Bethel Music
Bethel Music "The Loft Sessions" album
- Release date : January 2012 -The Loft Sessions is an album by Bethel Music, released on January 24, 2012. Recorded live in a refurbished rustic loft, the Bethel Music team gathered friends and family for several nights of worship that set the stage for this ground-breaking recording. The Loft Sessions explores new territory for Bethel Music, merging an array of acoustic creativity with the modern melodies of original songs by Brian and Jenn Johnson, Jeremy Riddle and emerging artists Steffany Frizzell, Hunter Thompson and Matt Stinton.
"The Loft Sessions" album tracks and lyrics
- One Thing Remains lyrics
- My Dear lyrics
- You Have Won Me lyrics
- Come To Me lyrics
- Walk In The Promise lyrics
- You Know Me lyrics
- Angels lyrics
- Fall Afresh lyrics
- Draw Near lyrics
- This Is What You Do lyrics
"The Loft Sessions" album reviews
Bethel Music, an arm of the Bethel Church in Redding, California, is one of the few modern collectives that feels like it's trying to push against traditional models of worship. Nothing on this disc—recorded in a converted loft space—comes as expected. The group boldly embraces secular influences, letting a similar spirit of emotional bombast rooted in organic instrumentation (lots of cello, violin, and acoustic guitar) shine throughout. The sheer joy of recording these songs anchors even the most melancholic moments and is absolutely infectious.
*** by Robert Ham, Christianity Today ***
Echoing the intimate surroundings of fellow Christian worship outfit Hillsong's recent Chapel album, The Loft Sessions sees the California-based Bethel Music stable decamp to a refurbished rustic loft on ten warm acoustic tracks intended for smaller congregations. It's a clever approach which allows the church's spiritual messages to take center stage whilst also showcasing a new organic sound which veers more towards the contemporary nu-folk scene than their usual soft-rock fare. None more so than on worship leader Brian Johnson's opener "One Thing Remains" which is transformed from the rousing Snow Patrol-esque epic that appeared on 2010's Be Lifted High into a soothing and reflective stripped-back ballad, and the shuffling banjo-led "You Have Won Me," which draws comparisons with several of the young troubadours currently dominating the UK folk scene. Elsewhere, newcomers Hunter Thompson and Steffany Frizzell equip themselves well on the delightfully twinkling "My Dear" and the orchestral melancholy of "You Know Me," as does Matt Stinton on the anthemic chants and hand-clap percussion of "This Is What You Do;" Jeremy Riddle makes a convincing and surprising foray into prog territory with the spacey synths, operatic vocals and burst of post-rock on "Walk In The Promise" (one of two reworkings of tracks from his solo Furious debut); while Jenn Johnson produces the most radio-friendly offering on the slow-building AOR of "Come To Me." The trio of tasteful but ultimately bland ballads ("Angels," "Fall Afresh," "Draw Near") which appear towards the end slightly flatten the mood, but overall, The Loft Sessions is an engaging affair which should give their Australian counterparts a run for their money.
*** by Jon O'Brien, All Music Guide ***
