Achor by Josh White is what I hoping to hear from the new Jars of Clay album, The Shelter. Instead, I find that I’m enjoying Josh White while wishing for something better from Jars of Clay.
Josh White, formerly of Telecast, has now planted a church in Portland, Oregon. Achor is a glimpse into the worship music written specifically for the Door of Hope Church—a folk-influenced American Rock with hints of bluegrass and blues. That’s where the Jars of Clay comparison comes on strong with White’s voice sounding very much like Dan Haseltine and the style reminiscent of Jars’ Redemption Songs.
The album opens with the Greg Brown/Bo Ramsey-like folk blues of “He Who Feeds the Ravens.” Then White whoops up the bluesy “Holy Ghost Revival,” sounding much like the blend of blues, folk, and rock found in Ryan Delmore’s worship music. (In fact, a worship service led by White and Delmore would do my soul well, lifting it up through the music that points to God through lyric and sound).
Even the tunes that pull back the tempo and the volume, such as “I Love My God” and “You Amaze Me,” come with urgency in their folk worship feel. There’s a haunting quality to “Let Me See Your Hands,” as the banjo and harmonica lay out a Gospel vibe. “The Wall” grooves along with a bluesy piano even as the lyrics point to how “I am nothing without You.”
While these songs enable people across the country to experience what it might be like to worship at Door of Hope, it’s not music that could be easily reproduced by most church praise bands. It would take a commitment to folk and blues to reproduce the style; it would take a band focus rather than a vocal focus; it would mean a different kind of participation by worshippers since the vocal lines could only be sung in that rock concert kind of way. Yet, what it does is give a glimpse into what it would mean to have worship be intimate, folky, bluesy, the kind of music that stirs emotions even as the poetry points to great, great truths.
The Shelter and Jars of Clay start out strong with “Small Rebellions,” a sing-along-type affair with anthemic choruses and a driving force (with a repeat of this feel for “We Will Follow”). But after that, the album essentially goes flat. Gone is the Jars of Clay eclecticism that graced the folk-influenced American Rock on past albums. Instead, the songs are awash with choral sameness and synthesized string sounds. Yes, it’s a collaborative effort probably meant to broaden horizons, but for me, it sounds like it just narrowed the sound. Lyrically Jars of Clay still has more depth than most contemporary Christian music—imagery, Scriptural hints, and brokenness—which makes this a much better album than many in the “Christian” stacks. However, here’s hoping this is a one-off, and that Jars of Clay will return to their rootsy roots as heard on Josh White’s Achor.
Josh White
BEC Recordings
Jars of Clay
Essential Records
