John Ringhofer has to be one of the more interesting songwriters I've come across in quite some time. His style of music can be compared to a quiet version of The Ramones - lots of tunes in a very short period of time. Vocally, he is Paul Simon meets Beck meets Freedy Johnston. He plays a plethora of instruments, and has a decidedly indie approach to his last two discs.
"In Holy Pursuit" could be the soundtrack to a carousel ride. "Tuck Us In Father," the first tune in a seven part opus called "One Song in Seven Rests," has a Proclaimers-style chorus. "I Got Arrested" focuses on the penalty Christ paid for the sins of mankind: "I got arrested so I'm free/growing repentant in the penitentiary/stripes on my clothes/because your stripes bought my release and they let me fall asleep."
Twenty-four songs focusing on the love of God, and the rest that can be found in Jesus. Thirty-two minutes of getting straight to the heart of the message of Christ, and expressing his thankfulness in unique ways with creative metaphors. This is Half Handed Cloud. When you get past the quirky nature of his delivery, the message is as blatant as anything Rich Mullins ever wrote - God loves us, and we should pursue Him with everything we have. We Haven't Just Been Told... will never be a commercial hit, but, then, neither was Jesus.
4 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Alex KlagesWhen I listen to a new album, one of the first things which hits me is the dominant instrument on the album. Is it guitar-driven? Bass-heavy? Piano-driven? With this album, it wasn't the instrumentation so much as the dominant emotion of the album which really struck me. This album is like a dose of Vitamin C for the soul. It simply radiates the joy of salvation and rest which is found in Christ.…Opus 2002Reviewed by Chris BrownHalf-Handed Cloud's John Ringhofer should be the poster child for what those with extreme ADD can accomplish if they just set their mind to it. Apparently, Ringhofer is the holder of both an immense store of musical vision and talent as well as an attention span just slightly longer than that of your average housefly. Where these two attributes meet is where Ringhofer creates music as Half-Handed…Similar sounding releases
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