Parallels
This page explores the parallels between the various albums. Thanks to Will Plyler of Triple-Knot Studios and Brent Long for their assistance and ideas.
This page is mostly speculation, based on the assumption that these connections are all intentional and not coincidental. Additionally, it is also assumed each album contains interior structures that are unrelated to other albums; these interior structures are not discussed on this page. Only around 2% of this page has actually been confirmed. If you have any suggestions, send me your thoughts via the contact page.
This page is mostly speculation, based on the assumption that these connections are all intentional and not coincidental. Additionally, it is also assumed each album contains interior structures that are unrelated to other albums; these interior structures are not discussed on this page. Only around 2% of this page has actually been confirmed. If you have any suggestions, send me your thoughts via the contact page.
Introduction
The David Crowder*Band released 6 full-length albums, 4 eps, one live album, and one Christmas album. The 6 full-length album are split into two sets of 3. It is important to understand that, for the DC*B, the number "4" represents humanity, while the number "3" represents divinity. The first three albums are considered "4" albums, and have 4 syllables in their titles. The second three are considered "3" albums, and have 3-syllable titles. Each "3" album lines up with a "4" album, as shown in the image to the right. Parallel albums have parallel themes and, to some degree, parallel tracks. With that said, let's dive into the parallels. |
" ...We began discussions about building a 6 album set, the second three...would be loosely associated with the first three, you know, sort of like how in the creation story day one is related to day four, as in, first there is light, then on the fourth day the sun and moon and stars appear. We do these things because we are quite nerdy and also because we hope to inject meaning wherever and whenever we are able. We also like structure, and this seemed a pretty nifty structure to work within, since, well, it is one of the greatest stories ever."--David Crowder, disbandment announcement, 2011
Can You Hear Us? ∥ Remedy
Themes
Can You Hear Us? focuses on how we reach out to God, whereas Remedy focuses on how God reaches out and touches us and the world.
Tracks
CYHU has 10 normal tracks plus one bonus track, while Remedy has 10 tracks total. The bonus track most likely bears no significance in the parallels. Most of the individual tracks line up, as is demonstrated below. Many of the songs in Remedy seem to be a response to their parallel songs, in Can You Hear Us?, as follows:
I Need Words is about an inability to find words which describe the glory of God, while The Glory of it All describes the glory of God.
Our Love Is Loud asks God to hear and feel our praise, while Can You Feel It? asks us if we can feel the love and grace of God here with us while we praise. It mirrors the lyric "Can You hear us, can You feel?" with the lyric "Can you feel it?"
All Creatures of Our God and King is a classic hymn calling upon all of creation to sing praise to God, while O, For A Thousand Tongues to Sing is another classic hymn speaking of the desire to sing infinite praise to God.
God of Wrath worships God as the omnipotent god of everything, while Rain Down asks Him to pour his love down on us.
Obsession asks what one can do with an obsession for God. We Won't Be Quiet declares what we will do with that obsession - we'll shout it out to the whole world.
My Hope is about putting our hope in God when hard times come, while Remedy worships Him as the only one who can save us from those hard times.
Thank You For Hearing Me answers the question posited in the album title by thanking God for hearing our prayer, while Surely We Can Change discusses how we can bring God's remedy to the world. Both songs resolve the themes of their respective albums.
Themes
Can You Hear Us? focuses on how we reach out to God, whereas Remedy focuses on how God reaches out and touches us and the world.
Tracks
CYHU has 10 normal tracks plus one bonus track, while Remedy has 10 tracks total. The bonus track most likely bears no significance in the parallels. Most of the individual tracks line up, as is demonstrated below. Many of the songs in Remedy seem to be a response to their parallel songs, in Can You Hear Us?, as follows:
I Need Words is about an inability to find words which describe the glory of God, while The Glory of it All describes the glory of God.
Our Love Is Loud asks God to hear and feel our praise, while Can You Feel It? asks us if we can feel the love and grace of God here with us while we praise. It mirrors the lyric "Can You hear us, can You feel?" with the lyric "Can you feel it?"
All Creatures of Our God and King is a classic hymn calling upon all of creation to sing praise to God, while O, For A Thousand Tongues to Sing is another classic hymn speaking of the desire to sing infinite praise to God.
God of Wrath worships God as the omnipotent god of everything, while Rain Down asks Him to pour his love down on us.
Obsession asks what one can do with an obsession for God. We Won't Be Quiet declares what we will do with that obsession - we'll shout it out to the whole world.
My Hope is about putting our hope in God when hard times come, while Remedy worships Him as the only one who can save us from those hard times.
Thank You For Hearing Me answers the question posited in the album title by thanking God for hearing our prayer, while Surely We Can Change discusses how we can bring God's remedy to the world. Both songs resolve the themes of their respective albums.
