Lindy & the Circuit Riders “Driven by Love” Album Review

Prime Cuts:  Driven by Love, Obedience, Mercy

Overall Grade: 3.75/5

Worship isn't just about singing or lifting up of our hands or even about smoke-filled stages decorated with expensive sound equipments.  Rather, worship, according to Lindy & the Circuit Riders, is about being driven by love to show mercy, to love others, to bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth.  Such a pragmatic understanding of worship is the golden thread that runs through this entire record, giving this album a thematic cohesiveness often lacking in many worship records today.  Just like label mate Sean Feucht's latest release, this Bethel Music imprint signee is overtly passionate about missions.  In fact, Lindy Conant, defines herself as a missionary who makes music.  Currently, she spends her time in Kona, HI serving with Youth With A Mission.

"Driven by Love," released through Heritage Music Group, an imprint of Bethel Music, is Conant's follow-up album to her 2016 effort "Every Nation."  The album's title cut "Driven by Love" is not only the backboned of this record, it is also a career defining song.  Titanic in the song's execution enhanced by Conant's larger-than-life powerhouse vocals, "Driven by Love" is a 100,000 volt turbo-charged push for us to get out of our seats and carry out the Lord's Great Commission. "Obedience," the song's sophomore single, is a  brilliant follow-up as Conant sings about her response to Matthew 16:18-20: "I will obey you with my yes."  "Mercy," on the other hand, teaches us how we are to be Christ's evangelist: "mercy changes the heart, words only go so far."  Thus, this album isn't just a worship record.  Rather, it's a viscerally potent manual to evangelism.  

"Worthy of it All" is a soaring power-ballad that brings us right into the throne vision of Revelation 5.  While the synth-induced atmospheric "Mark My Hands" has an indebted Jesus Culture  balladry feel that ought to impress fans of that collective. Not bad too is ode of utter surrender to Jesus, "We will Ride."  However, the album also runs into a problem: there are far too many arena-swallowing ballads.  Not that this is bad, but other than the punchy "Can't Keep Quiet," all of the songs here follow the same template.  To hear all of them bunched together can make the listening experience tedious and too heavy at times. 

Nevertheless, this is still an important album.  Few are the worship records that address the oft-neglected theme of missions and evangelism.  Lindy and the Circuit Riders not only address this issue, they do it with flying colors.

 

 

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