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Good Monsters

Jars of Clay | September 5th, 2006

Jars of Clay has to be one of the most burdened bands in Christian music today. The band has been performing music for 13 years but has never been able to surpass the influence of their debut album, a work many fans deem their best. That's not to say the guys of Jars Of Clay haven't made any music worth noting over the years—quite the contrary actually. Their latest effort is entitled Good Monsters. When analyzed in its own right (apart from any bias their debut may hold) it stands as a strong album for one of the most resilient bands Christian music has seen.

Good Monsters is a noticeable change from the band's previous work as Jars of Clay has chosen to take a more pop-rock route rather than their usual acoustic-folk feel (found on previous albums such as Who We Are Instead). Most similar to Good Monsters would be The Eleventh Hour, released from the band in 2002. “Work” is the epitome of this new sound, as it is the most aggressively driven song on the record. Lead vocalist Dan Haseltine sings I have no fear of drowning / It's the breathing that's taking all this work. The song is as thought provoking as it is catchy. However, no song is as catchy as single “Dead Man (Carry Me).” The song will easily get stuck in your head for quite some time.

Jars Of Clay also offers a number of tracks in the style fans have come to expect. “All My Tears” has a great guitar line as the lyrics pertain to leaving this world behind. “There Is A River” sounds like it could be taken straight from Who We Are Instead and “Mirrors and Smoke” features a great duet with Leigh Nash (lead singer of Sixpence None The Richer). Lyrical highlight “Oh My God” harkens back to an old time favorite, “Worlds Apart.” Both songs offer a great lyrical build and can leave the listener with goose bumps. “Oh My God” documents the many ways people can use the phrase, before finally making a plea for salvation and restoration for our broken world state, Sometimes I cannot forgive / These days mercy cuts so deep / If the world was how it should / Maybe I could get some sleep / While I lay I dream we're better / Scales were gone and faces lighter / When we wake we hate our brother / We still move to hurt each other / Sometimes I can close my eyes / And all the fear that keeps me silent / Falls below my heavy breathing / What makes me so badly bent. It's truly an amazing song.

However, not everything on Good Monsters fairs so well. The title track for example is near painful to listen to in all its candy-coated poppiness. Also songs “Even Angels Cry” and “Water Under The Bridge” will probably find you pushing the skip button, but to each his own.

The question yet to be answered is whether or not Good Monsters surpasses Jars' self-titled debut. I am not going to make a claim one way or another as both albums have their shortcomings. However, I will say that Good Monsters probably won't be what the band is remembered for in ten years. Even so, Good Monsters is a solid release which proves that they are willing to experiment instead of being complacent with their sound. The future looks as bright for Jars of Clay as it did ten years ago, and Christian music will only be better off as Jars Of Clay continues to progress.

Reviewed by Jarrod Steinmetz on March 9th, 2008

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