All Star United

Here's one of the perils of living in Music City U.S.A. Sometimes there are two events you really want to go to going on at the same time. Such was the case when Third Day, All Star United and Seven Day Jesus wrapped up their fall tour here last year. Something else came up, and I had to miss ASU's set. If that set was as good (and people tell me it was) as the debut album, I will be smacking myself in the forehead for some time to come. All Star United fills Christian music's power pop gap to overflowing. From the ode to religious consumerism (read: Jesus junk) in the opener, "La La Land," the Ian Eskelin-led quintet rips through 10 finely-crafted pop songs. Think of Jellyfish with more guitars, Oasis with fewer Gallagher brothers and PFR on Pez. A hallmark of good power pop is the practitioners drawing from a lot of different sources to mesh into one sound. ASU takes a little from the previous three bands mentioned, as well as some Green Day, some Kinks, even some Monkees and more. The sign of a great power pop band is that the derivations are so subtle that you really have to think about where the influences come into play, and All Star United falls into that category. Lyrically, Eskelin takes us on a trip all across life's landscape -- from the fight through the struggles of life in "Torn" to a happy allegory of heaven in "Bright Red Carpet," from an out-and-out praise song in "The Saviour of My Universe" to a "satirized for your protection" look at the music biz in "Smash Hit." Rare is the album that can fully serve the dual purposes of sometimes needed lyrical introspection and sometimes needed bouncin' off the walls rock 'n' roll fun. All Star United does both very well. A big ol' Styrofoam thumbs up for this one.

Review By: Lucas W. Hendrickson


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