CD Review of Jars of Clay's "The Long Fall Back to Earth"

Quite simply, I was blown away by this album. Dan Hasseltine/Jars of Clay has to be at the forefront of poetic, thought-provoking lyrics. A lot of the music I have listened to (Christian or not) doesn't involve much lyrical imagination. Sometimes, that might be a good thing – for example, you don't want to spend half an hour trying to work out what the writer meant in a song during church worship. With this album – lyrically as well as musically - the guys have yet again excelled. Yes, the meaning is not always immediately clear, but that's the joy of it. It's like reading Shakespeare and finding out what "Wherefore art thou Romeo" really means.

I don't know what I would've thought of this album 10 years ago, when I used to ridicule all things 80s, but now, I LOVE IT! Artists don't stand still - well, at least I don't think they're supposed to. These guys are being affected by the world around them, and their style and feelings about it all come out in their music.
Favourites - Closer (ABSOLUTELY love it!), Two Hands, Safe to Land, Don't Stop, Hero, Headphones... actually, I might just as well name almost every track. That said, there are one or two that, at first listen, don't appear as melodic as the others (Weapons being one of them). But after 2 or 3 more listens, you appreciate them for the gems that they are.

This is a wholly satisfying album from a group who have stayed together and consistently put out good music. It could arguably follow on stylistically from Good Monsters (listen to Carry Me (Dead Man) on that album), but with a few more creative leaps, if not bounds. It has actually made me want to listen to Good Monsters more.

I read a comment somewhere, from a negative perspective, that if you compare this with their début album, it would sound nothing alike. Thank goodness for that, given that this is their TENTH studio album. If I wanted to listen to the first album, I would put it on. And I will, but not before I wear this one out some more...

Five out of Five!