Independent
Release Date: October 27th 2017
Reviewed by: Jonathan Andre
Adam Agee– Paper Planes EP (iTunes/Amazon mp3)
Track Listing:
- Going With You
- Paper Planes
- Fighting For You
- Empire of Noise
- Going With You (Live Acoustic)
Even though we may not know Adam Agee by name, we still know him. Frontman of Stellar Kart. Frontman of the new version of Audio Adrenaline, let’s just say Audio A 2.0. Ring a bell? A familiar voice but couldn’t place a name to it? Well now here is the name- Adam Agee. And as we all know, Adam’s been around the CCM/rock/worship industry for quite some time. And now? Syntax Creative has now partnered with First Company Management (based in Nashville, Tennessee) to distribute the debut EP of Adam’s, that released just this last Friday. Yes, you heard it- Adam just released his debut EP just this last week. What does this mean about Audio Adrenaline? Who knows. Maybe they will continue, with Adam at the helm still or with someone new, or maybe they’ll just call it quits for reals. But whatever the case, Adam is now venturing out on his own, delivering 5 songs that has made this half of the year all the brighter. Infusing together various music styles, from acoustic and EDM, to pop and worship, this is a must-have for anyone who has been a fan of Adam’s music, in Stellar Kart, Audio Adrenaline or both. While these two aforementioned bands may be gone, what still remains is Adam’s heart in creating music that challenges, music that inspires, music that allows us to take that journey with Christ that He longs for us to take, on a daily basis. And while one of the only drawbacks is that the EP is quite short (in effect, it’s only 4 songs, with the last being a live acoustic rendition of ‘Going With You’), Adam’s passion and enthusiasm is undeniable. We can rest assured that whatever he releases next can be just as emotive and passionate as these four songs, or whatever he has released with Stellar Kart and Audio Adrenaline.
Comprising of 4 songs (the last is an acoustic rendition of the first track, and in some ways, delivers a more enthusiastic and raw moment compared to the somewhat polished outcome of the first track), Adam launches into moments of hope and encouragement, with ‘Going With You’ being the first single from the EP. Adam stirringly gives us comfort, that ‘…I won’t worry about tomorrow, cause I know that You know where I’m going, and I’m going where You’re going…’ Where we are going is to make God’s name and fame known to whomever we met. To love and be loved, to love our creator and the created, to love without inhibition, condemnation or judgement. To enjoy the little and finer moments in life. And if we pursue all these things, even if we sometimes feel like we’re running in a futile race, the Lord will know the sincerity of our hearts. We don’t have to worry, because in whatever we do, God will use that to shape us into better versions of ourselves, all the while using whatever transpires to lift Himself up and allow us to continue to be His reflection to people we meet. ‘Paper Planes’ is a dramatic difference musically, as EDM is explored by Adam. Personally, the track itself may have good intentions, but the execution may not have been to the best potential, as this song would’ve been suited to someone like Hawk Nelson, GAWVI, Manic Drive or Jonathan Thulin (who now goes under the moniker Andreas Moss). Still, the message is at its paramount, as Adam shows us that all we need to do is to trust that the Lord has our lives under control, even if we don’t know it. Like a paper plane, and how the maker guides where they want the plane to go, we are moulded and fashioned by our Father, with gifts and talents. He knows where we a best suited to be, and all we need to do is trust, even if at this certain moment, we may not know or understand the why things are happening to us now!
‘Fighting for You’ is a song sung from the Lord’s point of view, and gives us comfort to know how much we are worth in the eyes of the Lord. The longest song on the album clocking in at 3:34, Adam asserts that ‘…you’re worth more to Me than all of heaven’s glory, call on my name, child be still and know I’m fighting for you…’ God fights our battles, even when we can’t, and ‘Fighting for You’ does a great job in getting the message across. The last song on the EP is ‘Empire of Noise’, and is as confronting to us on the same plane and level as ‘Adding to the Noise’ and ‘Selling the News’, both by Switchfoot. ‘Empire of Noise’ challenges us as a society, and with a hard-hitting first verse- ‘…this life is filled with endless hours of television, internet with no intermission, steals me away, so much confusion, cities built on sole pollution, this world keeps saying it’s got something to say…’, we know this song is going to be a gut-wrenching head turner. Adam in effect calls out all the distractions we can have in modern day life, the things that dull down our connection to our Father when we get so consumed in whatever is the next best thing in society, be it facebook, twitter, Instagram, Netflix, the movies, fast food, shopping centres, whatever takes away from spending time with the Lord. We’re all guilty of it, myself included, so this song is a wake-up call for all of us who unintentionally shaft the Lord to the side in favour of whatever is pleasing to us at that moment. This song is very much needed, to encourage us to unplug and have a technology detox from time to time, so we can hear the voice of God all the more! Well done Adam for such a thought-provoking song, here’s hoping it’ll connect to other people like it did with me!
And that is it. Adam’s EP in a nutshell. We all know Adam so I’m not going to bore you with anything else. Just that this is an EP that sounds very much like the infusion of Stellar Kart and Audio Adrenaline. And maybe that’s ok. Maybe the two bands that Adam was a part of before are coming back in some shape or form, maybe they’re not. But whatever the case, Adam is still making music, and good music if I might say. This is just a 5 song EP and we can’t gauge whether this is the genre of music he is going to venture towards in the future. But from where it stands, Paper Planes is a reminder to us all, that Adam is still here and that he has something to say! Well done Adam for such a powerful EP, can’t wait to whatever the Lord has in store for you in the upcoming months ahead!
3 songs to listen to: Fighting For You, Going With You, Empire of Noise
Score: 4/5
RIYL: Audio Adrenaline, Newsboys, Stellar Kart, Kevin Max, TobyMac