Customer Reviews

... And This Is How I Feel

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Shimmery acoustic guitars and melt-in-the-mouth harmonies are the hallmarks of this, Nouveaux's second (and unfortunately, last) album. Starting off with "Maybe Tomorrow," an innocent ode to a future love, the disc highlights Paul Alan's limited, but passionate lead vocals. At times, the harmonies and generally tuneful songwriting recall PFR, but the group definitely finds its own sound and niche within the Christian Rock genre.

The crystal clear production from John and Dino Elefante, while sometimes a bit bland and processed-sounding, suits their acoustic-guitar-based creations well. On songs like "You Breathe," Alan even begins to sound a bit like John Elefante, while "Simply Beautiful" and "Never See the Day" recall power-popsters like the Posies and the Rembrandts.

Altogether, "...and this is how I feel" is a very enjoyable and affecting work. The boys definitely knew what they were doing, and one can only hope that Paul Alan's recent solo debut will continue to shine a light for Christ as brightly as this album does almost 6 years after its release.

By far, this is one of the greatest albums ever recorded. I've let many people listen to my copy of this and I have not found anyone that does not love it. Whether it be the lyrics, the music, or just the pure thoughts relayed - there is something for everyone (and in most cases, all of it is for everyone). There are few albums that are this encouraging to people and, to me, I feel that finding this CD is a complete blessing. It has kept me going when I have been down. Truly, this is an inspired work by our Creator.

I absolute love this CD!! It doesn't get much better than this. Nouveaux is amazing! Althoug I don't think they are together any more, I rate them as one of my favorite bands. If anyone has information on how to contact them or if they have a websight e-mail me, because these guys will take your breath away.

Many years ago, late one night on the local Christian radio station I heard part of the song "Through Heaven's Fields" and was amazed at what I heard. I only heard it perhaps one other time, and never again. But I always remembered that chorus "Take my hand, I want to lead you to the other side of forever..." and it just gave me chills.

Years later, thanks to the internet, I was able to track down the name of the song and band. Then, found some guy on the East Coast that had a CD, I bought it immediately. Not only was I thrilled to have the only song I had heard (still great after those years) but was shocked that the rest of the album was so strong! Why had I never heard of these guys? Why weren't they all over the radio? Well, I don't know the answer but am still glad they made this one incredible disc.

I found this CD during the Jars of Clay frenzy back in 1997. I told my friends that I'd heard a band better than Jars of Clay and nobody believed me. Then they heard the music and we all enjoyed the enchantment of this awesome album together! We butchered the melodies, wailing our hearts out and feeling the passion of the songs. It's too bad this was the last album Nouveaux put out, but it adds to the allure surrounding their music. These guys are so talented; they blend their heartfelt vocals and rocking guitars to a perfect pitch...one that carries you away to "The Other Side of Forever." I recommend it for any alternative rock fan, Christian or not!

This album was my favorite all through highschool. I memorized every word to every song. Some of the songs are so beautiful...."You Breathe" and "Maybe Tomorrow" are amazing. This album is proof that there is some WONDERFUL Christian Alternative music out there! Wish they were still making music together!!!

I really liked the music on this album. The lyrics are well thought out and are full of heart. The song "Maybe Tomorrow" is one of my favorites. It reveals to the listener that you can still have dreams even when you haven't met that special person yet. They have a way to share many of the feelings that their listeners have. These guys are truely inspired by our Father and His love pures through their music. Truely Inspirational!

These guys must have had a pretty clear goal in mind about what message they wanted to convey in this album. I thought the first song, "Maybe Tomorrow," was great in talking about whoever he ended up marrying. The descriptions were somewhat vivid, especially of the sun rising over the hill. The songs can get stuck in your head, but the acoustics go with the lyrics and it's not always a bad thing. Overall a somewhat mello but powerful, positive album.

Nouveaux's first album "Beginnings" had more of a rock edge than this album. I grew up on heavy metal and hard rock but this album (And this is how I feel) just didn't deliver. On a follow up to a five star intense hit CD, they go back into studio and put out a more less enticing acoustic sound; granted with real thought provoking lyrics, yet the sound is not on par with with what the listener is wanting (at the time of this recording) to hear. The "grunge" sound came smack in the middle of "Beginnings and ...And this is how I feel" making that heavy rock sound become a thing of the past. I was thinking that I could hear that hard rock sound again with "...And this is how I feel", but it didn't deliver. I heard only dry acoustic harmony that fell flat. I would have given this album a 2 star rating if it weren't for the fact that the last song on the cd was a cover from a Kansas song that I really liked, "Chasing Shadows". Chasing Shadows was a great song with incredible harmony off of the "Vinyl Confessions" album with John Elefante at lead vocal. I know that John had a great deal of producing great Christian music after his tenure with Kansas and I believe he had a role in this album too. Nouveaux hit it out of the park with this cover of "Chasing Shadows" and I really think it's better than the original. My review for "Beginnings" would be a full 5 star review but not here.

This album is vastly different than their first one, thankfully. Some great vocals, guitars and all around sound. Another victim of the Christan music industries growing pains of acceptance. Still a great album to this day!