Louder Than The Music

Caspar McCloud - Immortality

Artist:

Caspar McCloud

Title:

Immortality

Type:

Album

Released:

16 Apr 2024

LTTM Rating:

Readers Rating:

(6 votes)

Your Rating:

Listen

Review

Never ones to rest on their laurels, the Caspar McCloud Band return with their brand new album, 'Immortality'. Once again delivering value for money, this 14-track album is led by the exceptional guitar playing of Pastor Caspar McCloud, with Renae Truex on violin, Kenney Bentley on bass and Carlos Merced on drums.

Opening track 'Change Is Coming' starts with what I'd call "proper" rock guitars, heavy on the overdrive and accompanied by bass and drums to match. Caspar and Renae on vocals croon out the lyrics, but this is definitely a song where the instruments lead the way. An early highlight...
Read More Never ones to rest on their laurels, the Caspar McCloud Band return with their brand new album, 'Immortality'. Once again delivering value for money, this 14-track album is led by the exceptional guitar playing of Pastor Caspar McCloud, with Renae Truex on violin, Kenney Bentley on bass and Carlos Merced on drums.

Opening track 'Change Is Coming' starts with what I'd call "proper" rock guitars, heavy on the overdrive and accompanied by bass and drums to match. Caspar and Renae on vocals croon out the lyrics, but this is definitely a song where the instruments lead the way. An early highlight for those who enjoy guitar driven rock. Caspar's songwriting often delves into real-world topics of interest, and he's never afraid to examine popular or unusual theories, advancements or subjects of debate. 'Flat or Round' opens like a Status Quo track, and is presumably inspired by so called "flat earth theorists". These high energy up-tempo opening tracks set the tone for an exciting old-school-rock album.

'Sometimes' features a drum masterclass to go along with the ever-present air-guitar-friendly sounds coming from Caspar's lightning playing - which we are especially treated to during a frantic guitar solo. 'There's Nothing You Can't Do' acknowledges the almighty power of God, "There's nothing you can't do, nothing can hold you down, there's no place you can't go".

'Anomalies' takes a slightly different turn, with more of a rock/folk feel, Renae's strings taking on a more prominent role. I love the vocals on 'Eagle', as Caspar emits an almost dreamy longing style. 'Come As You Are' is not a cover of the Nirvana song of the same name. It actually has a slower tempo than the earlier tracks, with the violin again standing out strongly. 'Warriors of Prayer' is a superb track, an arms raised anthem of praise with each band member working in unison to produce a stunning sound.

With each track I find myself imagining which famous band it sounds like, and 'Strange Fire' took me to Thin Lizzy, with that same feel-good style of track like 'Boys Are Back In Town', but with God-centered lyrics! Then there's the Eric Clapton guitars on 'End of The World', which threaten to explode your headphones during the mid track solo.

It's always interesting to listen to an album's title track, and try to work out why the artist has chosen to name the entire album after the song. 'Immortality' sounds a bit like an old church hymn, and is perhaps not typical of the other songs on this album, with the electric guitar given a day off and instead replaced with an immaculately plucked acoustic and some beautiful string playing. So why then have they named the album after this track? My guess is that it's a theme that ties the other songs together: "Sharing Jesus night and day, Sharing He's the only way, To spend eternity, Praise the Lord for immortality."

The album closes with another enigma of a track. 'Wedding Song' is peaceful and worshipful, again mostly featuring acoustic guitar and cathedral-worthy violin playing. The song talks about the "Bride of Christ" as it paints a beautiful picture of "taking vows for the rest of your life".

This album is like a tribute to every rock band you loved from the 80's and 90's. The sounds are reminiscent of that era where guitars, amps and drums dominated stadium stages. But never ones to play to convention, the album changes style late on to show that thought provoking, emotion stirring songs can happily sit alongside ear-splitting guitar solos and frantic drumbeats. This truly is another exceptional album from an incredibly talented set of musicians. I highly recommend taking a listen!

LTTM Rating 5 Out of 5 Stars
Standout Tracks
Flat or Round
Sometimes
Warriors of Prayer

Video

Articles

News

Caspar McCloud Band Release New Album 'Immortality'

The Caspar McCloud Band return with their brand new album, 'Immortality'. The 14-track album is available now on all streaming platforms. The band is led by Pastor Caspar McCloud, with Renae Truex on violin, Kenney Bentley on…