LABEL: TOOTH & NAIL RECORDS
RELEASE DATE: MARCH 8, 2011

rom the background to the foreground to the limelight, Aaron Gillespie’s journey as a rock musician has been one of humility amidst the relentless pursuit of creative fame. At this point in the journey, Gillespie steps up to the microphone on his own to offer up humble offerings of praise to God in the form of Anthem Song. An effort to make worship cool for the “kids with tattoos and swoop over haircuts,” the album is good, but a little hit or miss from track to track.

“All Things” kicks the album off with a great modern rock sound and, if I’m perfectly honest, feels like The Almost are doing a worship song instead of a rock song. Given that Gillespie fronts that particular band, it’s a fair assessment. Anthem Songs is that side project that allows Aaron Gillespie the solo artist to let his red hair down and be who he wants to be outside of being the frontman of a band that is growing in popularity. Either way, the song starts of with a big, anthem-y noise that declares all things are in God’s hands. And, at once, the album establishes that this project isn’t so much about the lyrics—worship lyrics tend to be pretty simple—as it is that go-ahead sound that so many modern rock bands depend on for their bread and butter.

Next up is Gillespie’s cover of the Brenton Brown/Paul Baloche-penned “Hosanna” that’s been making the rounds since 2006. It’s fun, but we’ve been here before and it smacks of your standard “youth group” or “young adults ministry” sound. Given that this is Gillespie’s target age group, it works. With a few more elements of his time in the screamo scene with Underoath, he manages to make it feel a little different, but I’d have preferred a different cover track, at least this early in the project.

“Washed Away” is one of the true gems of the album, though. I cannot state how much I like this particular number. Here Gillespie shines both as a lyricist and vocalist. A total song. of praise and prayer, Gillespie treads the line between ballad and anthem, at times pensive and restrained, at times bold and loud.

“Earnestly I Seek You” is a nice arrangement of an old hymn. Gillespie’s vocals work particularly well on this track, allowing listeners to quietly worship a God of wonder.

“I Will Worship” is one of those worship numbers that you’re not quite sure will make the rotation in a church service or not. It’s more of a performance piece, but groups with a depth of musicians might be able to pull it off. The theme of worshipping God in extremely difficult circumstances is a strong one and we need more tracks like this where the music reflects the somberness of the lyrics.

Title track “Anthem Song” is the exact opposite. This is a “get up on your feet and jump” kind of song that will be used to kick off any number of young adult services. It’s necessarily a bit generic and simplistic, but let’s be honest, we’re not looking to get lost in the meaning of the lyrics during worship. Maybe that’s a sad statement about worship music, but it’s an indictment we could use against some of the greatest psalmists of all time, like David and Solomon.

The album is rounded out with a number of other anthems and ballads. Some I liked. Some I was indifferent about.

Aaron Gillespie isn’t trying to break any molds here. He’s been very straight-forward about his target audience and I think he’s done a good job reaching them with Anthem Songs. Album sales and adoption by worship teams will tell what his impact will be in the genre, but that does not diminish the value of the project itself. Gillespie has scratched a particular itch he has had for some time and he’s produced a nice album out of it.