Curb Records
Release Date: October 29th 2021 / October 21st 2022 / November 18th 2022
Reviewed by: Joshua Andre
Love & The Outcome– Christmas Lights / The Wonder Of Christmas / It’s Still Christmas (Single) (Amazon mp3/iTunes) (Amazon mp3/iTunes) (Amazon mp3/iTunes)
Track Listing:
- Christmas Lights
- The Wonder Of Christmas
- It’s Still Christmas
Back in 2013, Word Label Group signed Canadian husband and wife duo Love & The Outcome, who have come to be one of my favourite duos ever- along with for KING & COUNTRY. Though Jodi King and Chris Rademaker have not had an easy road to recognition and prominence; both felt a calling on their hearts to make music, and thus began their trek across the border from Canada to the U.S more than a decade ago; into the great unknown and the vastness of uncertainty. Being from another country, they had to pack up their bags (literally), acquire a new place of residence, and say goodbye to everything they’ve ever known. Jodi has recorded a few albums as a solo artist (you can view the music videos here– all of the albums have been removed from the internet!), but eventually included her husband on one of her own unreleased solo studio albums, and then changed the direction of the album from a solo focus to a band focus. Thus, the journey of recording the self-titled debut Love & The Outcome, which released in 2013.
With the debut album having four producers (Seth Mosley, David Garcia, Jeff Pardo, and Ben Glover), the seamless easy-to-listen 11 tracks of hope, testimony, and encouragement, wrapped up in the genre of pop, with plenty of upbeat tracks next to transparent heartfelt ballads; was one of my highlights of 2013. Jodi’s vocals are sublime all throughout, as is Chris’s guitar playing. And the lyrics are what really gets me; they’re very personal and emotional, not necessarily something you’d see on a debut album- probably a third or fourth album, but not a debut. That’s what makes these Canadians special, as they’re willing to branch out and defy expectations, and sing about real issues, even if these issues have a solution and especially if they don’t. Fast forward to now, and apart from a sophomore album These Are The Days and an expanded edition of that same album (read both reviews here and here!), as well as a Christmas EP (not reviewed!) and an acoustic stripped down EP The Ocean Way Sessions; the duo returned in 2022 with their third full length studio album Only Ever Always– their most honest and vulnerable yet.
You can read our review of Only Ever Always here, and there’s no need to rehash old ground. Only Ever Always, aside from their 2020 EP You Got This, was technically Jodi and Chris’s first new original material release in 6 years- particularly because Jodi had a couple of kids and the duo just slowed down a bit as they breathed and watched their kids grow up- of which you only have one chance. And that is commendable. So, with these 13 tracks, which were as powerful and inspiring as ever (and there wasn’t any rustiness whatsoever), and Jodi and Chris delving into relatable and relevant issues of today, the duo are now back this year with a brand new single called “Human”, an honest melody where they admit their faults and outline that Christians are human and we do have human-like emotions that all of us have. We reviewed the single here; but as it’s coming up to Christmas 2023; let’s backtrack a little and gloss over the duo’s three original Christmas songs released in 2021 and 2022.
“Christmas Lights”, “The Wonder Of Christmas” and “It’s Still Christmas” all released within the last couple of years, and the original holiday melodies powerfully and vividly describe the reason for the season and remind us that Jesus is worthy of our praise; as He indeed came to earth as a baby in a manger and died on the cross some 30-odd years later and rose on the third day from the grave truly because He loves each and every one of us. “Christmas Lights”, a jovial pop melody, speaks about the true meaning of Christmas, and encourages us all that ‘…I know your burden’s heavy, it’s gonna be alright, ’cause God’s own Son the King has come to make your burdens light, so don’t you fear the darkness, and don’t worry ’bout the light, ’cause don’t you know the way back home is lit with Christmas lights…’; while “The Wonder Of Christmas” is a piano ballad the grapples and grasps with the dichotomy that Jesus was born as fully man but he’s also The King and fully God. With Jodi earnestly crying out that ‘…this is the wonder, the wonder of Christmas, Heaven’s love the holy One, this is the wonder, the wonder of Christmas, He left His throne to come to us…’; we are reassured that Jesus has everything in the palm of His hand and that His love for us is boundless and endless, as evidenced by His birth as a human for each of us because of His love for us and evidenced by His death and resurrection. Love & The Outcome finish up their original Christmas songs (for now!) with “It’s Still Christmas”, a melancholy and reflective melody where Jodi encourages us to call our to Jesus and to rest and bask in the knowledge of His infinite love- especially during times where we feel yucky or ‘off’ inside.
For me personally, I love both all three of Love & The Outcome’s albums very much- with these songs being an extremely honest portrayal of the trials and tribulations of a young Canadian couple and how they’ve found life in America, and how God has remained faithful through every situation. So, after my analysis of these new Christmas songs, should you all go ahead and stream them all on Spotify? Of course, you can never go wrong with some music from Jodi and Chris, who remind me of Britt Nicole vocally and Stu G musically respectively; and both of them ought to be congratulated, for recording their music after a long time away from the spotlight and both of them sounding never better! These original Christmas melodies are quite lyrically creative and inventive, even if the melodies are pretty cliché and CCM-esque; but as this band is still one of the best CCM bands out at the moment, let’s jam out to and reflect upon these Christmas songs and wait on what is next. Well done guys, I can’t wait for what comes next in the future! A live album or acoustic album?
Score: 4.5/5
RIYL: Francesca Battistelli, Jaime Jamgochian, Lindsay McCaul, Sara Bareilles, Jamie Grace, Point Of Grace