Informants Uprising with a Banner of Worship
There’s no joking around with the April 1st release Uprising from Canadian based Christian band, Informants, as it is most definitely the real deal. Home for members Christian Victory*, Dion Jacobs, Micah Sheppard, and Joshua Parmiter in St. John, Newfoundland, has provided a place for these men to meet and create. These individuals are mission minded and music focused with the intent of delivering Christ centered messages through worship. With a broad brush of musical inspiration and a musical journey that begins with crunchy guitar riffs and ends up with open and moving worship, Informants are creating a body of work that is without a doubt, inspired.
This is not their first time around the block with putting out a release. Their previous EP, Ezekiel, received a fairly prestigious award, ECMA Gospel Album of the Year for 2016 and that was after their previous award from 2015 GMA Covenant Awards of Artist of the Year. Their first EP, Worship and Mission, is a pretty healthy first time offering for an EP. Solid theology, good sound, it definitely put out an idea of what sort of potential Informants could produce. The follow up, Ezekiel, began to define Informants sound, feel and with a definite message of who these four men are about. Typically, when an album receives so many accolades, the follow up album(s) can tend to be lackluster or without as much edge and commitment to the mission at hand. In this case, Informants charges in with a banner of music in Uprising that is just as strong as the previous release.
Uprising begins with panned crunchy guitars that roars into a call for all to pay “Attention” to truth. Drums and walls of sound slam the listener full faced, there’s no escaping the intent and force of the lyrics. The following songs, “Courage,” “The Cure,” and “We Move” are rocking worship tunes focused on Christ and mention the redemption for a fallen nature. At this point in the album, a softer side emerges as Informants delve into the nature of relationship with God. “Forever Your Grace” is a slow burner, beginning slow, but then exploding gracefully into a proclamation of grace and mercy. “Take Me” and “Hope Uprising” melt together into a perfect blend of harmony and grace of meditative worship with a bit of an undercurrent that keeps it moving forward towards the next song, “Fire It Burns.” Pulled from Isaiah 61, this song expresses what the messiah has done for us. Following this, “Complete” and “Hollow Grave” round out the album with a message of being complete and the message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This album is excellent from beginning to end. It’s a mash of edgy rock that marks bands like U2, has a worship element like Bethel, that serves as a backdrop, and a heart for God that shines like a beacon in a dark hole. If rock and worship is your thing, you will fall in love with this album.
Click on the image below to purchase Uprising
Click on the images below to purchase previous releases by Informants
Video of their GMA Performance
*And yes, Christian Victory is the name he was born with, all you hardcore Christians can be jealous for a minute. 🙂