Michael Sweet is no stranger to changing musical directions. As the lead singer of Stryper, his band left most of its Christian-metal roots behind on 1990's Against the Law, and his solo albums have evolved from sounding like songs from Stryper's vaults to mature pop-rock. For his forth solo effort – and first album of all-new material in five years – the singer/guitarist took time off from Stryper's resurrection to familiarize himself with several traditional hymns. Although moved by their words (which are in the pubic domain), Sweet writes in the liner notes that he decided to set them to new music to give the lyrics greater impact. Before long, he had an album's worth of material. Not surprisingly, Him is the most outwardly spiritual album Sweet has ever made.
The voice is still strong, and at times Sweet is backed by a string section and choir that add reverence to the music. His new arrangements often veer far from the traditional ones, and even though he intended for this project to feature only his voice and an acoustic guitar, he got a little carried away. Sweet's not afraid to rock on tracks like "Calvary," "Alleluia" and "Every Hour." Elsewhere, though, he gets even mellower than he did for Stryper's "Honestly." In fact, the album might contain a few too many ballads for casual Stryper fans, but longtime Sweet supporters will admire not only the man's keen ear for melodies but also his convictions. Him is a bold record from one of Christian metal's most-respected voices.
Track Listing:
1) Calvary
2) Every Hour
3) I Know
4) Alleluia
5) I'll Remember You
6) Gilead
7) Still
8) Take My Life
9) Surrender
10) Oh Holy Night
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