This Beautiful Republic
Perceptions
Forefront Records
Grade – B-

It has taken me some time to get the feel for This Beautiful Republic’s sophomore release, Perceptions. As a matter of fact, at first listen I was not overly encouraged to give it much of a listen. I felt there wasan absence of distinct hooks in the melodies and I still think it sounds like an average rock album. However, I did find that the song writing was strong. To their credit they are focused on making good Christian music and I think they have a lot of potential still untapped (or unrecorded).

One of the songs that eventually won me over was “Learning To Fall,” because it does have a cool melody, but it backs off a little bit on the edgy rock of some of the other tracks. I should note too that the CD is 13 tracks long – that is 3 tracks longer than the standard CD. That is a lot of writing to do for a sophomore effort that probably had to be primarily written and refined while on the road.

The music has eventually grown on me even if it is stillnot the highlight of the album. From my past experiences, the band has a knack for a decent live show so maybe that is where their hook is for now.

- Ken W.