Building429
Rise
Word Entertainment

Rise is the third release from Building429, counting the release of its Glory Defined EP, however it is the second full length release, therefore constituting a sophomore release. All that aside, there is no worry of a sophomore slump any way you count them. This is one band that has quickly captured their audience, and they will not let them go. I think they have proven that between their charting success and their previous GMA award for New Artists of the Year.

Personally, I do not like to follow popular trends, as they tend to have the opposite affect on me. So with Rise, it has taken me sometime to get over they hype and really begin to enjoy the CD. Still, I do not feel that the material meets the build up. Rise is a good album, and the lyrics are focused on saintly themes, however, I still do not follow the radio-hype. There is much more aggressive rock out there that never hits the radio waves.

To their credit, Building429 is not following a “defined” formula, and Rise does push them further artistically. I was thinking that I could hear something similar to Lifehouse in a few of the tracks. Overall, I think the there is a feeling that their music is sanitary enough for adult radio, and it really gives you a pick-me-up between Twila Paris and Steve Green. It is new and exciting in that way. And lastly, if you listen to Jason Roy’s testimony, you surely would walk away with more of an appreciation of the effort and meaning behind the band, and that just might be more so why the band is so appreciated.

- Ken W.