‘Hope is What We Crave’ highlights For King and Country’s live performance talent

The Christian-rock duo For King and Country have found their home in Nashville. The two brothers from Australia have quickly become one of the most reputable names in the Christian-rock genre. Their album, “Crave,” has quickly risen to the top of Christian charts and was voted “Breakthrough Christian & Gospel Album of 2012” on iTunes.

On Aug. 27, For King and Country released a live album titled “Hope is What We Crave,” which was performed at The Factory in Franklin, Tenn. Brothers Joel and Luke Smallbone, with their heavy Australian accents, performed a sold out show in front of thousands of screaming fans, running through the entire tracking.

The album’s live performance is nothing short of incredible. The production of the video is remastered to perfection, with a crisp sound and high definition picture that will make you believe you’re standing on the floor of The Factory with everyone else in the crowd.

King And Country’s stage presence is also relentless.

The moment the band steps onto the stage viewers are granted a phenomenal performance. The band rarely makes mistakes and the charisma of both brothers shows their passion for music and for God. The performance really takes off around the second song, “Light it up,” as both brothers bring out flashlights and shine them on the room’s hanging disco balls, causing a sea of fragmented light to spin around the audience and balcony.

While the production of this live album transcends viewer expectations and the synergy the band presents on stage is nothing short of what any band should dream to accomplish, the performance is lacking in one area: the songs.

For the majority of the album, the songs seem to blend together and follow a similar chord structure that left me bored and unimpressed. Fortunately, the stage presence of the front men and the band kept me entertained enough to make the songs enjoyable, but I was not impressed with the majority of songs performed.

The band, however, does redeem itself during the last song of their performance by singing their breakout single “The Proof of Your Love,” leaving the audience with the most memorable part of the performance by releasing a mesh of colored light on stage to end a fantastic show.

Bottom Line: For King and Country have no trouble putting on a commanding live performance, but their songwriting capabilities are a bit lacking. Perhaps it was the atmosphere, or the sound of the concert, but I only found two songs memorable.

Rating: 6.5

Favorite Track: “Light it up”

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