Echoing Angels - Echoing Angels (2011)

The Christian blue collar rockers emerge after a five-year hiatus on their sophomore disc, and the years have done them some good. Perceivably, the album is self-titled because the band seems to have discovered their identity, reinventing themselves as an adult alternative group comparable to Matchbox Twenty, Goo Goo Dolls, and Train. The rock edge has been dropped in place of more ballads and moderate tempos, but the effect is a more authentic collection. Between the addition of new instruments, more diversity, and more blues and soul in Chris Peavy's voice, this is a band that refuses to get lost in the shuffle. It's a journey from their debut record, which portrayed the band as an aspiring modern rock outfit like 3 Doors Down and Nickelback. They still find moments to flex their guitar muscles, as on the gritty "Burning" and the catchy "Say What You Believe," but for the most part, the album finds them sticking well within their lane. "Sad as Tears" sounds like a cross between James Taylor and Fleetwood Mac, revealing new facets of their sound. When the Southern gentlemen tone it down on worship ballads like "I Will Give You Peace and Leaving Here," they show who they are at heart: musicians with stories to tell and a faith-promoting message that doesn't completely follow the corporate worship style.