Its main strength in taking the listener on that journey is in Daniel's skill at crafting lyrics. Sometimes song lyrics can be ripped from their musical context and slapped in a poetry collection and no one would be the wiser. Daniel's words have such transcendence. The listener will feel whatever emotion Daniel is trying to convey, whether that's wrestling with making a big move ("Westward"), a nostalgic longing for childhood innocence ("The Morning Sun Above My House (From My Backyard Swing)"), or trying to help a friend through grief ("Returning the Favor"). It's not just capturing the emotion of the topic that is impressive with Daniel's lyrics; there are plenty of metaphorical pictures he paints or turns-of-phrase he employs that make for a rich experience. There are so many examples one can draw from, but a particularly impressive moment comes on "The Morning Sun Above My House" when Daniel manages to use five words all ending with an "oy" sound. It's blink and you miss it, but it's those little nuances that give the lyrics depth and quality.
Benjamin Daniel has much to say on this record and while the words may be well-written, the music isn't always up to task. There's not much by way of melodic hooks or instrumental riffs to keep the ear engaged consistently. Some tracks manage to rise above this, like "The Morning Sun Above My House" or "Lights Out," but most blend together in a sleepy way. It makes the album feel more contemplative, and that would work if you're also feasting on the lyrics. But The Rain Falls Sideways doesn't work as a casual listen. The length of the individual tracks also doesn't help. Only one song clocks in below 4 minutes ("Magic Dust" at 2:34), while the rest average in the 5-6 minute range. A thought that kept occurring to me while listening was that these songs could use an editor. Given the heaviness of the words, the plodding of the music makes the album feel heavier than it perhaps needs to be. That said, this will likely not be a record that a listener will throw on "for fun," but it could make a great companion in troubled times when one needs encouragement.
Over a decade ago, I also lost a parent and eventually left my hometown to go west. I didn't make it as far as California, but I have had plenty of moments of nostalgic longing for the land of my youth and wondering, if I moved back, would it even be the same. Thus the subject matter of Benjamin Daniel's latest album found instant connection with me. Songs like "The Morning Sun" or "Magic Dust" hit home, while other references to grief and depression also found a mark. The Rain Falls Sideways is a poetic journal set to music. Those who have felt burned by life will find some solace in the shelter of this album.
- Review date: 8/13/24, written by John Underdown of Jesusfreakhideout.com
Record Label: None
Album length: 11 tracks: 54 minutes, 12 seconds
Street Date: July 5, 2024
Buy It: Bandcamp
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Benjamin Daniel: Man, that's a big question, and it might get a long answer. I was raised in a pretty musical family where music was always encouraged, both performing and listening to it. That's a blessing in a conservative Christian home where there's often a separation of art and faith. My parents were not like that. If anything, they pushed it harder than I wanted at the time. I'm also the youngest of four, which means I got to inherit my older siblings' music without the constraints that my older siblings had when my parents were figuring stuff out.
I also inherited really, really good music. There was a lot of older stuff within the Christian music scene that feels a little dated and hokey looking back. No disrespect, but I feel like I was spared that from my family. I'd never describe them as snobs, but they had taste and didn't tend to like the stuff that was more on the nose. The Christian music I listened to first was more in the Christian folk vein like Caedmon's Call (my first favorite band), Andrew Osenga, Jars of Clay, and Indelible Grace. Later came Andrew Peterson and Andy Gullahorn who have been the most influential to me of that group of artists. By 15, I got into heavier rock music and became a full-on Tooth & Nail kid. Fifteen years later, I'd still say Anberlin and mewithoutYou are my favorite bands of all-time.
I say all of that because I believe the music I write is the average of all of my favorite artists and biggest influences. I don't claim anything as my own. I describe my music as sort of the average between my favorite songwriter (Andrew Peterson) and my favorite band (Anberlin). The Gospel Coalition put out an article with a bunch of indie artists recently and described my music as "indie rock by way of the Inklings." Yes, PLEASE! I'm still riding the high of that compliment.
I didn't start writing music seriously until 2015, when I was 21, but I believe I was engaging in the songwriting process earlier than I even realized. It was just a fun thing I would think about walking around my Georgia neighborhood as a teen (the biggest perk of being a homeschooler: lots of mental flexibility... also, the biggest con). I'd listen to Anberlin or some other band and come up with album ideas in my head, the style corresponding to the band I was listening to. I still remember some of those songs as a kid that never went anywhere outside my own head. No, I will never play them. They were full band anyway.
When I was 21, I realized writing songs on guitar came naturally even though I had no official musical experience. I think it's because I spent so much time doing work in my head beforehand and listening to good music and knowing what I liked. I don't think I'm the best writer, but I was listening to the first songs I wrote back then and you know what? I still really like them.
Benjamin: Both. I think of this album as the closing of a chapter, the third in a loose trilogy with Shelterheart and Home Enough for Now. I went into the studio way too soon after finishing and putting out Home Enough, but I think I was just desperate to write a record that wasn't overflowing with grief, and Asher and I had the studio time planned out almost as soon as we finished Shelterheart. So, the album reflects the end of a season and is sort of reactionary.
