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Justin McRoberts is a solo artist from California. He plays acoustic guitar and sings. His music is folk/acoustic pop. Think you've heard this one before? Probably, but Justin McRoberts is worthy of more attention than most.

Father is the second release from Justin McRoberts. It has the same passionate vocals and solid guitar work that can be found on Justin's first release, Reason for Living. The biggest improvement is the evident lyrical maturation. The lyrics on the first album were good, but Father contains some of the more beautiful, worshipful libretto I have heard in some time. From front to back, Justin's songs speak of powerful love for Christ.  Often, it's as if you are listening to this lyricist pray intimately to God. On my favorite track, "After My All" Justin speaks of relying on God even in tragedy.
 

After my all has been run through, I'll give what's left of me to you knowing in time I'll be renewed, walking again

So before my all has been run through, I'll give the whole of me to you wait for your word in all I do, walk in your strength

"Am I praying in the wrong way, do I worship in the wrong way what are we fighting for? So I will meet you at the cross, if that's the only place we meet, that's fine by me"

The only place in which this CD is lacking is,unfortunately, an important one--there is quite enough musical variety to keep the listener's attention throughout.  The songs begin to fade into the background as the disc progresses. Each song is fundamentally the same, which in itself isn't a problem, it's just that the music from track to track is overly similar. Justin and a guitar with back ground vocals. One definite highlight is the aforementioned "After My All." Just as the music starts to fade in to the scenery, the raw, honest passion of the opening vocals tear you back.  The BGV's are done very well, by, I believe, Sarah Masen on most tracks. There is also a pleasant duet with Nichole Nordeman.

If you have a chance, go and see Justin McRoberts on tour this fall with Caedmons Call. I have seen him live before and it was very entertaining. I believe that his album's don't do justice to his live show. I admit, I saw him opening up for the W's, The Insyderz, and Five Iron Frenzy so the show may not have been representative of what you will see this fall. It is a daunting task to ask a guy with an acoustic guitar to get a crowd of 500 punks and skankers warmed up, but he answered the call superbly. He played a few rock songs (or maybe "rock versions" of his songs" and did an outstanding cover of "Livin' La Vida Loca." If you go and see a Justin McRoberts show (and you should) and the set is coming to a close and he hasn't played it yet, start yelling till he does.  It'll be worth it, I promise.

This project, as a whole, is very good. I recommend it to anyone who likes acoustic pop or contemporary worship. It is a CD worth owning.

Matthew Riddle 9/28/2000

Dropping his hat into the musical arena popularized by acts like Jars of Clay and Caedmon's Call during the mid-'90s, Justin McRoberts adheres, in large part, to the folk-tinged pop-rock template laid out by these groups and the numerous artists who have followed them during the past five years. "Always Deeper" is a pleasant composition that features a relaxed vocal delivery and full-bodied low guitar sound.  The light pop number "Waiting on Your Love" includes a highly metric and alliterative lyrical structure which gives the song a well-defined sense of rhythm.  And "Be Still" attaches the introspective, often confessional slant of much of contemporary folk-rock to a set of Beatlesque melodic embellishments to fine effect.  But despite the agreeable nature of entries like these, a sizable segment of the album's songs are generally nondescript affairs that do little more than fall in alongside the current swarm of light Christian pop-rock efforts. On the lyrical side of the coin, McRoberts uses fairly direct language to make his points, which most often detail his relationship to God and its associated struggles.  Songs like "Follow You" convey the author's devotion to God (In your death I can live again/ If I die to the man that I am/ I will follow you, Lord, where you lead), while others, like "Be Still," (Back from heaven only moments ago/ Yet my heart has grown cold again/ But the love you gave/ It comes with a guarantee) relate the familiar theme of falling away. Still, as with the instrumental portion of the album, a healthy slice of McRoberts' lyrics are bogged down by the same sense of formula that beleaguers his musical statements.

Despite its weak points, though, Father still does have its share of distinctive musical and lyrical facets.  The austere wording and story-telling approach of "After My All" (John's room is 314/ Mean's Dad's in ICU/ And after he is gone/ Gunshot to solve it all/ I see my efforts fail/ And I hit the wall) complement the composition's stark instrumental approach to make it a haunting narrative.  And the melancholy phrasing of "Standing In His Place" (You were walking in as he was walking out/ The space that he was making, you came to carve out/ I guess a cup is only useful for the hollowness of its shape/ The brokenness in me/ Is the need that holds your grace) endow the piece an inescapable sense of wistfulness. Musically speaking, McRoberts' greatest success comes when he ventures to either side of the light folk-rock that peppers so much of his release.  "Heroes" seamlessly melds the classic melodicism of Badfinger with the quirky, energetic pop sensibility of Squeeze with most infectious results. And the syncopated, jazzy groove of pieces like "Intervention" is the perfect backdrop for McRoberts' more soulful and earthy vocal tendencies. Even so, the slower numbers such as "Ready When You Are" and the best-of-album "Form-Fitted," with their intricate, almost hushed, arpeggiatic guitar lines and palpable sense of reverence and intimacy offer McRoberts the most ideal foundation upon which to display his profuse vocal and musical talent. All in all, Father is a fine enough release, filled with likable songs and impeccable instrumental work.  But, these are both held in check, for the most part, by the album's paucity of musical distinctiveness and lyrical weight.  McRoberts undoubtedly possesses large portions of both sincerity and skill.  But, he would do well next time out to wed those attributes to a more uniformly engaging set of songs.

Bert Gangl 12/19/2000