Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Long-time Cross Rhythms readers will know that we've been enthusiastically supporting the Bangor-based team since their earliest days. We enthused about their independent EPs when they were a loose-knit collective of radical worshippers and we enthused about their Irish folk and rock fusion which thanks to tireless touring took them to the upper echelons of the CCM/modern worship scene. So, with a new label, the Capitol CMG giant, we were expecting to enthuse about 'As Family We Go'. However, I must confess that I am somewhat underwhelmed. The band have, unwisely to my mind, decided to discard many of the Irish folk elements which gave them such a distinctive sound. Similar to what Mumford & Sons have done in the mainstream, Rend have abandoned acoustic elements in favour of full-on electric guitars and anyone looking for a bit of banjo-driven rock'n'reel will have to look elsewhere. There are still, of course, some excellent worship songs. Few would deny that the project's first single "You Will Never Run" is infectiously radio-friendly while the song "Joy Of The Lord" might well circulate the world Church. Also, lead singer Chris Llewellyn has one of the most distinctive voices on the current scene and it continues to work well against the gang BVs. But it's just a shame that several of the tracks here sound so disappointingly generic.

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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