Unspoken

Editors’ Notes Mixing urban grooves with folk-pop melodies, Unspoken deliver a self-titled debut album that combines tracks from their 2013 EP with eight new tunes. The Christian quartet’s accessible, radio-friendly sound invites comparisons with Newworldson (for the rootsy underpinnings) and Jimmy Needham (for a supple R&B feel). What gives the band’s music its own character is an intimate scale and sincerity. Lead singer Chad Mattson never preaches down to his listeners—there’s a humble Everyman quality to his vocals that suggests a friend sharing the Word over a cup of coffee. “Who You Are” and “Call It Grace” find him hinting at his own struggles as he celebrates the hope of redemption. The summery “In Your Hands” and the stirring “Lift My Life Up” are worship songs that emphasize personal testimony over sonic melodrama. As an ensemble, Unspoken do well with light shuffle rhythms (“Walking Away”) and airy pop tunes with hip-hop accents (“Good Fight”). The standout here is “Bury the Workman,” a bluesy track recounting the struggles of believers through the ages in the mode of a classic spiritual.