Sarah Brendel

Description

The self-titled album by the German singer and songwriter Sarah Brendel was released on Inpop Records in 2005, distributed in the US by EMI CMG Distribution. The album was produced by Udo Rinklin.

First of all introductions. Sarah is from Germany, she is in her 20s and already has done just about everything that you can do as a singer in Germany (big concerts, sold lots of singles and so on) and last but by no means least she has a passion for Jesus. This collection of songs is her effort to cross from being a big fish in a relatively small German pond to a HUGE English speaking ocean, (particularly the US) where her Christ-centred rock songs are more acceptable than she has found them to be in Germany. The CD starts very promisingly in a New-Order-electronics-meets-Nirvana-thrash sort of way («Commodity») before leading onwards and upwards to a balanced collection of original songs in styles recollecting, for me at least, a set of ’90s indie bands – and sounding all the better for that. All in all this CD is definitely worth checking out if you like your rock music intelligent, interesting and tuneful. [John Baugh, Cross Rhythms, May 2006]

CCM has seen the Australian invasion with artists and groups such as Rebecca St. James, Newsboys, and Hillsongs. CCM has also seen the British invasion with artists such as Delirious. Now coming over from Germany is Sarah Brendel. She may be new to CCM fans in the US, but she has been ministering in Germany for several years.

The opening track to ‘Sarah Brendel’ is a synth-driven song that immediately stands out from much of what is currently available in CCM. «Commodity» may start off light but the chorus brings in some rocking guitars. The album slows down for «Fire», the second track which is more guitar-driven than «Commodity». The lighter feel continues with «Turn», the third track. Further spicing things up, the fifth track, «King I Love», is more synth and percussion-driven than the other songs. This sing-singy song is one of the highlights of the album. In an interesting bit of creativity, the vocals for parts of «Confused», the album’s eighth track, are distorted to echo the confused feeling of the song. One of the things that makes this album so unique is the diversity of the various musical feels that are used. Some songs are synth-driven, others are more guitar-driven, and some are more percussion-driven.

Remarkably, Brendel wrote or co-wrote 9 of the 10 tracks. She writes with a very poetic style that isn’t seen too often within CCM. One of the closest comparisons might be to the lyrical style of Sixpence None the Richer. For her US debut, Brendel has delivered a solid album that with its various styles is easily one of the most creative albums this year. [John Baugh, Cross Rhythms, May 2006]

> iTunes (https://music.apple.com/us/album/sarah-brendel/715913660)

CD tracklist:

01. Commodity – 3:09
02. Fire – 3:19
03. Turn – 3:53
04. Breathing In – 3:29
05. King I Love – 3:42
06. Catherine Wheel – 3:05
07. Pardon Me – 3:09
08. Confused – 4:21
09. Babel Towers – 4:55
10. No More – 4:34

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