Sounds like … a sometimes-edgier blend of St. James' modern pop/rock sound, resembling Alanis Morissette, Sarah McLachlan, Evanescence, Plumb, and BarlowGirl.
At a glance … it's been a long five years since her Transform album, yet despite a few derivative tracks, Rebecca St. James proves she hasn't lost her touch, thanks to a newfound rock edge and lyrical openness.
"I have let the cold creep in and lock my ability to feel … I'm running out of time to live/Running out of love to give/Running out of life within/God help me." Whoa, are these lyrics (from "God Help Me") by the same perpetually cheerful and hopeful Rebecca St. James that Christian music fans have come to love since 1994?
Indeed, they come from a young woman who has wrestled with burnout and personal fears since 2000's Transform, which is partly why it's taken five years for her to release an album of new material. She's been plenty busy with relentless touring, participation in !Hero: The Rock Opera, writing a string of books, and releasing the best-selling Worship God. Nevertheless, St. James the songwriter has been absent too long, but fortunately, If I Had One Chance to Tell You Something proves that she hasn't lost her touch.
"God Help Me" starts the album and remains one of the most impressive because it clearly demonstrates her new songwriting approach. Dark, intense, and above all, honest, it's a prayer of vulnerability that stems from brokenness. St. James has gradually come to understand that Christian music doesn't always have to offer the answers—sometimes, it's more effective to simply be relatable, since these feelings are universal to Christians and non-Christians alike. Moreover, it's one of her most rocking songs ever, similar to Evanescence, early Plumb, or Alanis Morissette.
The answer to St. James' wordy album title is "You Are Loved," a catchy tune with a Brit-pop flavor and a terrific sampled-string hook. Written while thinking about a childhood friend who has fallen away from God, it's a simple and sincere letter that shares God's love with any heart that's grown cold. The strong rocker "Beautiful Stranger" is inspired by St. James' work with Compassion International, expanding on the idea of serving Christ through "the least of these." Heavier guitars also elevate "Shadowlands," which draws its title from C. S. Lewis and is a typically good ballad expressing faith through the dark valleys of life....
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