Moment of Worship

Moment of Worship is a contemporary worship music service headed up by Erik Grant based out of Villa Park Illinois. In his own words: our goal is to help provide a moment of worship, wherever you are. In general, the songs are not available for CD purchase, but they are to be used as a resource for worship bands to have meaningful and easy songs to play for their worship. It is also to showcase some production value for other musicians who are in need of a local producer in this genre.

The CD kicks things off with an uplifting yet melodic ditty “Here We Come” passionate guitar driven intro groove with methodical musical build, hooky chorus and emotionally charged vocal delivery and well placed harmonies. Track 2 “We Are Called” serves up another hooky groove, with melodic musical flow coupled with methodical musical build against a flowing electric guitar ambience. Track 3 “I Ask and Seek” shifts gears with its bluesy almost funky guitar lending itself into an infectious melody with thought provoking lyrical and impassioned vocal persona that flows and ebbs its way through to emotional fruition. As the CD unfolds I can hear many musical influences reminiscent of Shawn McDonald, Bebo Norman, Jonny Diaz, Shane and Shane, Paul Budde.  Right from the start you will notice Grant feels quite comfortable just letting it all hang out musically, not holding anything back. The overall musical vibe has a nice Contemporary Christian Americana feel to it. Music is at times genuine, gripping, melodic, poppy and hooky with pockets of hope shining through brightly. The American fretwork is rock solid as Grant and company dish out impressive guitar licks and electronic Fiddle. Also present are rock solid Piano, sporadic Percussive accents, impressive vocal harmonies all built upon a strong rhythm section. Grant’s got solid vocal timbre and is full of passion and recklessness abandon. Grant is a gifted songwriter, storyteller and vocalist. The songwriting is brilliant and provides a lot of musical variety and emotion. His vocal emotions really seal the deal for me as he makes a strong emotional connection with the listener. He really handles all the pin drop moments extremely well – this is a critical component of Singer/Songwriter often taken for granted, The musicianship from all the other members in the band has everything you would expect from an Americana-Christian-Folk band. The songs themselves are consistent musical experiences, each one possessing unique personality, flair and signature groove. From heartfelt “Overcome My Sin” to “Go Out In This World” this EP has something for just about everyone.

Engineering aspects seem a bit off kilter at times. Although the music is consistent and good this is a DIY musical project from start to finish. CD lacks low end frequency and crystal clear high end clarity. Electronic guitar a bit blistering sometimes. The electronic drums and percussion sound a bit cheesy and corny. Cover art is a bit amateurish. More instrumentation would help mix things up a bit better as well. Things like Pedal Steel, solo guitar, Piano, Keyboards, Harmonica, Tambourine and real, acoustic drums and Percussion would definitely take things up a notch. It’s fair to say all songs are a bit repetitive   

In close Moment of Worship headed up by Erik Grant has a lot of potential. I recommend for his next project he hire 3 separate engineers (Recording, Mixing, Mastering) add in more instrumentation here and there to mix things up a bit better. The music does exactly what’s it’s designed to do – inspire worship. It’s passionate, impassioned and inspirational. At the end of the day Moment of Worship headed up by Erik Grant is an impressive singer/songwriter possessing an infectious pop personality clearly worthy of worldwide recognition. One would be wise to keep a watchful on this project over the years to come.

Artist: Moment of Worship

CD: Journey in the World

Label: Independent Artist

Website:https://twitter.com/momentofworship

Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Folk, Pop, Americana, Contemporary Christian Worship Music.

Sounds Like: Shawn McDonald, Bebo Norman, Jonny Diaz, Shane and Shane, Paul Budde

Technical Grade: 7/10

Production/Musicianship Grade: 6/10

Commercial Value: 7/10

Overall Talent Level: 7/10

Songwriting Skills: 8/10

Performance Skill: 7/10

Best Songs: I Ask and Seek, Overcome My Sin, Go Out in This World

Weakness: Engineering Aspects, repetitive Songs, Lack of Instrumentation, DIY Presentation

~Cyrus Rhodes