musically interesting, driving material with the lyrical
aspect of songwriting. You’ll find worship songs, uplifting messages, and
challenges for personal growth. A couple favorites are “Awaken Us” and “Devotion”
each for different reasons. The primary focus on “Awaken Us” is the lyrical
encouragement to lift our eyes to God and contains this prayer:
“This is my desire, come like a
fire, awaken us, awaken us”
Devotion
is more of a personal declaration that, “I’m gonna sing forever, sing
forever, gonna find you...” It’s a focus on personal relationship and
friendship and devotion to the one that walks on water and paid our ransom.
When
you think about it, isn’t that what it’s all about? I don’t know about you but
if you’re anything like me life is crazy, busy, and incredibly distracting,
making it easy to lose perspective. That’s where albums like this come in.
Every time it plays I’m immersed in a worship experience that drives my focus
from the distractions of this crazy life to the joy, friendship, and grace I
experience in the presence of the Lord. To me that’s exactly what it’s all
about...
Reviewed
by Michael Henson.
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