Illuminate ∥ Church Music
Themes
The main theme which is prevalent through both albums is the idea of God shining his light to the world through us, the believers.
Tracks
Illuminate has 16 tracks, while Church Music has 17 tracks. There are several parallels to be found between the tracks.
Both albums begin and end with light. Illuminate begins with Sparks Fly and ends with Stars, while Church Music begins with Hail Gladdening Light and ends with O Resplendent Light.
Revolutionary Love is about us being led to a place we never want to leave, while Alleluia, Sing talks about God coming to us. The latter also reflects the former with the final lyric, "to sing of Love, Love, Love..."
Open Skies declares "wherever you are, wherever you've been, He's been there", and Eastern Hymn states that "God is near to each one of us."
No One Like You, stating that "there is no one like You", is parallel to We Are Loved, asking "can we take in Your light so we can shine like You?"
Deliver Me clearly corresponds to We Are Safe.
Illuminate ends with Stars, while Church Music ends with O Resplendent Light. Both of these songs are about comfort, and the idea that "it'll be alright."
Themes
The main theme which is prevalent through both albums is the idea of God shining his light to the world through us, the believers.
Tracks
Illuminate has 16 tracks, while Church Music has 17 tracks. There are several parallels to be found between the tracks.
Both albums begin and end with light. Illuminate begins with Sparks Fly and ends with Stars, while Church Music begins with Hail Gladdening Light and ends with O Resplendent Light.
Revolutionary Love is about us being led to a place we never want to leave, while Alleluia, Sing talks about God coming to us. The latter also reflects the former with the final lyric, "to sing of Love, Love, Love..."
Open Skies declares "wherever you are, wherever you've been, He's been there", and Eastern Hymn states that "God is near to each one of us."
No One Like You, stating that "there is no one like You", is parallel to We Are Loved, asking "can we take in Your light so we can shine like You?"
Deliver Me clearly corresponds to We Are Safe.
Illuminate ends with Stars, while Church Music ends with O Resplendent Light. Both of these songs are about comfort, and the idea that "it'll be alright."
A Collision ∥ Give Us Rest
Themes
Both albums share the common themes of death and resurrection. While A Collision looks at death from the perspective of those left behind, asking questions like "Are we left here on our own?", Give Us Rest explores a bit more of the perspective of the departed, with lines such as "Today is the day I rise like the dawn, up out of death into a Son."
Additionally, both albums explore the idea of a place where divinity and depravity collide. A Collision has the subtitle (3 + 4 = 7), and the back page of the liner notes explains this with "where our depravity meets his divinity, it is a beautiful collision". The subtitle of Give Us Rest or (A Requiem Mass in C [The Happiest of All Keys]) references this as well, albeit in a more obscure manner:
The first subtitle is A Requiem Mass in C. This mass of rest for the recently departed is representative of their transcendence of this world to be with God (also referenced in the equations on the album cover), which aligns with the idea of divinity.
The second subtitle, however, The Happiest of All Keys, is a reference to the a scene from 1984 rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap in which a character states that "D minor...is really the saddest of all keys." This film parodies the irreverent and self-indulgent lifestyle of typical rock musicians, and could easily be seen to represent depravity.
Thus, the album's subtitles represent another collision of divinity and depravity. The music of the album contains a similar juxtaposition, with lyrics reflecting the reverence of the requiem mass but music of a more extreme rock style.
Themes
Both albums share the common themes of death and resurrection. While A Collision looks at death from the perspective of those left behind, asking questions like "Are we left here on our own?", Give Us Rest explores a bit more of the perspective of the departed, with lines such as "Today is the day I rise like the dawn, up out of death into a Son."
Additionally, both albums explore the idea of a place where divinity and depravity collide. A Collision has the subtitle (3 + 4 = 7), and the back page of the liner notes explains this with "where our depravity meets his divinity, it is a beautiful collision". The subtitle of Give Us Rest or (A Requiem Mass in C [The Happiest of All Keys]) references this as well, albeit in a more obscure manner:
The first subtitle is A Requiem Mass in C. This mass of rest for the recently departed is representative of their transcendence of this world to be with God (also referenced in the equations on the album cover), which aligns with the idea of divinity.
The second subtitle, however, The Happiest of All Keys, is a reference to the a scene from 1984 rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap in which a character states that "D minor...is really the saddest of all keys." This film parodies the irreverent and self-indulgent lifestyle of typical rock musicians, and could easily be seen to represent depravity.
Thus, the album's subtitles represent another collision of divinity and depravity. The music of the album contains a similar juxtaposition, with lyrics reflecting the reverence of the requiem mass but music of a more extreme rock style.
