Culture
Review

Mercy Speaks Live

Christianity Today November 15, 2010

Style: Over-the-top pop/worship; compare to Hillsong, Sandi Patty, Larnelle Harris

Mercy Speaks Live

Mercy Speaks Live

June 29, 2010

Mercy Speaks Live

Mercy Speaks Live

June 29, 2010

Top tracks: “Mercy Is Following,” “Strong Mighty Tower,” “Nothing Can Separate”

Tom Sterbens, a singer/songwriter and pastor of New Hope Church in Kodak, Tennessee, is clearly a passionate man. After visiting families who lived in garbage dumps in Cambodia, Sterbens decided to donate all earnings from this live album (there’s also a companion DVD) to a ministry that will build homes with clean, running water for those impoverished people. A great thing, but unfortunately, the music isn’t. Too big, too loud, and sometimes too clichéd, this live gig is over-the-top and out-of-date—reminiscent of an over-produced Sandi Patty/Larnelle Harris duet from the ’80s. But at least the profits are going to a good cause.

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