Get Your Music on Amazon!
Get Your Music - and everything else - on Amazon! All purchases made on Amazon through this link earn a commission for Jesusfreakhideout.com!

JFH Music Review


River Valley Worship, The Ensemble Project EP
CLICK COVER TO ENLARGE

River Valley Worship
The Ensemble Project EP



Artist Info: Discography
Genre(s): Worship / Pop
Album length: 5 tracks: 24 minutes, 56 seconds
Street Date: February 12, 2021


READER RATING:   


Though they may not be the most prominent name in modern worship music, the year 2021 marks a full decade since River Valley Worship first sprung out of River Valley Church, a multi-campus mega-church based in the Twin Cities region of Minnesota. Led by church worship pastor Ryan Williams, the collective of musicians and vocalists quickly released six full-length albums in nine years, the earlier ones being impressive enough to draw the attention of BEC Recordings, and the most recent of which was 2020's Altars, a live album that was one of the better modern "alt-pop" worship albums in recent years. The formula of Altars was fairly standard for today's live worship, with a lot of slow build quiet-to-loud dynamics, many of which were very powerful. However, the project bore a particularly treble-heavy and echo-drenched vocal mix that occasionally distracted from the quality of some of its best songs.

In an attempt to put the focus more on the quality songwriting, and less on the modern trappings of electric guitar and synthesizers, River Valley Worship returns in 2021 with the five-song EP, The Ensemble Project. In this case, the ensemble is a powerful collection of the eight vocalists of RVW singing five of the best songs from Altars in a stripped down, piano-based format. Three of these songs ("Hallways," "Real Thing," and "Shadows / Spotlights") feature striking vocal arrangements with nothing more than a single piano accompanying them. There is generally no "lead vocal" in these songs, other than sometimes an initial verse; instead, the strong effect of eight powerful and dynamic voices equally mixed is striking and often moving. Opener "A Wild Chorus (Altars)" also features a light string section which doesn't distract from the voices. All these songs play with the original song chords and structures in interesting ways, with one even adding a key change.

The only slight misstep is middle track "Fade," which begins strong but then turns into an awkward gospel-influenced take on what might be the most dynamic song on Altars that unfortunately veers from the stripped-down vocal focus in favor of a full band. The overbearing organ and small-sounding drum kit, which sounds lifted from 1990's worship, feel a bit jarring in the midst of an album that is otherwise about minimal instrumentation and a truly impressive and well-arranged vocal ensemble.

Worship music in the modern era -- and boy, there is plenty of it these days -- always must straddle a fine line between performance excellence and intimacy in God's presence. River Valley Worship has released some of the better modern worship of the last few years, and this further makes clear the considerable talent in the group, but it's also a fair question to wonder who this EP is intended for. If you are already familiar with Altars, you may be intrigued by a fresh take on these songs and the consistently remarkable choral vocal production, at its best when accompanied by a single, simple piano. But if you've never heard of RVW and you're just looking for great new modern worship, you'd be better served to get familiar with the many powerful songs on that album first, because The Ensemble Project is definitely more about the performance--though without question, it's quite a performance.

- Review date: 2/9/21, written by Evan Dickens of Jesusfreakhideout.com



(JFH Sponsor Spot)

Get the new FREE JFH MP3 compilation -- Vol. 13!

 

. Record Label: BEC Recordings
. Album length: 5 tracks: 24 minutes, 56 seconds
. Street Date: February 12, 2021
. Buy It: Apple Music
. Buy It: Amazon Music (MP3)

  1. A Wild Chorus (Altars) (Ensemble Version) (4:58)
  2. Shadows / Spotlights (Ensemble Version) (5:31)
  3. Fade (Ensemble Version) (5:30)
  4. Real Thing (Ensemble Version) (4:24)
  5. Hallways (Art House Session) (4:35)

 

 JFH Album Sample Player

 



Leave a Comment

 

 

go to main Album review page
go to Album review archive

 

 

                 
Get the new FREE JFH MP3 compilation -- Vol. 13!

