Yesterday, Today & Forever

Sounds like … a poppier Rebecca St. James, with elements of Plumb, Nichole Nordeman, Darlene Zschech, and Kathryn ScottAt a glance … the ambient pop/rock sound is nothing new, but Vicky Beeching does show a knack for well-thought-out expressions of worshipTrack Listing Yesterday, Today and Forever Call to Worship Created Search Me Above All Else Majesty and Mystery (Awesome God) Nothing Is Impossible There's No One Like Our God Captivated Extravagant Worship Turn Your Eyes

For some time now, Sparrow Records has tried hard to break homegrown worship artists, without much success. Outside of the Passion crew and Delirious—neither is a Sparrow original—the label has introduced such up-and-comers as Aaron Spiro, Andy Hunter, Starfield, and Something Like Silas, but only a couple of these have displayed enough creative or commercial promise to secure artistic longevity. Add to the fray newcomer Vicky Beeching, an Oxford alumnus and theologian who also happens to be a worship artist.

You may recognize her name from the credits of a number of Vineyard releases, including the legendary Hungry album for which she penned "There's No One Like Our God." Attribute it to her academic credentials, but her stateside debut Yesterday, Today & Forever is refreshingly well-written in comparison to otherwise simpler worship fare. Written over a five-year span, Beeching says the album is a reflection of her spiritual journey, and the songs do come across as intimate exchanges between the singer and God ("Above All Else," "Captivated").

Somewhat like a female counterpart to David Crowder or Matt Redman—lyrically, at least—Beeching keeps her craft firmly rooted in Scripture, avoiding dime-a-dozen clichés or sweeping generalizations. She sets her songwriting to a cleanly produced pop/rock backdrop, at times opting for ambient Brit-pop for a haunting, dreamy effect. The sound is nothing too novel, but it's an adequate conduit for the songstress' poetry, even when producer Christopher Stevens (Shawn McDonald, Paul Wright) seems eager to submerge it in an all-too-loud, thick, and euphoric wall of sound ("Created," "Majesty and Mystery").

The songs aren't particularly suitable for congregational singing, although edgier post-modern services could possibly benefit from the thought-out lyricism of Yesterday, Today & Forever. It's a very good debut, one that presages an auspicious future for the British worship leader.