Browbeats - Wither Wing - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Browbeats is not a group, but the name provides a convenient reference point to list two of the best Christian albums ever made. It is unclear just how related the two are (the first is actually attributed to Brow Beat-two words), except that some of the same artists (notably Michael Knott and Gene Eugene) are involved in production and songwriting. In the late '90s, having written more great songs than he could possibly record with his various projects (Aunt Bettys, LSU, Bomb Bay Babies), Michael Knott assembled an all-star studio band to back various vocalists in recording a few of them. Sort of like engineering your own tribute album-except that most of the songs were new and many cried out for a different voice and style than Knott would have given them. The result is an album that sounds like a compilation, but with more internal coherence than such projects generally have. Plus, again, most of these songs could not be found anywhere else. The tone of the second album, Wither Wing departs from the heaviness of life by being way more upbeat, rocking and gleefully playful than the debut (Unplugged Alternative). Wither Wing departs from the upbeat, playful tone with one exception - the title track - which is a slow Beatlesque song sung by Everett (Prayer Chain/Violet Burning) and moved along by Eugene's retro-mellow emotive keyboards.The album kicks off with InchStonergirlInch sung (or rapped) by Ted Cookerly of EDL with a hip-hop intro by Dax. As such, the song sounds like nothing ever heard from Knott before; it might appeal to fans of the P.O.D./Limp Bizkit style, but takes the listener by surprise on this particular album. InchGetting NormalInch is an Aunt Bettys song (from Ford Supersonic) remade with vocals by Scott Silletta of PlankEye and Fanmail. Gene Eugene sings InchOut of Time,Inch which was written by Knott but now sounds like a long lost Adam Again out