I have yet to see a live concert in person, which probably puts me in the minority among music reviewers. So it's a treat to
get what amounts to a ticket in the mail. Recorded at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, NC this past April 24th
[concert] as well as North Charleston Coliseum in North Charelston, S.C., and Von Braun Centre in Huntsville, Ala.
[behind the scenes footage - date unspecified]), Until The Whole World Hears...Live, is well-produced and has only
increased my desire to see Casting Crowns myself someday.
The concert starts off with the album's title track, a high energy song that encourages a lot of singalong from the audience.
There's not a lot of deviation from the original tracks, except on "Mercy" and "At Your Feet"; the former features vocalist
Megan Garrett speaking about God and encouraging the audience to sing the chorus with her, while the latter includes
Mark Hall leading everyone in a prayer of surrender, and "Nothing But The Blood" - hence the length of the last song. If
there are cuts in the footage, they're nearly seamless. The lighting at the concert was also well done. What it lacks is the
energy that derives from being in the crowd yourself. Or maybe it's me - I watched it on a cozy couch on a lazy Monday.
While it's no surprise that this set only includes songs from UTWWH, one of the 4 they didn't pick surprises me. "Always
Enough" is a tender song of God's sufficiency. The story behind it just begs sharing. "Shadow Of Your Wings" might've
been fun to watch too (Mark rock). Besides the concert itself, we get to see plenty of other video goodies. You can watch
Hector fail at laser tag (but own in a hilarious dream sequence), Tenth Avenue North teaching the Crowns guys the finer
points of "cornhole", an introduction to Brian Scoggins, the new drummer, and an often humourous crew round-up.
There's also a look at the ever-expanding number of "Crowns Kids", including Meeka Hope, adopted from China by the
Hall family.
UTWWH...Live features the debut of the title track's music video, including fan-sourced video of people on every continent
save Antarctica singing along. Other than that, it's pretty standard fare; Mark face in the camera, spliced with band
members making their way to a roof to play together as the dawn comes. I was under the impression the video
submissions would occupy a bigger space than they did when Casting Crowns first announced they were looking for
videos. Mark both informs and amuses (particularly true in "The Glove") in his teaching videos which are tie-ins to the
songs. I had to "ketchup" it though (you'll get it if you watch), because this review was already overdue.
Closing Thoughts
Casting Crowns' music is built on a solid foundation of Biblical truth. Coupled with great music, great voices, and humble
hearts, there's really no way they can fail. Get a copy of Until The Whole World Hears...Live and prepare to come away with
something you lacked.
Review Written By: Laura Chambers [laura.chambers@christianmusicreview.org] on 8/27/2010
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