Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

Leah Cripps is an inspirational pop singer based in Reading and 'Witness' is her debut album. Clearly Leah has been ministering in local church settings singing songs with vertical worshipful lyrics to encourage other believers. Like many independent recordings, the low budget shows through here and although Leah is undoubtedly sincere about what she's trying to do, from a purely musical perspective there are difficulties here. The production and mixing doesn't hold together very well and at times Leah's voice wavers slightly towards being flat. The songs all say the right kind of things and it seems as though the inspirational ballad is her favourite vehicle. However she does not have the voice to pull it off and the songs themselves are not strong enough. Ultimately, this will appeal to friends and church members where she plays but as a stand alone listening experience, there are too many holes. With work and time, most of this could be fixed on a future project but 'Witness' isn't the best introduction.

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