Music Review: Across the Sky

Stars: 4 out of 5
Pros: Fun music, "Not So You Will Love Me"

Cons: Too similar sounding at times; weak lyrics

The Bottom Line:

Dynamic duo

With only one music disc

Wish we'd gotten more

Great Debut.  Too Bad They Appear to be One Hit Wonders

Ever get a debut CD you are absolutely excited about, wait for the artist to release something else, and never hear from them again? That's my experience with Across the Sky. This pop/rock duo released this great debut CD in 2003 and hasn't been heard from since. How I wish that wasn't true.

Now I know that pop/rock can get overused in music circles (and my reviews). But in this case, it really doesn't apply. When Ben Kolarcik and Justin Unger met, they were pursuing solo careers in rock and pop respectively. But they formed a solid friendship and decided to strike out as a duo. The result was Across the Sky.

While Justin's pop influences are noticeable on a few songs and the melodies, the CD tends to lean to rock. Over half the songs feature heavy guitar while the rest are dominated by keyboard. And the two men share vocals, creating some great harmonies along the way.

The CD starts out with one of more pop tracks. "Found by You" starts right out with vocals and guitar. The guitar and drums up things on the chorus, giving it more of a rock flavor. I love the theme of the song, which talks about how life makes more sense when we've been found by God.

"Give it all Away" is a rock song. It's got driving drums and hard guitar to accompany thoughts on letting God use us to give away his love.

Up next is one of love songs on the disc. "Everywhere She Goes" is a fun song about the beginnings of a relationship when you're still in the flirtation stage. You know you're interested, she knows you're interested, but nothing else has happened yet. Again, the guitar is heavily featured and really drives this song.

Another love song comes later in the disc. "First Love Song" is a tender song that heavily uses keyboard and softer guitar and drums. It's a song celebrating the love that comes from a committed relationship and the hopes and dreams it helps to build.

The most interesting choice to me was the cover of Michael W. Smith's "Do You Dream of Me?" Since it was originally recorded on his first best of, it's not one of his better known songs. The song is almost all piano and strings. It actually works better then the original version. It's the slowest song here. Ben and Justin alternate verses and combine with guest vocalist Jennifer Morrison at the end for the best harmony on the CD. It's a mature love song asking if their love has grown after the years together.

My favorite song on the disc is "Not So You Will Love Me," the final song on the CD. It's another guitar track, but it's a mid-tempo treat this time. The song is about why Christians do what they do, not so God will love us, but because He already does.

As much as I love this CD, there are so flaws. Even with keyboard featured on a few of the songs, they all begin to sound the same after a while. A little more variety would have been great. Additionally, the lyrics are rather weak. There are no new revelations and nothing we haven't heard before.

Across the Sky is too much fun to dismiss based on those drawbacks, however. Ben and Justin showed some real promise here. I think watching them grow musically would have been lots of fun. As it is, I'll be left to wonder what happened to this promising duo.

CD Length: 43:50

Tracks:

1. Found by You

2. Give it all Away

3. Everywhere She Goes

4. When I Open My Eyes

5. Broken World

6. Shooting Star

7. Exciting Times

8. Masquerade

9. Persistence

10. First Love Song

11. Do You Dream of Me?

12. Not so You will Love Me