Search - Delirious? :: Touch

Solid album, but not as formulaic as some would like..

12/28/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"There are many different kinds of Delirious listeners. Depending on which type you are, you will either love or loathe the "Touch" album.



First, there's the casual fan who likes the radio-friendly songs like "Deeper" "History Maker" and the song that just about every CCM artist has covered, "I Could Sing of Your Love Forever." For these types, I would not recommend the groundbreaking "Touch" disc because it won't conform to the formula that you might wish it would. You'll be happier with CCM radio stuff and more predictable artists like Third Day and the Newsboys. Of course, if you're willing to abandon those expectations and become open to something a little more musically experimental, artistically unique, and lyrically mature, then "Touch" has a lot to offer.



There are others who think of Delirious primarily as a source for the latest groovy worship tunes that can be incorporated into a corporate singing setting, or the next Passion album. After all, isn't Delirious where "Did you feel the mountains...?" "I Could Sing.." and "My Glorious" came from in the first place? If you are this type, you might also be dissapointed to find that the next "Did you feel?" or "The Happy Song" is not lurking on this album, waiting to be discovered by the Passion empire or the next WOW Worship Magenta compilation.



And then, there are the Delirious "fans." Speaking as one who has found that no Delirious album has ever followed the formula of the preceeding one, I wasn't surprised to find that "Touch" was no exception. If I had to summarize this album's overall flavor, (which isn't totally possible un-fomulaic nature of the album) I would call it a cross between the arena anthem singability of "Glo" and the arsty studio production of "Mezzamorphis."



As is the case with any d: album, it will take some time for it to grow on you. The first listen will be completely different than the fifth, or tenth. In my opinion, the biggest strength of this album is that the songs on "Touch" come across as more honest, raw and risky than any the band's previously released work. Highlights include "Love is the compass," the title track and "Angel in Disguise." If you've been a Delirious fan for a while, you will grow to love this album just as much as the others, plus disc #2 has some rockin' live versions which only helps to sweeten the experience.



If you are semi-new to Delirious, and are looking for a first album to try out, I would recommend "Cutting Edge" and "King of Fools" over this one. The "D:finitie Worship Experience" double disc set is a good compilation of their best work but it takes away from the album feel of the songs since it tends to be more of a cut and paste job."

They're still one of a kind

Billy Pilgrim | Boogar hollow | 01/15/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First I'd like to address all of you who are knocking this album because it is not a worship record. Over the past year and a half, I have become pretty familiar with delirious and their work. The first album I heard by them was "Glo" a terrific record that somehow manages to straddle the line between worship music and flat out rock 'n roll. While that album is definitely a milestone, and is hard to categorize, I can safely say that all of their other albums fall into one of two distinct categories: worship albums and not worship albums. Let's call "Glo" a successful attempt to achieve both statuses. Records like "Mezamorphis" and "Touch" and even "King Of Fools" (which i, regrettably am not as familiar with) falls into the non-worship category. "Cutting Edge" and "Deeper" are unabashed in their worship recordness.I play in a praise band, and did not know until I bought and read the liner notes to "Deeper" that Delirious is responsible for writing some of the best and most well-known praise songs of our day. After finding that out, I stopped nursing the notion that they were another bunch of hacks putting out some tired, retreaded worship album: they were putting together a greatest hits album of sorts. My respect for this band is sky high. They are innovators, visionaries, and on that standard alone, it could be said that absolutely any record they make is a good record, but I won't be that naive. "Touch" took me a couple of listens to come around to, but I'm glad I did. It reminds me of "Mezamorphis" in that these are just good songs that say so much about the way that faith in Christ effects our everyday life. "Mezamorphis" wasn't a worship record at all. The first time I heard "Heaven" was on a secular modern rock radio station. I didn't know who it was, and only assumed that they had to be a Christian band. Point is, Delirious is not softening up their message, they're just writing the songs that they feel are important to themselves, their fans, and most importantly God. Don't knock them for that."

A poor job

groundskeeperwilliam | Hartford, CT | 01/16/2003

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a delirious fan and have all of their previous CDs, however I have to say that this CD is a bit of a disappointment and I don't listen to it often.
Many of the songs are weak in the melody department - a strength of previous Delirious offerings. Martin Smith sounds like he is trying to channel Radiohead at times and ultimately fails in my opinion. The focus of the songs on this CD seems to have shifted away from outright Christian themes to more general life themes of love and loss. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to keep them stuck in the Christian ghetto with everyone else, I just think that tackling more general themes leaves them with a less distinctive voice than they had previously.
If you are a die-hard fan like me then you'll buy this CD anyway. If not, steer clear of this particular offering........"