Reviewed by Peter Dilley

His EMI Gospel debut dates from 2004, but Darius Brooks has two decades of experience as a songwriter, singer, instrumentalist, producer and arranger with some of the biggest names in gospel and R&B music: from MiIton Brunson, Shirley Caesar and Vicky Winans, to Stevie Wonder and Aretha Franklin, with a collection of Grammy and Dove Awards to match. So it's no surprise that "Your Will" exudes quality from the start of the title cut, which builds up gradually from a mellow piano-backed solo as the choir ease their way in, first "oooh"-ing subtly in the background, then sharing the lead with Darius, as the song continues to rise ever upwards towards a final peak of truly Himalayan proportions. And far from sticking formulaically to a single sound, Darius dips into a variety of gospel styles, from the high-paced delivery of "Dance" and "Hezekiah Mind", to the groove-driven sounds of "My Mind's Made Up", "Lock Down" and "High Lift Him", and slow gospel ballads such as "No One But You" and the finale "Amazing". With Darius Brooks' track record, he'd be doing himself and God a disservice with anything less than top notch.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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