Disclaimer: Let it be noted here that I am not a fan of remixes. If in fact "P. Diddy" or "Puff Daddy" or whatever Sean Combs is calling himself these days did invent the remix, I say we should penalize him accordingly.
That said, Newsboys have a lot of material here to work with. There isn't anything new on this disc, but it comes across as a "greatest hits" type of album, with dance tracks, drum beats, and spoken word parts scattered throughout.
Ironically, the Love Liberty Disco era songs suffer the most, possibly due to their inferiority when compared to the rest of the Newsboys' catalog. "Good Stuff" and "Love Liberty Disco" come across as overdone versions of songs that were fairly dance oriented to begin with.
"It is You" opens with a reading of Psalm 23, while "Lord" ends up sounding like a DC Talk outtake. "Fad of the Land" shows obvious Steve Taylor influence, never a bad thing. "Shine" and "Joy" fare OK, neither changing much in quality from their previous incarnations, while "Rescue" goes completely in the other direction, far inferior to the original tune. "Thrive" is reminiscent of someone testing an organ in your local mall's music store.
"Million Pieces" and "Beautiful Sound" may be the highlights here, both acceptable as radio tunes or as dance numbers. "MegaMix" made me smile -- it can be described as the 'Boys greatest hits package in eight minutes.
Steve Taylor wrote many of these songs, Lynn Nichols produces, and Dave Perkins is featured on guitar -- dare we hope for a Chagall Guevara reunion? Barring that, it is high time for Taylor's next solo project. His work with The Newsboys has produced their best material to date. It is a shame that the remix has become CCM's latest trend, and that a group of this quality has succumbed to it.
2 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 2003Reviewed by Jessica HeikoopFrom the title of this disc, it's not hard to guess this is indeed an album of some of the Newsboys' greatest hits, remixed. Though the band has already given fans a taste of remixes in the past (the Entertaining Angels Maxi-Single, previous remixes of "A Beautiful Sound," "Love Liberty Disco," as well as the "Mega Mix" found on Shine: The Hits, etc.), this CD is the first that contains only…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by Antony Barr-JeffreyGiven that keyboardist Jeff Frankenstein used to be a DJ it isn't surprising that the concept of Newsboys remixes would become reality sooner or later. A strikingly good limited print remix ep released right before their breakout Step up to the Microphone was evidence that this group's songs could hold up under a serious cyber redux. Their new release Newsboys Remixed marks a full-length return…The Phantom Tollbooth 2002Reviewed by John WehrleThe Newsboys are back with their all new release: Newsboys Remixed. This CD is a blend of classic Newsboys tunes, and newer songs from their latest release, Thrive. It's no wonder that the band is called the "new" sboys. Whether it's traveling around playing in a dome, creating the first festival on wheels, or rotating a drum set, these guys are always out to try something new. The Newsboys have…Similar sounding releases
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