Reader Review #2


Techno is pretty much a nonexistent commodity in the American Christian music industry. The few exceptions are usually more of the power pop persuasion or light electronica, often good, but not really the sound many are hoping for. That changed with the release of Exodus by British artist DJ Andy Hunter. This is an unexpected gift to a listener who is dying to hear something new.

Like a live fish purchased from the store, one does not throw it into a new aquarium without first giving it the chance to warm up. Likewise, the listener is given one moment to ease into a vastly foreign land, where steady pulses not dissimilar to heartbeats guide us to where the real action awaits.

"Go" is intense, sharp and in-your-face. It has a quality that begs for motion picture treatment, a fact that will not go unnoticed by several in Hollywood and the video game community. "Wonders of You" continues in a similar vein, minus a couple rap segments within and is about ten percent more extreme than its predecessor. "Radiate" follows, another hard driven track that would ease into a dance club, Christian or not.

After twenty one minutes of fast-paced music, we are presented with "Amazing," a slight chance for the listener to catch their breath, but only for a moment. Angelic female vocals sing: "You take me high above the world I see way beyond the clouds, beautiful colours surround me, you show me dreams I've never dreamt before, unspeakable feelings evermore." The song is a perfect blend of high level production values with a simple, yet profound, faith driven message.

"Show me glory" are the three main words in "Show," the most hypnotic and experimental of the tracks on this album. This one takes a little getting used to, but again is interesting and different from the norm. "Translucent" and "Angelic" are two tracks that work well together, both using only female vocals. The first is about asking God for the renewal of innocence. It begins gracefully and ends in what I would call a triumphant fashion. "Angelic" marks the beginning of the return to club techno. It's still gentle, but with a moving, steady beat.

In an excellent use of symmetry, Andy takes us out of the album the same way he brought us in: fast and furious. "Sandstorm Calling" is a great instrumental piece with a lot of power and energy. "Strange Dream" is based on Acts 2:17 - a trippy number, but every bit as energetic as the one that came before it. Finally, "Intercessional" brings a close to this disc with possibly the most dance club appropriate sound on the album. There are moments you can nearly feel electricity, like crackling waves of fierce lightning falling from the sky.

Phrases like, "way outside the box" and "game changer" entered this listener's mind after nearly every song within. It is always great to see someone take advantage of a market that is being largely ignored, and not only participate, but excel way beyond expectations. Let us hope this is the beginning of some kind of trend, or at the very least, Andy Hunter pays us many more frequent visits in the future.