The newsboys have returned to pop rock with their new album, “Go.” (Inpop Records)
Find the newsboys and you’ll find the fun.
Energetic music, a captivating show and a solid message are all part of the package so it’s no wonder frontman Peter Furler can sing on the band’s new album: “Wherever we go, that’s where the party’s at.” It’s also no wonder that worship singer Paul Colman would give up a successful solo career to join the crew as a guitarist.
During his time with the Paul Colman Trio — which won the Dove Award in 2003 for Best New Artist — and his subsequent solo career, the Australian composed a number of worship songs that are now sung in churches around the world. However, things changed when fellow-Australian Furler invited Colman to coffee about a year ago.
“Sort of out of the blue, in the fall of last year, Peter just took me out for coffee and said, ‘Paul, I want you to join the band,’ ” said Colman, who has known the newboys’ members for years and served as their opening act for more than 100 shows.
“After about five days of talking with friends and family, I just really felt like: I really want to do this; I want to be around these guys.”
Colman has been pleased with the results.
“I sensed that the Lord wanted to do some things in my life, with my character, and just having less to do and less me-doing-it-all-by-myself would create more time and it actually has,” he said. “It’s created a wonderful season in my marriage and my life with my kids and my family and the guys in the band.”
Professionally, that season has included a major tour and Tuesday’s release of the newsboys new CD, “Go.” The disc is a return to the band’s roots in upbeat pop rock, following two successful praise-oriented projects — the Grammy-nominated “Adoration” and “Devotion.”
The disc opens with the relentlessly sunny “Wherever We Go,” which describes a group whose presence makes a miraculous difference in its surroundings. It’s a dynamic song that has already grabbed concert audiences, Colman said.
That energy flows through much of the disc. It pairs nicely with the theme that carries through many of the songs: a mission to spread the gospel.
The title track describes being sent to do God’s work in the world, while “The Mission” uses the image of a relay race to explain how today’s believers are continuing the “revolution Jesus started.”
However, the missional emphasis wasn’t necessarily intentional, Colman said.
“What I’ve observed with Peter, whatever season he’s going through in this life, is reflected in his songwriting,” Colman said. “For ‘Adoration’ and ‘Devotion,’ what was really on Peter’s heart was really giving the church songs to use in worship.”
During the creation of “Go,” Furler was reading about church history and theology.
Some of the “Go” songs would fit nicely in the band’s last two projects. “I Am Free” is filled with pure-rock praise and “Something Beautiful” edges close to a disco beat as it finds beauty in love and simple things. On the mellower side of things, “In Wonder” examines God’s creation and “The Letter” describes how each person is special to God.
Those who like a more introspective view will be pleased with “Let It All Come Out,” which asks “what has to break for you to begin again?” And “Your Love Is Better Than Life” is a quirky, upbeat look at our failures. It asks: “I don’t know how I can end a prayer and turn on a friend.” Furler doesn’t offer any answers, aside from the assurance that God’s love is always there to catch us.
The band was already laying down the demos for the disc when Colman joined. However, he still helped Furler write four of the songs, including “Something Beautiful” — “probably my favorite song the album” — and “Your Love Is Better Than Life.”
However, no matter who get the writing credit, each song “proclaims the Gospel in one way shape or form,” Colman said.
“No matter how people are coming at this record, supposedly the results will be the same, that they’ll be encouraged in their walk with God and that they’ll realize that God is crazy about them and that he’s interested in every facet of their lives,” he said.
On the Web: www.newsboys.com
Today's Praise is a roundup of news and reviews from the contemporary Christian music industry. It appears on the Religion page.
