Rend Collective
Campfire
Album · Christian · 2013
Campfire documents this freewheeling Irish Christian combo leading a congregation in praise of the Saviour around a beachside blaze. The set features both favourite tunes from the group’s earlier albums and new material, infusing them all with a foot-stomping energy that brings to mind the likes of Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers. Rend Collective Experiment has built an international following by stripping back modern worship music to its populist roots; here, the group go even further toward primal simplicity. Co-lead singer Chris Llewellyn kicks things off with a tender rendition of the folk hymn “Kumbaya” before partner Will Heron joins him in leading the crowd through “Come on My Soul”, “Movements”, “Build Your Kingdom Here" and similarly rousing numbers. A winsome tone slowly builds through the rendition of Matt Redman’s “10,000 Reasons”, and the rollicking “Praise Like Fireworks” brings Campfire’s worshipful festivities to an ecstatic conclusion. Throughout, the combo’s unfettered interplay of guitars, accordion, fiddle, banjo, standup bass and handheld percussion keeps the music flowing.