Kings Kaleidoscope has been making a mark on Worship music for the last few years, bringing an interesting and creative style filled out by everything from guitars and bass to a horn and woodwind section and two drummers.
Recently, website/label/blog BadChristian announced a new partnership with the band, including an announcement of their new EP, Live in Color. Breaking off from the Mars Hill label appears to have allowed the band to be more creative both musically and lyrically (even to the point of having the entire album recorded in a middle school), yet the band still manages to allow for their songs to be used congregationally. Whether or not you can manage a horn section or two drum sets, these songs are arranged in a way that they can be just as interesting with a huge band as with a four piece or an acoustic setup.
Live in Color sees Chad Gardner’s crisp vocals cut through the chorus of horns, jangly guitars, thick drums, and host of strings, woodwinds, and keys to make an incredible arrangement of new songs of praise for the church. I encourage leaders to not be overwhelmed by the huge band and see these songs for what they are – beautiful melodies fitting for congregations ranging from small or mellow all the way to huge or passionate.
Here’s my song-by-song breakdown:
Fix My Eyes // The EP begins in a manner very reminiscent of a David Crowder Band album, with a very soft, piano-heavy song that dwells on focusing on the Lord. This personal, heavy song sets a great foundation for the rest of the album. I can see this song being a great special song, but could also serve well as a very soft, dwelling song that will bring a sense of personal prayer to the team and the congregation on any Sunday morning.
Felix Culpa // This big, funky, song focuses on God’s redemption and features heavy guitars and horns throughout the song that bring a jazzy funk feel. It focuses on the redemption God has brought to sinners, perhaps making this a difficult song to play on a traditional Sunday morning, but would serve as a very powerful song to accompany the right message, along with being a lot of fun to your band.
Seek Your Kingdom // This guitar-heavy song brings some nice crunchy rock while focusing on God’s provision for his children. This is a song that your electric guitar player (or perhaps you) will be stoked to play. And while the riffs are great, the song focuses on encouragement that I think everyone needs – even through worry and doubt, seek God first and He will take care of you. Even though the theme of the song is not what your traditional worship tune looks like, I feel that this is a perfect song to bring to your congregation, and your band will have a blast playing it.
Defender // The joy in this song is infectious. It shows off every member of the band, yet I can see how it could easily translate into a smaller, more traditional church band with parts moving from horns, strings and woodwinds to guitars and/or keys. The chorus is easy to pick up on and proclaims the awesome truth of our Savior, “Who is a rock but our God?/Who’s blood has sealed our freedom?/Jesus, our savior, defender, redeemer!” This is definitely a song to check out – the band will love it, and the proclamation of the chorus is just as true as it is anthemic.
Be Thou My Vision // With this song, King’s Kaleidoscope returns to what they are usually known for – great modern renditions of hymns. Not enough can be said about this wonderful hymn, and the band nails it. The song starts very traditional, until halfway through the song the band comes in and emphasizes the final two verses with a great instrumental highlighted by a catchy tagline from the horns. This is a great song to pick up for a new rendition on this fantastic hymn.
Higher Throne // Electric guitar players with POG or Whammy pedals will love this song, as it is highlighted by the bright octave guitar sound that those pedals provide. This song is more than just some sweet guitar work, though. The song is very worshipful, focusing on the greatness of God and His promise of heaven. The song also features some big dynamics over the bridge, simply declaring “Jesus, Savior, Christ my king/All my life is solely for you/Jesus, Savior, Christ my king/All my life is solely for your glory.” I can see this song being a hit with the church, perhaps something along the lines of “From The Inside Out” or “The Stand,” and can definitely fit into anything from the smallest group to the biggest band.
Live in Color released on badchristian.com, free of charge. Also, check out the album in its entirety in video form on the site.
