|
 Over
the last five years or so, the modern worship movement has ignited
on both sides of the Atlantic with all the subtlety of a match
thrown into a bucket of kerosene. Largely unattended by media
hype, the movement has emerged hand in hand with a broad wave of
renewal and reawakening. While the effects have been far reaching
throughout the church, both in terms of a new generation of
worship songs and a needed theological shift toward greater
God-centeredness, many of the key players in the movement have
remained largely invisible. Not surprising given that the
movement’s focus has been the pursuit of God’s glory, not the
creation of human monuments or pop icons.
For
artist/worshippers like Chris Tomlin, who’s gut level debut The
Noise We Make marks the first release from sixstepsrecords, the
shift in emphasis from worship leader to artist/worshipper
hasn’t come without its tensions. Chris’ passionate,
transcendent music, worshipful abandonment, and unapologetic
ministry have been quietly fanning flames on college campuses and
in his local church for several years now, but the whole idea of
transitioning to record deals, publicists, lawyers and photo
shoots has required some additional getting used to.
Born
and raised in East Texas, Chris Tomlin grew up on a steady diet of
country music, learning his guitar chops by playing along with
Willie Nelson records. Not that you would ever guess it from
listening to the gentle smoothness of his vocals. In fact, the ten
songs on The Noise We Make tend to have a lot more in common with
the evocative arrangements and stylings of bands like U2 than they
do with any of their more country cousins.
Closely
involved with the Passion movement, several of Chris’ songs have
already been featured on Passion CD’s, WoW 2001, the upcoming
WoW Worship project and on the OneDay DVD/video documentary and
soundtrack. His modern, electric compositions combined with a
simplicity of melody and corporate lyrics make for songs that are
immediately heartfelt and singable.
Order Live from Austin Music Hall
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