Customer Reviews

Abandon

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First, when I received this, I didn't know it was an EP, that surprised me a bit. I also have a hard time writing anything "not positive" about Christian music. I'm a Christian myself, and it's always joyous when someone uses music to spread the word of God. That part is great.

The music itself? Well, I have to say the first song "Providence" had a great hook for me. I was really looking forward to the rest of the disc after that. However, the other songs settled into a "mostly sound the same" kind of groove for me. Perhaps it's because I'm getting older (I'm 43 now), but generic pop music doesn't do much for me. It's not like I don't like the genre (big fan of the Afters), but this disc was a bit of a letdown after the first song being so good, and the rest being kind of "eh".

Still, it's not like it's awful. Far from it. It just doesn't light a fire under me musically. That make sense? :)

Abandon are an alternative, Christian five-piece rock band who were inspired by the Bible verse of Joshua 22:3: "God has directed us not to abandon any brothers." And it turns out the band features two brothers and two cousins. Now I'm not a big fan of Christian music because most of it is poppy and alternative, whereas I like the harder stuff, but I've given this Abandon EP a chance.

Strangely, what first caught my attention was the album artwork. It looks like paint splatters and also reminds me of the Incubus Make Yourself artwork (and I believe there's a squid on that Incubus cover, so yes, I'm aware the comparison is odd). The music hasn't really done anything for me unfortunately, and it's not even the fact it's Christian. I honestly wouldn't know they are Christian just by listening (unless the lyrics blatantly scream "Jesus," "God," etc. deciphering the messages is not exactly black and white); I had to look `em up to see what they stand for and such. This is just another dime-a-dozen alternative rock band to me. "Providence" is their big hit, and it's OK. Sounds of The Killers are definitely there. The rest of the EP really isn't that memorable.

Most of these songs will supposedly be on their upcoming full-length, Searchlights, but I likely will not be interested. Fans of the genre are sure to like these guys as I admit they're solid and promising.

As I mentioned in a review for Philmont's album Oh Snap, I am a Christian and I love alternative rock music but I don't often listen to Christian rock because I grew up in the 80s and back then, with the exception of a very few bands, it was awful.

It has gradually gotten better over the past decade and it's great to see new bands who can create excellent music and vocals that can stand alongside the secular greats.

I really enjoyed Abandon. I think the best way to describe their sound would be to imagine Franz Ferdinand, The Killers, Coldplay, and Muse, all rolled up together and coated with some thoughtful and inspiring Christian lyrics. The music and vocals are superior to most Christian rock I've heard and I can tell that these musicians care not just about the words they sing, but they strive to make excellent music also.

I wouldn't say that all of the songs really stick in my head. A couple of them do, especially the first one which is about Peter's betrayal, but this is a highly impressive album.

The songs are ok but nothing especially exciting either lyrically or musically. But it is not off-putting and that is a good thing.

By the Gospel group, Abandon as they go through their first effort. It is a pretty decent collection of songs. But it ended up coming up short for me. Perhaps if they added 2 or 3 more songs to the cd. It would've caught on more with me. If this is an EP and a major release is coming later that's one thing. But a cd with less than 9 songs on it. It needs to grab me from the outset and their self titled effort just didn't do that.

I hope that their next effort is a bit longer and is able to catch my attention and hold on to it. Because Abandon has something, it just needs to be brought to the forefront.

This is a great CD-this band has a sound and message similar to that of Switchfoot. They have great vocals with encouraging and uplifting lyrics! The instrumental breaks are typical of a pop rock band, but aren't anything exceptional. This is a great CD when you're frustrated and stuck in traffic-it helps you stay positive and keeps your fingers and toes tapping to catchy beats. It won't be long until you catch yourself singing along to the catchy lyrics too!

There are only 6 songs on this CD. The second and third song on the CD sound so similar that I didn't even realize a new song had started. There's too much background music and it's hard to heard the words. Also, the lyrics are quite negative rather than rejoyous. I actually found that interesting so this would fit someone who hasn't found their path with the Lord and is still struggling with why bad things happen to good people.

It's a great CD for a young teen/adult who might be just finding their spiritual journey. Not bad but I probably wouldn't go out of my way to listen to this CD over and over. But again I wouldn't skip it if it came up on shuffle either.

With driving, quality rock instrumentals, Abandon combines very good vocals with apparently "positive" lyrics. The lyrics are a bit tough to figure out, but mostly about pretty negative topics where the singer seems to be calling out to God to help. These tracks are obviously not about the often cryptic lyrics. The quality of the music is pretty good and something I could see myself not skipping everytime it comes up on iTunes, but will probably be skipping most of the time.. Nevertheless, the cd grew old after about 2 tracks. I have listened to it about 3 times to give it the benefit of the doubt, but have started to get sick of it every time by about track 3.

This ep is just a solid Christian rock/pop album. The last two songs are also pretty good and are the standout tracks on the album. This is just a fun enjoyable album. I doubt I'll still be listening to it a few years from now and there are better albums out there, but it's a solid effort and if your looking for something new this might be it. You can preview all the tracks on Amazon's mp3 store site. If nothing else you might consider just picking up the last two tracks.

I tried a number of times to get from beginning to end with this CD. It's not bad, but it didn't grab me like most of the music I choose for myself.

It's buzzy - lots of competing sounds and hard to sort the lyrics with the background buzz.

I think I might just be a little bit too old for the general sound. It's OK, just not something that resonates with where I am right now.

It would have been nice to hear distinct instruments, with some "space" in the sound for depth and sound-stage. It's not there, in my opinion.