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    Exit Zine 1999/dc Talk
    dc Talk — Supernatural cover

    dc Talk

    Supernatural

    (1998)

    Reviewed by Laura Dawkins

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    Label ForeFront Records / Virgin RecordsExit Zine 19991999
    alternative rockccmpop rockrap rock

    It's growing on me. If you're even going to claim to be a hard-core, Jesus Freak, Tobymikeandkevin fan, you just can't pop their new CD in your player and expect the spinning to produce even close to the same sounds as it did with their last album. This talented trio has changed drastically with each release. Don't believe me? Check out "I Luv Rap Music" on Nu Thang. Although this ability to change has kept "DC Talk in da house," maybe this time they would have done well to hold on to their Jesus Freak genius. Not that the new sound is bad; it's just that they've kind of settled into a formula for their songs.

    Listen and see if you don't agree: They start out with some ethereal-sounding tones, followed by "Sha-da-da" or "Ooh, yeah," etc., followed by a mid-tempo song with distinctly CCM tendencies. It's a solid CD, but it lacks the exciting eclecticism of Jesus Freak.

    Highlight of the Album: Definitely "Godsend." Despite the depressing effect this song might have on the droves of females incurably devoted to the married Toby and Kevin, I think this love song to their wives is very sweet and models love as it should be - pure and God-honoring. I also really like Kevin's poetry reading on the last track - very cool.

    Most Entertaining Part of the Album: Somebody screams at the end of track 10, and doesn't quite pull it off. Oh, and in the credits, Kevin Max refers to his wife as "winky petals." I just can't hate anyone called "winky petals," even if she did take Kevin away from us.

    3.5/5

    Other coverage for this album

    HM Magazine #74Reviewed by Brian Vincent McGovernThe cool thing about this band is that each record has significant differences from the previous discography. Some fans gladly moshed when Jesus Freak came out, learning every word to every song; others stood in the corner with arms folded, muttering "Sellouts" under their breath; still others, like me, for instance, enjoyed the new music, realizing that Toby, Mike, & Kevin know their own hearts…The Lighthouse Unsorted 1998Reviewed by Paul Michael CarhartSince the release of their second album, Nu Thang, in 1990, dc Talk has continuously and consistently reinvented themselves with each subsequent project. The threesome threw both fans and industry insiders for a loop when "that Christian rap group" released Jesus Freak in 1995 with nothing more than vestigial rap influences evident on the recording. With Supernatural, perhaps the most anticipated…ReAL Magazine 1998Reviewed by Josh L!Supernatural is dc Talks' fifth release. Of the fourteen tracks, twelve are what most would call regular rock songs, while the first and last tracks create an incredible bookend effect. If you're not a lyric-reader, or if you buy albums for background music, the album's diversity may yield little glue to hold it together. I encourage you to drop the bad habit of never studying the meaning behind…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by James StewartYet another history making record for DC Talk, Supernatural entered the Billboard top 200 at number 4. Given their previous success, this was perhaps inevitable. It is sure to be a big seller for a while to come in the Christian music marketplace; maybe beyond. Unfortunately, the album follows something of a tested and tried formula: slightly more restrained than the title track of Jesus Freak,…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Joe RockstrohWhat is quite possibly the most hyped and anticipated album of 1998 is out. Does it deliver? I have to say "Yes." I've been following dc Talk for a long time, having purchased every album in succession of release. Stylistically, each record has been a deviation, however dramatic, from the previous one: from Beastie Boys hip hop, to Fresh Prince style rap, to a more refined urban hip hop, to the…The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Steven S. BaldwinAn album as consistently strong, accessible, and fun as Jesus Freak comes along so rarely that it is not fair to expect dc Talk to follow it up with an album that exceeds such high fans' expectations. Nevertheless, they have very nearly accomplished that task with Supernatural, an album that is considerable in its own right. Supernatural is to Seal's second self-titled album of "Kiss from a Rose"…

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