Avalon - A Maze of Grace

I realize Popjustice isn't exactly the most Contemporary Christian-oriented music forum out there, but upon revisiting this album I felt a need to do a lil write-up.

(How unspeakably bad is that styling on the cover? Oh my...)

Released: Dec. 11, 1997

Purchased: Bit by bit from iTunes when I was in middle school

Playthrough:

Testify to Love - I bet all of them wake up every day thanking the Lord't they got their hands on this, considering what a smash it was (their biggest hit to date, by far). And deservedly so - it's not their most interesting song by any means, but it is a basic BAUXP.

A World Away - I learned this one on piano back when I took lessons. It's kind of fillery, but it's enjoyable. With more effort in the production, it could've been the best thing on the album.

A Maze of Grace - I bet they thought this was so clever. It took me literally years to get the title ("amazing grace" / "a maze of grace"). It's really dated, but I imagine it sounded fantastic at the time. I loved it when I was getting into them. It has a really solid structure and arrangement; it's just the production that's lacking.

Knockin' on Heaven's Door - A banger, though oddly generic. Probably the hookiest thing on the album.

Adonai - My favorite Avaballad, which is saying something considering they've got Can't Live a Day and the superb I Don't Want to Go. Nikki's voice is incredible here. I can understand why she left the group to go solo - she got three leads on this album (this one, A World Away, and The Move), but judging by their next album, I'd bet that by the time she left, Avalon was already becoming "Janna and her backup singers" and she felt underused. To be fair, Janna is technically a far better vocalist than Nikki, or indeed anyone else who's ever been in Avalon, but she doesn't have Nikki's range, nor the gorgeous clear quality of Nikki's voice. Only a shame Nikki's career went down the shitter faster than you can say "a Lisa Scott-Lee tea," and never managed to climb out. Anyway, this song is really gorgeous - that key change is everything.

Speed of Light - Like A Maze of Grace, this had to have been excellent at the time, but it's just so dated that it's hard to hear it as anything but an artifact of its time now. Nonetheless it's still a bop.

The Move - Okay, this really needed a better chorus. "Rising from the ashes is the flame ... THE MOOOOOVE" repeated over and over is so half-assed. That being said, it's a real pop moment, helped again by an awesome performance from Nikki.

Reason Enough - I remembered this as a lot more boring than it is. The soon-to-be-requisite Jannaballad, though it's actually a midtempo. It's a bit Donna Summer melodically, and very Céline Dion production-wise.

Forgive + Forget - Easily the weak link here, but it's still perfectly good. It's just a little try-hard, and the unison vocals on the verses was an odd mistake considering Avalon's strength was always their harmonies.

Dreams I Dream for You - Pretty generic, but it has nice vocals and is a really pleasant listen. Again, could have been something really special if they'd fleshed it out more, but as it stands it's still good.

Final verdict: In every single case, when I've gone back to one of the Christian albums I listened to in middle school, they haven't been nearly as good as I remembered, even the ones I loved most (Avalon's Oxygen, ZOEgirl's Room to Breathe, Rebecca St. James' Transform). So I was pretty much dumbfound when I realized this is actually better than I remembered, and even better than I thought at the time. Their finest album for sure - an incredibly solid pure pop album in the vein of The Corrs or even Carly Rae Jepsen. 9/10.

Highlight: Adonai is really my favorite, but I expect The Move (my second-favorite) is the one that will appeal to PJ the most.