But unlike the last two records, which were carefully crafted, The Rain Falls Sideways ended up being composed of songs that weren't written with the intention of being on the same record. "Westward," "Morning Sun," and "Magic Dust" were all written in early 2020 before I moved to California. "Take Hold" and "Returning the Favor" were written for Home Enough for Now, but they felt out of place (they were too resolved). "Fear Hymn" was written clear back in 2016. "Kill Me" was going to go on a side project with Allen Odell. Finally, the title track, "Lights Out," "You Slow Down" and "The End That Never Came" were all written in the studio. They were the only songs I knew would be on this record when I wrote them.
The process was a bit haphazard to be honest. You can probably hear a little bit of that in the final product. But I'm so happy with how it all came together.
Benjamin: Well, since it all goes back to Jesus Freak Hideout, I knew Asher was producing music under his NAMO project because I follow Andrew's account. I just didn't know how good the music was until I read Josh's review on JFH back in 2020. I thought it was just ambient instrumental music for some reason, then I heard "Thunder in a Blue Sky" and fell in love. That seed was planted: "Hey, what if you worked with a Peterson?" Then I reached out after I moved to California. Then it just felt so fluid from then on out. Same influences. Same goals. It was awesome.
Asher is a delight to work with. Shelterheart was miraculous because I'd never been in a studio and he made the process so natural. I still can't believe how close to perfect that whole experience was. The Rain Falls Sideways was more chaotic, but that was all my own chaos in addition to some weird bumps in the road (we lost two of our ten studio days to a cancelled flight, then one more day to a medical emergency that took me out). Asher kept it all together and was a voice of reason and peace. With Shelterheart, I really felt like I had a strong vision going in that he executed perfectly. With this record, it sort of felt like teetering toward disaster and Asher would help right the ship. I can't stress how much I can't believe this record worked, if indeed that is the listener's takeaway. And Asher, God bless him, he really went above and beyond. I suppose that's the producer's job, but I do wish I'd served him better in the process as a friend. I was sort of a mess.
Skye and I haven't really interacted much. She was kind enough to do the feature on "Marrow" based on one very quick conversation after one of her shows, then we worked on it remotely. But boy, I'm glad she did. She killed it.
Benjamin: Ah man, I wouldn't have any music without community. Allen Odell and I have been best friends for almost ten years now and he was my sounding board. I was so petrified of sharing my heart with people that I never would have done it without him. After that, my pastors pushed me. My family encouraged me. So on and so on.
As music has caught, it's been important to me that my musical community reflects the community that got me this far. Chase has been a brother in arms for years, but I've also gotten to connect with so many other brothers and sisters across the country now. It's super fun when you've admired their music for a while. Seth Davey (from Attalus) has become a great friend this year and it's so fun because his songs have ministered to me for over ten years now. I'm also talking with a potential producer down the line whose music has really fed my soul. Making music and engaging in this community is a cool way of meeting heroes, seeing their labors of love, and saying, "Right back at ya." Whatever that might be worth.
Right now, I'm working on building my community out here in California. That's been the challenge, but there are some exciting things and sweet people I've just recently been able to connect with. It's always better in community. And I love my community out here in general (my church and my workplace are wonderful), I'm just working on integrating my music into it more. Both have been a little disparate from each other and I don't like that. But in the immortal words of Kronk, "It's all coming together."
Benjamin: So, I basically say, "Hey, I love you. Wanna be on my record?" And then if they say "Yes!" they end up on the record. If they say "No!" then they don't end up on the record but I still love them.
I do try to make sure it matches. For instance, my buddy Shaun Hypes (from Dens) has an incredible voice that would go with anything, but I want to utilize someone like that for a bigger song, so he was perfect for "Green Again". My friend Levi Sikes (Former Ruins) has a kind of darker timbre to his voice that I immediately heard for "Can't Keep Up" and it gives me chills when I listen back. That stuff is so fun.
For the newest record, Chase Tremaine and Kenny Hilliard (Kenny & Claire) worked on half of the songs. They elevated the entire record, but if I'm being honest, it's also all one massive ploy to hang out with those guys. And I get to remember these people I love every time I hear the record. Also, can we talk about Chase's solo in "Lights Out"?
Benjamin: The age old question! In my experience, the more naturally a song comes together, the more you forget which came first. Generally, I spend the most time on lyrics so it's likely those come first. But I prefer coming up with a musical idea and plugging lyrics into a melody afterward. It's rarer but more fluid.
I'm not sure I could tell you which came first for any given song though. Once it comes together, it's hard to remember how I got there.
Benjamin: A (darkly) funny anecdote... I recently played up in the Bay Area at a friend's house and a guy came up to me who I hadn't met before and gushed about how much he loved the drums in "1999 Bridge Creek-Moore Tornado" and all I could think was, "I wrote this song about my mom dying and how screwed the burial process is and this brother I've never met loves it because of the drums." Being a songwriter is insane. You just have to laugh at the absurdity of it all. I wasn't offended by the compliment in the least, he loved a song that few have even heard. I just found it hilarious in a demented way.
