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There's a sense among this year's panel that 2007 will go down as one of our most interesting lists of top Christian albums (released between December 2006 and November 2007). It could be because there was no obvious front-runner going in, and though we generally agreed on the same initial nominations, the finalists all placed within mere points of each other. The list also reflects the way Christian music has splintered from its established industry into the mainstream as well as independent music circles—hence why you'll find some unfamiliar breakout artists alongside the bigger names. But above all, this year's list truly reveals our painstaking efforts to recognize the best of the best, both inside and outside the gospel music scene. Christian or mainstream, signed or independent, these are the projects that impressed us most over the past year through their creative expressions of faith.

Atlantic Recordss

Is this really the same band that made their debut just 18 months ago? We liked enough of what we heard on the first album to name NeedToBreathe one of the best new artists of 2006, but The Heat shows considerable improvement in every way—they already sound like seasoned pros. Taking a more hands-on approach with their music, the band has shifted from generalized Brit pop/rock to a more organic Southern pop/rock style. It's as if NeedToBreathe stepped from a cramped cell and found freedom to make music that's true to their artistic roots, rather than what they thought they needed to sound like. The result is an album that's more varied ("The Heat," "Second Chances"), more hook-filled ("Movin' On," "More Time"), more thoughtfully written ("Streets of Gold," "Return"), and more spiritually expressive ("Signature of Divine (Yahweh)," "Washed by the Water")—all enough to leave us eagerly wanting more.

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INO Records

Now that he's 4 for 4, it might seem a foregone conclusion that Derek Webb will make our list every year he releases a new album; he's already planning one for 2008. But this masterful singer/songwriter earns his place once again with the most challenging (though not condemning) lyrics you'll find since Keith Green and Rich Mullins. There's simply no one else in today's Christian music scene so bravely willing to address issues of politics, ethics, and social justice through a biblical perspective—just enough to make listeners consider what they truly believe and turn to scripture for guidance. The Ringing Bell is also arguably Webb's most accessible album to date, offering a classic pop/rock style that touches on The Beatles, Del Amitri, Bob Dylan, and The Byrds. If only it wasn't so short, yet it goes to show that Webb can say so much more in 30 minutes than most artists would say in 30 years.

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Gotee/Capitol Records

We know this will sound like hyperbole, but Relient K has to be the best punk-pop band in the land. Five Score and Seven Years Ago finds them doing more of what they've been doing so well since 2000, though continually improving with age, creating the bridge between Jimmy Eat World and the Beach Boys that you didn't know could exist. Driving beats and catchy melodies make this irresistible ear candy, yet the songs rise above lesser fluff thanks to frontman Matt Thiessen's thoughtful writing, which still communicates faith-based truths ("Forgive," "Devastation and Reform") to a broader music culture alongside all the silly love songs. And "Deathbed" is strong enough on its own merits to warrant inclusion among the best of 2007—a varied 11-minute magnus opus recounting a dying man's last thoughts before passing to heaven.  It's a creative indication of the future greatness that we can expect from Relient K, hands down, the best progressive-punk-rock-power-pop band in the land.

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