There have been several times in my personal walk with Christ where I greatly desired to listen closely for what God was trying to communicate to me. Whether through the Bible, His Spirit, or other Christians, I was ravenous to know what He wanted me to know. With his latest EP, Michael Hughes Watson (former frontman of Above the Golden State / Nations) taps into that desire to hear God and know Him more. Although 10 tracks officially, Wait offers three new, fully produced songs with instrumental and acoustic versions (as well as a ukulele version of one track) to give the listener different dimensions of the tunes. Watson blends a musical style reminiscent of recent Matthew Perryman Jones with a voice that could, at times, easily be mistaken for Phil Wickham.

All three tracks build on the desire to hear God speak. Opener "Hanging Onto Every Word That You Say" finds a list of spiritual conditions Watson wants to be in so he can be more attentive to the Spirit's work. For instance, he sings, "I want to move slow enough to hear/Feel weak enough to draw near." The music is driven by a bouncy, driving acoustic guitar and gives off a peaceful, poppy atmosphere. "Words of Life" offers praise to Jesus for being the only source of spiritual life and nourishment with synthesizers and programming taking center stage musically. The title track slows things down as Watson expresses to God that He is ready to hear Him speak.

These three songs are strong enough to stand on their own and the additional versions only add slightly to their value. The instrumental tracks simply remove any vocalization and don't add anything to help you track the melody. This isn't bad if you want to use them as a "song special" in church or need ambient background noise, but otherwise they can be skipped. The acoustic versions are also hit and miss. "Hanging Onto Every Word That You Say" was already acoustic driven, so having a stripped down take doesn't offer anything different. The other two tracks work better, especially "Wait," but given that "Words of Life" also has a uke version makes it a little superfluous to also get the acoustic treatment.

Michael Hughes Watson is a worship leader walking a unique line. He could easily find airplay on the radio, but he also gives more introspective content than other worship artists. The songs on his Wait EP are heartfelt, emotional, and stirring. The choruses are catchy and can be sung along to on the second or third listen. Overall, it is a meditative experience with a few hiccups in the additional tracks but plenty of substance in the main songs.

- Review date: 5/15/19, written by John Underdown of Jesusfreakhideout.com

 

 Record Label: None
 Album length: 10 tracks: 47 minutes, 9 seconds
 Street Date: May 17, 2019
 Buy It: iTunes
 Buy It: Amazon Music

1. Hanging onto Every Word That You Say (4:49)
2. Words of Life (4:50)
3. Wait (4:34)
4. Hanging onto Every Word That You Say (Acoustic) (4:22)
5. Words of Life (Acoustic) (4:49)
6. Wait (Acoustic) (4:42)
7. Hanging onto Every Word That You Say (Instrumental) (4:49)
8. Words of Life (Instrumental) (4:50)
9. Wait (Instrumental) (4:35)
10. Words of Life (Uke Version) (4:49)