Days after the Indianapolis Colts Superbowl win earlier this year, punter Hunter Smith shifted his focus from athletic pursuits to more artistic ventures in the off season. With Chris Wilson, his songwriting partner of seven years whom he met while leading worship at an Indiana church, Smith entered a recording studio to suss out what would become the group’s outstanding self-titled debut.
Wilson, a worship leader/guitarist since his youth, and Smith enlisted producer Pete Kipley (MercyMe, The Afters); and the combination of talents yielded a passionate current of worship. Most songs share a similar pattern of growth: they start spare and end in a lush, climactic, undeniably catchy chorus. All the songs are vertical in nature, save for standout “Hero,” which communicates a man’s willingness to protect and honor the love of another until he dies. However, the song holds a more weighty message: that one man cannot fulfill the human longing quelled only by God’s love.
Most songs on Connersvine explore a life lived inside God’s will. “Sacred Mystery,” one of the album’s most radio-friendly tracks, lays out a path of obedience. “Overflow,” an up-tempo acoustic track that sounds like it could have been culled from the Caedmon’s Call catalog, expresses the joy that comes from walking in faith. Overall, Connersvine is a 12-song prayer of intense adoration and praise that will strike a chord in the heart of any contemporary worship fan.
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Review by: Lizza Connor Bowen