The Great Commission - Heavy Worship

When The Great Commission announced their new album would be called Heavy Worship and that the band was starting a new genre called heavy worship, I was honestly expecting something different from the band. I thought I was getting the most hardcore and awesome worship record ever created. Seeing that the band had even covered Hillsong United did nothing to put these thoughts aside. Well for those like me who were looking forward to banging your head while you raised your hands in praise, this isn't your record.

In fact you might say Heavy Worship isn't really the type of album you'd hear played in church... You know if churches actually played metal.

Heavy Worship is a solid hardcore record. A solid hook is a solid hook. I love a catchy hook that has me singing the chorus the second time through the song. That's my pop sensibility coming out. Even metal and hardcore need a catchy chorus once in a while. And The Great Commission does a great job at writing memorable lines.

The record kicks off With Don't Go to Church, Be the Church, a song that starts pretty similar to tracks on the bands debut record, And Every Knee Shall Bow. But at 50 seconds in when "Here Comes the Pain" is yelled, the track changes and my mind raced back to xDeathstarx. Then the chorus comes in and it's catchy. The song is a little scattered and has several changes but it does nothing to deter my general enjoyment. Anything that reminds me of xDeathstarx and has a catchy sing-a-long chorus is great in my book.

Walking Dead is a little more of what you'd expect from The Great Commission. Just heavy and sludgy, full of breakdowns. When It Rains is another song with a super catchy hook. Not as disjointed as Don't Go To Church, but every bit as good. Draw the Line is another moment where The Great Commission showcases their strong song-writing abilities and their newfound talent at getting songs stuck in my head. Second time through the chorus I was singing along.

Preaching To The Choir is going to step on people's toes. My first listen through, the chorus had me stop dead in my tracks and hit rewind on my cd player to make sure I was hearing right. When the chorus is "Some say Christians don't tell lies, they just sing them on Sunday mornings" people are bound to get offended. It's a great message in the song and I love the point of the song. But it did make me say what and really listen to the song.

While the rest of the album is solid, there's nothing else memorable. The riffs all blend together. I still enjoyed the songs but there wasn't anything I hadn't already heard. Weight of the World is a nice hook but isn't as catchy to me as the earlier songs. I do love the cover of Hillsong United's Came to My Rescue. It's a nice refreshing take on a worship genre that's kind of stuck.

Nothing new and a lot of people will call this another deathcore album. But I enjoy it. The Great Commission have written some really killer songs and have a great message. And I can get behind a band with a purpose.