Search JFH



This Friday, July 25, 2025
ALBUMS
Anchor & Braille New Mexico [Equal Vision]
B. Tee Told You [Syntax]
Bride Scarecrow Messiah CD Re-Release [Girder]
Empowered SALT - EP (independent)
Homesick Prodigals Different Good (independent)
KDNS After Eden [Syntax]
Olivia Lane Songs About Jesus (Deluxe Edition) [BEC]
Tasha Cobbs Leonard TASHA [Motown Gospel]
Kevi Morse Kingston We Winning [Syntax]
Pulpit Vomit Hospital Lens [Rottweiler]
Anthony & Tiffany Salerno Dance for Jesus - EP (independent)
Taylor & Co Worship Breakthrough - EP (independent)
Josh Wright LEAD (independent)

SINGLES
abenezer i was lost - Single [Gotee]
Joe L Barnes Good Shepherd (Studio Version) - Single [Provident]
Sho Baraka Still Got Faith (ft. L3xdivine) - Single [Syntax]
Gracie Binion Easy To Please - Single [BEC]
Katty Camargo Shine Upon Me - Single (independent)
The CCC Collective Thankful - Single (independent)
C4 Crotona Mr. Gritty - Single [Syntax]
CXMMXNS Trust and Obey (feat. CAIN) - Single [Provident]
EJ Swavv & Nickwit2Ks Growth - Single [Syntax]
Forrest Frank GOD'S GOT MY BACK - Single [River House / 10K]
Andrew Gonoude Closer To You - Single (independent)
Noah Paul Harrison Oh Lord My God (Live) - Single [Bethel]
J.Solo All I Have (ft. Kaboose & MotionPlus) - Single [Syntax]
Kings Kaleidoscope + Kings Kaleidoscope Hymns Amazing Grace - Single [BEC]
Tasha Layton Life In Me - Single [BEC]
Lecrae Bless You (feat. Torey D'Shaun) - Single [Reach]
TobyMac God Did It (feat. Jamie MacDonald) - Single [Capitol CMG]
Matt Maher Wait (Radio Version) - Single [Provident]
Hunter Plake Down to Earth - Single [BEC]
QEW JOYXFIX (ft. Stevie Rizo) - Single [Syntax]
Naomi Raine God Will Work It Out - Single [Tribl]
Rave Jesus Runnin' - Single [Provident]
Saints in Exile Bad Vibes - Single [Syntax]
Xander Sallows infinite - Single [DREAM]
Silent Reflection Left Me for Dead - Single [Syntax]
Michael W. Smith Your Love Is A Flood - Single [The Fuel]
John Stratton The Body and the Blood - Single [Pure Mosaic Services]
Regina Vandereijk You're the Light - Single (independent)
Joel Vaughn Feel It - Single [DREAM]
Zach Williams Killed A Man - Single [Provident]
Zauntee Jesus Down In Florida - Single [BEC]

VINYL
Bride Scarecrow Messiah Vinyl [Girder]

DVD
Jordan Smith The People's Hymnal DVD [Gaither]

This Saturday, July 26, 2025
SINGLES
Anthony & Tiffany Salerno What Would You Do? - Single (independent)

Next Friday, August 1, 2025
ALBUMS
Crash Rickshaw Big Sir - EP [Velvet Blue]
McKamey Legacy Holding to Truth [Horizon]
Ordained Thunder Roar [Girder]
V1 Worship Archives [DREAM Worship]

SINGLES
Dan Bremnes Human - Single [Curb]
Lauren Daigle Let It Be A Hallelujah - Single [Centricity]
Sleeping At Last Believe - Single (independent)

VINYL
Disciple Attack! (Limited Run Vinyl) Vinyl [Girder]



For all release dates, click here!
 

Join honey and save on online purchases!
Get all of JFH's indie compilation now totally free!
Check out depositphotos for royalty free images