Wouldn't it be fun to have your favorite artist playing his acoustic and
sitting in your living room? All you best friends are gathered around,
everyone is enjoying the music and even singing along a bit. The artist
talks with you about his songs, what they mean, and you discuss whatever you
want. That's what Derek Webb did with last year's tour of America's living
rooms. Now we get to hear it for ourselves on The House Show. Check out our
review and keep checking cMusicWeb.com for more music info such as a review
of Bethany Dillon's stellar debut this weekend.

GOT COMMENTS?? - We want your input on cMusicWeb.com! Send it to
webmaster@... or find me on AOL IM.

UNSUBSCRIBE?? - Logon to http://groups.yahoo.com to do so, or drop us an
e-mail telling us why you're annoyed by hearing from us.


THE HOUSE SHOW - DEREK WEBB (2004)
by Jason Ewert

Like many die-hard Derek Webb fans, I can still remember the excitement I
felt when I first heard his solo debut She Must and Shall Go Free. It was
not the bubblegum thrill one gets when riding roller coasters, nor was it
the "Ooh! Aah!" heartwarming fuzzies that populate baby showers. This
feeling was different. It was like seeing for the first time. As I listened
to Derek's words I was convicted and uplifted by what he said, and I felt
strengthened by what I had heard.

But time has a way of growing cataracts on the eyes of our souls, and I've
found that the more I've listened to She Must and Shall Go Free, the more
I'm able to shrug it off and forget the Gospel that it preaches. It's become
easy for me to say, "Yeah I'm crooked deep down," and not even think about
what that means or what Scripture teaches me about this.

If you, like me, have been afflicted by this forgetfulness of the soul, then
The House Show is the antidote you need. Forget that it's chock full of live
emotion and great acoustic performances by Derek: the novelty of those
things will wear off with time. Derek's mini-sermons—disguised as "Intro
to..." tracks—will not.

Why are these mini-sermons so important? Because they expound on what Derek
preached on She Must and Shall Go Free. You can only say so much in a three-
or four-minute song, so these intros provide Derek with the chance to
explain to his audiences why the Gospel is so important, why we must believe
that we are great sinners, and why our salvation is so glorious. Simply put,
Derek preaches the Gospel, and he preaches it in such a way as to leave the
listener no option of escape.

All that said, the redeeming factor here is not Derek or his songs. Rather,
it is that the Gospel is preached faithfully. Derek is simply the messenger,
the songs simply his tools. And as the disc ends, you will not be thinking,
"Man, I love Derek Webb!" Instead, you'll be praying, "Praise Christ for His
glorious Gospel."

And that is how it ought to be.

Find out more about Derek Webb at cMusicWeb.com:
http://cMusicWeb.com/folk/derekwebb


MORE NEW STUFF ON cMUSICWEB.COM

Interview: Jars of Clay
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/jarsofclay/interview.shtml

Review: Stu Dent - Nephilim
http://cMusicWeb.com/hiphop/student/nephilim.shtml

Review: Building 429 - Glory Defined EP
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/building429/glorydefined.shtml

Feature: Manafest's Destiny
http://cMusicWeb.com/hiphop/manafest/feature.shtml

Review: David Crowder Band - The Lime CD
http://cMusicWeb.com/worship/davidcrowderband/lime.shtml

Review: Dead Poetic - New Medicines
http://cMusicWeb.com/hardrock/deadpoetic/newmedicines.shtml

Review: Third Day - Wire
http://cMusicWeb.com/modernrock/thirdday/wire.shtml


AVAILABLE TUESDAY, JULY 13 (at cMusicWeb.com or your local music store)

PURCHASE THIS MUSIC AND MORE AT GRASSROOTSMUSIC.COM:
http://www.grassrootsmusic.com/?associateid=249

ABSOLUTE SMASH HITS - VARIOUS
Fervent Records is trying to cash in on the success of the WOW series by
offering their own two-disc hits set. Sadly, the highlights of the disc,
older songs by Tree63, Jennifer Knapp, and 12 Stones take the spotlight and
Fervent artists such as Big Daddy Weave and Palisade are just filler.

KJ-52 AND TC PRESENT SOUL PURPOSE
Who would've thought KJ's producer, Todd Collins, could sing? And more
amazingly, maybe even KJ can sing? I don't think it goes that far, but with
this Soul Purpose project the two go more pop than KJ-52's albums. KJ still
raps and they goof off a lot, but here you get more singable choruses.

LETTERS TO THE PRESIDENT - HAWK NELSON
The Trevor effect has struck again. You've heard him leading Thousand Foot
Krutch and FM Static, but this time Trevor McNevan is producing. His
hometown friends, Hawk Nelson, are being billed as the Christian version of
Good Charlotte and Simple Plan, and it shows. This group's pop-punk is solid
and they could be another breakthrough for the portfolio of the T&N/Trevor
combo.

THE LISTENING EP - ROCK 'N' ROLL WORSHIP CIRCUS
OK, it didn't release today, it released on Sunday. And no, you cannot get
it anywhere but Worship Circus shows and www.worshipcircus.com, so you will
have to special order it. We have not heard it yet, but the early buzz is
that its the most mature disc from the Worship Circus yet. No doubt this
PICK OF THE WEEK will only keep fans stoked for another full-length disc.


Thanks for reading this week's cMusicMail, and we'll be back next week with
even more great content. If you have any comments or questions, please reply
to this e-mail or send them to webmaster@.... We'd love to hear
from you!

Dan Ficker
http://cMusicWeb.com/
a different approach to music
AOL IM - dMusicWeb