Structure
While other DCB parallel albums have similar track counts, these two albums have very different track counts, with A Collision having 21 tracks and Give Us Rest having 34 tracks. It is possible that the disparity in track count is based on the Golden Ratio, which is a symbol of ideal beauty and perfection; the ratio between the two track counts (21:34) is approximately equal to the golden ratio (1:1.618033989...). The golden ratio is used in an equation at the end of the book Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, But Nobody Wants to Die [see image on right]. It is used in the book in an equation comparable to "3+4=7", taking the place of the number 7.
No direct lyrical connections have been noted at this time; however, there are some callbacks in track titles and album structure:
Both albums feature many different styles of music, with jarring transitions between genres.
Artwork
Some of the physics equations on the cover of Give Us Rest seem to call back to A Collision:
While other DCB parallel albums have similar track counts, these two albums have very different track counts, with A Collision having 21 tracks and Give Us Rest having 34 tracks. It is possible that the disparity in track count is based on the Golden Ratio, which is a symbol of ideal beauty and perfection; the ratio between the two track counts (21:34) is approximately equal to the golden ratio (1:1.618033989...). The golden ratio is used in an equation at the end of the book Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, But Nobody Wants to Die [see image on right]. It is used in the book in an equation comparable to "3+4=7", taking the place of the number 7.
No direct lyrical connections have been noted at this time; however, there are some callbacks in track titles and album structure:
- Both albums have several labeled parts, with A Collision having 4 parts and Give Us Rest having 7 parts (4 on the first disc and 3 on the second disc).
- Both albums begin with an intro track containing a significant amount of ambient room sound, which segues into an unassuming first song.
- A Burial and A Return call back to the titling conventions used in the A Collision tracks A Walk Down Stairs, A Quiet Interlude, A Beautiful Collision, and A Conversation
- A Burial poses the question "How can you measure the weight of a soul in a matter of moments?", a question which calls back to a historical anecdote in the book Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, But Nobody Wants to Die.
- A Return also calls back to (Repeat/Return)
- Give Us Rest has 2 reprises and an interlude, while A Collision has 2 interludes and (Repeat/Return)
- The Sound of Light could be seen as a call back to I Saw The Light.
- Oh My God, I'm Coming Home could be a response to Rescue is Coming.
Both albums feature many different styles of music, with jarring transitions between genres.
Artwork
Some of the physics equations on the cover of Give Us Rest seem to call back to A Collision:
- W = mg is the equation which relates mass to weight. The line coming from the g points to 9.81 ms2, which is what g equals on earth. This seems to refer back to the conversation from A Collision in which Crowder remarks "The ground pulls at my feet."
- F = G m1m2 ⁄r2 is Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation. There is a line coming from the G which points to the quantity 6.67 x 10-11 kg-1 m3 s2, which is the value in metric notation of the gravitational constant G.
There are two notable facts about this equation that may relate it to A Collision:- The equation is approximate and inadequate for describing the true effects of gravity on a quantum level, which may call back to the similarly inadequate Bohr model of the atom on the cover of A Collision and the band's use of this as a metaphor for our inadequacy to effectively worship.
- Additionally, the equation models gravity not as one mass being drawn to another, but as two masses being drawn to each other, calling back to the key thesis of A Collision: "when our depravity meets his divinity it is a beautiful collision".
The Digital Age
It is currently unknown exactly how TDA albums are related to each other, and how they are related to DC*B albums. However, there are several indications that Galaxies is intended to parallel Church Music in some way, as detailed below.
It's possible that TDA is merely continuing the path set out by DC*B, by making a third trilogy of albums which are parallel to the other two trilogies of albums. In this case, Evening:Morning would be parallel to Remedy and Can You Hear Us?, while Galaxies would be parallel to Illuminate and Church Music. However, if any syllabic pattern is present, the pattern is still unclear. Evening:Morning has 4 syllables, and Galaxies has 3.
Parallels between Galaxies, Church Music, and Illuminate
Again, it is not officially confirmed that these albums are supposed to be parallel. However, there is quite a lot of evidence for the idea, as is demonstrated here.
Tracks
Galaxies and Illuminate both have 16 tracks, and Church Music has 17.
Eastern Hymn, the fifth track of Church Music, contains the line "In the space age, nothing is impossible." Crowder has mentioned in a blog post that Church Music references Johannes Kepler and the music of the spheres in some way, and it is possible that this is at least in part the reference that he was referring to. The corresponding track of Galaxies, ...from a great distance..., contains emissions captured by the Kepler Mission, which was actually referenced in the same blog post by Crowder.
All three albums include a track beginning with the word "How", marveling at the wondrousness of God's love for us. Illuminate contains "How Great Your love for us", Church Music has "How He Loves us", and Galaxies contains "How Sweet It Is that You love me."
