Tenth Avenue North's "The Struggle": Music Review

I've got to say it. I'm not a big fan of Tenth Avenue North's third studio project, The Struggle. Sure, the 12-track album features several radio friendly songs including the debut single "Losing" but something gets lost in translation.

Thematically, The Struggle explores the challenges of life and how God's grace consistently delivers us from the depths of despair. Frontman Mike Donehy, an emerging voice in contemporary Christian music, has crafted a set of lyrics that are powerful and strong but sometimes feel disconnected from the musical arrangement.

Perhaps the addition of two new band members into the creative mix finds them in a transitional period of sorts that is reflected on this record. The strongest track on the album is actually the final track, "Lamb of God", a stripped down acoustic arrangement that will certainly find it's way into church worship services across the land.

In summary, the lyrics are strong, the music is well crafted, but it just does not come together in the end. 

Album Highlights: "Losing", "Lamb of God", "You Do All Things Well"