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Through the Ages

In November 2017, we launched our debut album. Scroll down to read more about it.

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Album

Through the Ages

Why we made our first studio album

So why make an album? Why is it something worth putting time to? Well, our church community is made up of different people. People from different cultural expressions, from different backgrounds, and at different points on their journey of faith. However, the music we often play in church tends to be designed to work for those who know Christ already or who relate to a particular musical expression. All of this got us thinking. What would it sound like to try and musically represent the diverse group of women and men that call ChristChurch London home? What would it take to create music that takes influence from many different styles and combines them to form something “new”? Could this new sound help our diverse group worship God? Could seekers & skeptics both want to listen to this “church” music and see its value? These were some of the questions we were asking ourselves as we began the journey of this album.

There has been a rich history of song writing within the global Church, and we thought it was time for ChristChurch London to get in on the action. I believe that our mission of working for the cultural, social & spiritual renewal of London is so exciting that it deserves its own soundtrack – one that translates our spiritual convictions into musical expression.

I believe that art is about connecting people. It’s shining a light on something beautiful so we can share our joy or awe with one another. It’s revealing something painful or unjust so that we can collectively grieve. Music is particularly powerful in this regard. Music can cross lots of boundaries, perceived or real, and help people to see their lives as connected rather than distant.

This concept album starts at the beginning, the origins of life, and moves through to the second coming of Christ. Along the journey it’s punctuated with ancient truth that aims to connect the present to the past. That’s why we called it “Through The Ages”. Through each step in our history and each step in our lives, God is with us and is working in all things.

We really wanted this album to be music that shares our heart for transformation in a way that brings as many on the journey as possible. Each of the song arrangers involved in this project (people who take a song in its raw form and create musical structure to form the song) allowed their own musical influences and experiences to inform what we made. We did our best to make something that would be enjoyable and interesting to listen to no matter who you believe Jesus is. However, this is only the first step. Art not shared is incomplete. This music needs to be shared with others, given as a gift or listened to with your favourite drink in hand. We hope that it will draw people, all sorts of people, closer to Jesus. Jesus is the best thing we have to offer people and ultimately it’s the gospel that is the core inspiration of this project. We want to be a voice of hope in this city that we love.

For us, this is the start of something new, something exciting and something we hope to do many times again in the future.