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Mercy Me is atypical of most of the artists on the INO roster in that they have enjoyed huge commercial success.  With last year’s public embracing of “I Can Only Imagine”, one would hope that Mercy Me would grab the opportunity to explore new areas of music, and progress as a band to a new level.

In this critic’s view, however, Undone plays it safe.  It is almost everything a cynic has grown to expect from CCM: bland, safe, middle of the road, attempting to appeal to all audiences, and will undoubtedly be a massive success.  Mercy Me is the Hootie and the Blowfish of CCM today: no one hates them, everyone can think of something by them that they like, and they use just enough
guitar not to drive away the young male audience.  In other words, they are a group of Steven Curtis Chapmans, to the point where Bart Millard’s vocals strongly resemble Chapman’s.

“In the Blink of an Eye” is not a Rick Elias cover, but a song that yearns to be closer to Christ:

In a blink of an eye that is when
I’ll be closer to You than I’ve ever been 
Time will fly, but until then
I’ll embrace every moment I’m given 
There’s a reason I’m alive for a blink of an eye

Mercy Me spent over a decade in this business before realizing widespread fame.  Given the nature of the CCM audience, Undone will not fall into the category of rushed, mediocre follow up albums.  If you liked Almost There and Spoken For, then this album will fit nicely into your collection.  If you’re looking for something new, keep looking. 

Brian A. Smith
8 May 2004

In recent years, more and more songs from the Christian music industry have found an amazing amount of success in the general market.  "Butterfly Kisses" became popular not only on Christian radio, but also on general market, or secular, radio stations. The same thing happened to "Kiss Me" by Sixpence None the Richer. One of the most recent and most remarkable examples of this is the MercyMe hit, "I Can Only Imagine", off their debut CD, Almost There. It received great success on Christian radio, but was also played on secular radio stations across the station. Christians everywhere were amazed and thrilled that this simple song about the amazing experience of being in heaven and wondering what our response will be received so much success.
 
With the release of their second CD, many were waiting to see which song off it would be the next "I Can Only Imagine" and they labeled the CD a disappointment when no song reached the popularity of "I Can Only Imagine." This sells Undone and MercyMe short and leaves out one key piece of the equation of what makes one song a big crossover hit and not another, the sovereignty of God. For reasons we may never understand, God chooses to make certain songs impact both Christian and secular radio. For reasons unknown to all of us, God did not have a song from Spoken For impact radio like "I Can Only Imagine," but this does not mean that Spoken For is not just as good a CD as Almost There. Even if no songs from Undone reach cult status, this is still a great CD.
 
When the lyrics are carefully studied, they prove to be not only theologically but also philosophically deep. This starts with the first song of the CD, "Where You Lead Me" where the band sings about the search for purpose in life ("what is life / a thousand roads a thousand ways...") and finding that purpose in following God wherever he leads ("where you lead me, I will follow / Where you lead me, I'll give my life away").  The second song tackles the topic of faith, which the CD liner notes define as "a confident belief in truth that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence." The song talks about being taught to hold "on to what is tangible" and then God entered the picture and turned things upside down as faith became important. The third track is the first major radio hit, "Here With Me," which deals with the idea of God's amazing love for us. This song will quite possibly make it into the personal devotional time of many believers. The tempo picks back up with "In the Blink of an Eye" with its guitar and music that really kick in during the chorus.
 
The tempo slows back down with "Unaware," which deals with a believer who has focused completely on God to the point of being unaware of fear and shame and only wanting to glorify His name. This one might also become a song that believer's sing back to God during their devotions or personal quiet time. The words and music of one of the most personal songs of the CD, "Homesick," were written solely by Bart Milliard in response to the untimely death of band members’ relatives. They are comforted by the fact that their lost loved ones are with God, but the same thought also makes them homesick. The other songs on this CD are just as meaty and deep. All of the songs on the CD were at least co-written by the members of the band, with people like Peter Kipley (who produced this CD) also co-writing lyrics).
 
It would take several months to do even a decent study of the theological concepts that this CD deals with such as faith, God's omnipotence, His Love, God's desires for our lives, perseverance in the hard times, and the purpose of our lives, making it one of the meatiest CDs in recent memories.
 
Bart Milliard has said that MercyMe sees themselves as a rock group and this CD starts to show small signs of that. Some of the songs definitely have more of a rock sound to them than anything that is on either of the group's first two CDs.  It is not a huge leap into rock, but rather some small baby steps.
 
After winning quite a few Dove awards this year including Artist of the Year and Song of the Year, MercyMe has hit a grand slam homerun with Undone, a project so lyrically deep and meaty and enjoyable to listen to that it is one of those must-have CDs for 2004.
 
Burton Wray  July 12, 2004