Born Again

Personnel: Michael Tait (vocals); Seth Mosley, Jake Rye (guitar, programming); Jody Davis (electric guitar, background vocals); Jonathan Surratt (strings); Jeff Frankenstein (keyboards, programming, background vocals); Brian Dexter, Brandon Romine, Duncan Phillips (drums); Jake Harsh (programming); Chanel Campbell (background vocals).
Audio Mixer: F. Reid Shippen.
Editor: Seth Mosley.
Photographer: Breezy Baldwin.
After the departure of lead singer and songwriter Peter Furler, fans of the hugely popular Newsboys might have been worried about a change in direction or a drop-off in quality. Luckily for those fans, Newsboys went out and got the best free agent on the market, dc Talk's Michael Tait, and their 2010 album, the aptly titled Born Again, shows no signs of decline. In fact, thanks to the inspired songwriting, the interesting production of the Write Bros., and Tait's impassioned vocals, the album stands with their best work. There are some changes and alterations to their sound, which is no great surprise since the band has never been content to make the same record again and again. They have also always stayed up on musical trends, and as such there is some Auto-Tune on the album, and also some thick, techno synths; an emo-poppy rocker ("Miracles"); and -- in a nice nod to Tait's past -- a hard-rocking cover of dc Talk's classic "Jesus Freak." At its core, however, the record is about faith, inspiration, and belief, and the band delivers the message with complete conviction and power. And more importantly, they deliver it wrapped in music that isn't a bargain-bin version of modern rock; it's diverse, interesting, and huge-sounding music that packs a punch. You have to hand it to the band and its management. When faced with a potentially career-altering crisis, they regrouped and came back as strong as ever. ~ Tim Sendra