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Brian Bates
“Worlds Collide”
BB Music
10 tracks @ 43:08
Grade = A-
Brian Bates describes music as a vehicle.
“I really think what I have to offer the most is my experiences in life, my relationship with God and what I’ve learned about love and life and heartache and joy and hope,” he says.
According t his PR material, he’s led a varied lifestyle; heading off to college, he lost his sense of self and felt a need to experiment.
“In that period of time when I supposedly fell away from the Lord, I felt like he was a part of my life the whole way through. He was always waiting for me to come home.”
He began partying and led a gay lifestyle, but there was something amiss. “It wasn’t satisfying my soul and me as a person. I was not at peace, I left it behind because I fell in love with a God that I could trust.”
Bates’ music reminds me of Andrew Peterson. “New Day” is very buoyant while the title track has a nice tempo shift.
African rhythms, drums and a backing choir are the highlight on “You Danced,” while a simple verse-chorus-verse structure works on “300 Days.”
Many of the songs on this disk were inspired by Bates’ work in Africa. In partnership with World Vision, he’s helped develop a project balled “Mission Bo.” It’s dedicated to bringing clean water, food, healthcare and education to the people of Sierra Leone.
Bates says, “The bottom line is Jesus is my hero. I want to follow in those footsteps. I want to take it a little outside the box, but absolutely represent the heart of the Father, just like Jesus did. That’s my goal.”
This indie release is worth tracking down.
- Rob S.