How Can It Be Album Review
Rarely does an artist breakthrough the Christian music scene with as much humble force as Lauren Daigle has in the past year. A woman of perseverance (she auditioned three times for American Idol and got booted off before the top 12 each year) and rich faith, Lauren began singing in her church choir in Layfatte, Louisiana where she eventually lead worship. Her first album, “How Can It Be” released on April 14, 2015 went #1 on iTunes and today it could be yours for free! [Enter the CD giveaway below!]
With the raw lyrical authenticity of NeedtoBreathe and the raspy vocal power of Adele, this twenty-four year old is making the kind of Christian music that could be heard on Pop stations across the country (that is if she wrote about getting her freak on instead of everlasting love). Her incredible vocal power is showcased on the album’s opening tracks, “First” and “How Can it Be” and made even more impressive by her pure and vulnerable vocals on “Once and For All” and “Here’s My Heart.”
Surely a musical force to be reckoned with, her music has been resonating with me day after day. Perhaps the greatest aspect of this album is its ability to speak right to the core. At first Lauren grabs your attention with her inspiring voice but its the depth of her lyrics that captivate and restore with each listen.
Follow my “Recklessly Alive Artist Spotlight” playlist on Spotify where I will add an album each month!
Introductory Listening:
Her first single, How Can it Be, takes the viewpoint of the woman from the gospel story of Jesus and the woman taken in adultery (John 7:53-8:11). The song quickly won over Christian radio and for good reason. A simple and haunting piano background builds to a powerful chorus that every Jesus follower asks themselves over and over, “How Can it Be?”
Favorite Lyric
I am guilty Ashamed of what I’ve done, what I’ve become These hands are dirty I dare not lift them up to the Holy One
Deeper Look:
This song has become an anthem at Open Door, Come Alive (Dry Bones) and is rooted in the prophesy from Ezekiel 37 where God asks, “Son of man, can these bones live?” It is an invitation for all of the people on earth who are dead in their sins to come be fully alive in God. A single string note opens the song and is quickly joined by an uneasy keyboard melody that accompanies Daigle’s lyric “through the eyes of man it seems there is so much we have lost, as we look the road where all the prodigals have walked.”
This is one of those tracks where you can’t help but feel the presence of God as you roll the windows down, raise your hands to the sky and belt along. *Side effects may include getting closer to God and curious glances from the cars around you.
Favorite Lyric:
As we look down the road Where all the prodigals have walked And one by one The enemy has whispered lies And led them off as slaves
The Earworm:
It wasn’t until listening to the album a few times that I realized I couldn’t get Trust in You, out of my mind. At first glance it may appear to another cliche happy, sappy Christian tune but when you stop and listen to the chorus you hear:
When you don’t move the mountains I’m asking you to move, When you don’t part the waters I wish I could walk through, When you don’t give the answers as I cry out to you, I will trust in you!
It is so easy to trust God when his answer to a prayer is YES, but what about those times he doesn’t. What about the doors God closes, the relationships he ends, the chaos he doesn’t prevent.
I think we are going to be hearing from Lauren Daigle for a very long time and I cannot wait to see everything God has in store for her one-of-a-kind talents. Follow Lauren Daigle on Twitter @lauren_daigle or visit LaurenDaigle.com to learn more about her.
“How Can It Be” CD GIVEAWAY
The winner is randomly selected through Rafflecopter and will be notified by email after the entries close. The album can be listened to on Spotify or purchased through iTunes.
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