To answer more specifically, I always feel like it's too much. Home Enough for Now, especially, felt like a mistake that I had to make. The whole record is a real-time open journal exercise of the worst year of my life. By definition, I think it was too much. Who wants to hear a lo-fi album about grief that runs longer than an hour and was recorded on an iPhone by some nobody with a couple hundred Spotify listeners? The thing is, I know there are people out there who need it. They might be few and far between, but they're out there.
I believe the power of the Gospel (as illuminated by the Holy Spirit) reframes the worst moments in our lives. By the power of Jesus and His Word, I have had the most joyous moments of clarity immediately follow the darkest moments of despair. This has happened many, many times both in prayer and in sweet fellowship with precious saints in times of crisis. I pray people are able to experience a taste of this through my songs. My biggest prerogative while I'm here on this earth is to carry out the Great Commission, and one of the best ways I know how is to open up my wounds and show folks that Jesus is there too. Yes, even there. If the stuff I write feels precious, the work of Christ is more precious, and I don't want to waste anything. It's His pain first, anyway, not mine. And also, I'm not the only one who's experienced what I've experienced. Burying my experiences as if I am alone is more self-indulgent than sharing with others.
You want to know something though? Releasing music is not cathartic. Not to me at least. Writing it is, but releasing it is the opposite for me. I went into full meltdown mode after putting out Home Enough for Now. I've been in a strange dark night of the soul since releasing The Rain Falls Sideways. I think the pride and fear my heart is prone to often makes up for any catharsis I would otherwise feel. But to quote 2 Corinthians 1:9, "Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead." My hope isn't in personal catharsis, but that souls might be won, and others refreshed, as I lean on Him Who raises the dead.
All of that to say, for all the personal hardships I've written about, some of the most uncomfortable songs I've written are songs I've written for other friends. I wrote "Returning the Favor" for my older brother in the faith after he lost his actual brother to a drug overdose. I was nervous about sharing because the song was so close to his experience and I certainly wanted to run it by him first. The funny thing is, I sent it to him, he basically said, "This is great!" And that was it. It helps that the people I write songs for are generally more level-headed and less intense than I am. Shelterheart was difficult in this regard because there's a lot of songs about brotherly affection there, which we need more of, but it's also very vulnerable.
All this to say, Jesus really simplifies everything.
Benjamin: Philippians 1:6 says, "And I am sure of this, that He Who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ." I think if you're a Christian, having that eternal security is everything. You'll struggle in moments. You might isolate yourself. You might curse a bunch. You might punch yourself in the face. Or maybe you're a little less unhinged than I've been in the last number of years and don't do any of those things.
But wherever you are, you are kept. His strength is made perfect in your weakness (that's from 2 Corinthians 12, plus "Perfect" by Flyleaf), He will restore the years the locusts have eaten (Joel 2, plus "Year of the Locust" by Andrew Osenga), and you are more than conquerors in Him (Romans 8, plus "Every Giant Will Fall" by Rend Collective which my brother Jess Arnds played over and over again, first to my mild annoyance, then to my deep encouragement).
People these days (especially artists) treat theology like it's didactic. It's not. For the literal love of God, it's not. Knowing Jesus has this all in the bag is everything and I'm thankful to have been taught that at an early age. Yes, my faith might waver, but it never fails because it's not mine in the first place. Lean on Jesus and find others who are doing the same because you weren't meant to faith in a vacuum.
Benjamin: I just finished my first tour and it went great! I'm trying to plan more shows right now, both in California and a few beyond. I know I want to play a lot more, Lord-willing, but I've got a full-time job so I'm working on some creative solutions for that. I have ideas!
I'm always working on music. I have so many ideas simmering in my head (and in Microsoft Word, and in my Voice Memos app). I'm beginning to work on a home studio setup to record easier and engage in the creative process that way. We'll see. I want to keep momentum going but I also think I might have burned myself out a little, so I want to trust God with what's next.
No collaborations with Andrew. Maybe one day!
Benjamin: First of all, sushi is arguably my favorite food, but a California roll doesn't cut it, so that's strike one. Give me something raw.
All my best to Rams QB, Matthew Stafford (he's still a Georgia Bulldog in my mind), but this is no contest. Some of my earliest memories in life are literally falling asleep at Braves games after eating a bag of hot peanuts. Baseball has made up so much of my life and I'm not sure I realized this until the Braves finally won in 2021 (I was just barely too young to remember their '95 World Series win). That was the happiest moment of my year right alongside topping the JFH year-end list! I love my Braves.
I must say, I don't know where this rumor got started that I'm a Californian after four measly years out here in LA, but they are entirely unfounded. I love it here, but I'm a Georgia boy through and through.
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Mat Kearney Certainty - Single (independent)
