Delirious?’s new World Service album serves up another helping of what we’ve come to expect from this established group, which is a mixture of pop-praise songs, as played by a rock & roll band. World Service is primarily a meditation on God’s grace that is consistently fine, from beginning to end.

The best track on the album is one called “Inside Out,” which features a feather-light Roxy Music-like dance mix, along with a gritty guitar part inspired by U2’s The Edge. Its lyric (which includes lines like, “You still captivate me/Fascinate me”) could pass for either a romantic or a spiritual meditation. Toward the end of the album, the group applies a few minor key melodies (which are still stylistic rarities for this particular outfit) for one called “I Feel It Comin’ On,” and another titled “I Was Blind.” The latter sports singer Martin Smith’s most Bono-esque vocal contribution for this release, which exists within an especially confessional track. One other standout is called “Mountains High,” which deals honestly with the death of a loved one.

Musically, World Service is filled with plenty of group vocals (“Rain Down”), and a variety of guitar effects. For instance, “Free” features a nice George Harrison-sounding slide guitar solo over a mix of big guitars and pounding drums. And on the opener, “Grace Like Rain,” the sonic alternates between aggressive guitar riffs and a choir-ish vocal chorus. Keyboards are only used sparingly throughout, but to excellent effect on a ballad of reassurance, called “Every Little Thing,” which also closes the album on a gentle note.

As a whole, World Service is much more than just serviceable. [Furious? / Dan MacIntosh]

This CD review was printed in the March/April issue (#106) of HM Magazine. You can order a copy of this issue online in our store, or pick it up at a local newsstand.

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