Track 8, Kingdom Come, asks the question "If all we did was love like You, what would we see? Your kingdom come". This reflects back to the statement of We Are Loved that "If the whole world could feel it, we could love, 'cause we are loved."
In the album commentary, The Digital Age band members said that the song People of the Cross was written in response to persecution of Christians in the Middle East. The title of the more-or-less corresponding track Birmingham (We Are Safe) is an ironic reference to the 1963 church bombings in Birmingham, Alabama.
Structure
Galaxies and Illuminate have a similar structure, with 4 interlude-type tracks (including the intro) splitting 12 songs into 4 sections.
Artwork
It is currently unknown exactly how TDA albums are related to each other, and how they are related to DC*B albums. However, there are several indications that Galaxies is intended to parallel Church Music in some way, as detailed below.
It's possible that TDA is merely continuing the path set out by DC*B, by making a third trilogy of albums which are parallel to the other two trilogies of albums. In this case, Evening:Morning would be parallel to Remedy and Can You Hear Us?, while Galaxies would be parallel to Illuminate and Church Music. However, if any syllabic pattern is present, the pattern is still unclear. Evening:Morning has 4 syllables, and Galaxies has 3.
Parallels between Galaxies, Church Music, and Illuminate
Again, it is not officially confirmed that these albums are supposed to be parallel. However, there is quite a lot of evidence for the idea, as is demonstrated here.
Tracks
Galaxies and Illuminate both have 16 tracks, and Church Music has 17.
Eastern Hymn, the fifth track of Church Music, contains the line "In the space age, nothing is impossible." Crowder has mentioned in a blog post that Church Music references Johannes Kepler and the music of the spheres in some way, and it is possible that this is at least in part the reference that he was referring to. The corresponding track of Galaxies, ...from a great distance..., contains emissions captured by the Kepler Mission, which was actually referenced in the same blog post by Crowder.
All three albums include a track beginning with the word "How", marveling at the wondrousness of God's love for us. Illuminate contains "How Great Your love for us", Church Music has "How He Loves us", and Galaxies contains "How Sweet It Is that You love me."
Track 8, Kingdom Come, asks the question "If all we did was love like You, what would we see? Your kingdom come". This reflects back to the statement of We Are Loved that "If the whole world could feel it, we could love, 'cause we are loved."
In the album commentary, The Digital Age band members said that the song People of the Cross was written in response to persecution of Christians in the Middle East. The title of the more-or-less corresponding track Birmingham (We Are Safe) is an ironic reference to the 1963 church bombings in Birmingham, Alabama.
Structure
Galaxies and Illuminate have a similar structure, with 4 interlude-type tracks (including the intro) splitting 12 songs into 4 sections.
Artwork
- Church Music and Galaxies have similar artwork; the front covers both feature minimalistic dark designs with a graphic symbol in the center, and they are the only two full-length albums which do not feature a photograph of the band on the back cover of the album. Both albums instead feature interior gatefold artwork with the band members in an imaginative scene.
- A vinyl copy of Church Music can be seen in the lower right corner of the interior artwork of Galaxies.
- The "luminous" and "illuminated" objects listed on the back of illuminate are all celestial bodies.
Crowder
There are multiple themes and progressions throughout Crowder's first three solo albums. The trilogy is built around the Holy Trinity, focusing respectively on the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The first and second albums both have the same track count on the regular and deluxe editions, and both albums have similar back covers. The first album's title has four syllables and the second album's title has seven syllables, and the third album has four syllables again. It is unclear if the syllable counts of these albums have the significance which syllable counts held in David Crowder*Band albums.
There are multiple themes and progressions throughout Crowder's first three solo albums. The trilogy is built around the Holy Trinity, focusing respectively on the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The first and second albums both have the same track count on the regular and deluxe editions, and both albums have similar back covers. The first album's title has four syllables and the second album's title has seven syllables, and the third album has four syllables again. It is unclear if the syllable counts of these albums have the significance which syllable counts held in David Crowder*Band albums.
"When I signed to do the records for my latest contract, I signed for a three record deal. So I started working with a concept and trying to think about how they will all fit together, and how there could be a thread and a progression both to the content and the approach to the music. It may be loose some of the time, but there’s an idea there." --Crowder, Worship Musician Magazine, January 2017
“I knew that this was going to be more of a Holy Ghost type record. I kind of work in album cycles of three, and I had been doing kind of a Father, Son and Holy Spirit motif." --Crowder, The Planet Weekly, 2020
Tracks
The regular editions of the first 3 albums contain 44 tracks total, which is also the total number of tracks which was originally intended to be included in the first 3 David Crowder*Band albums before they were forced to change the track count of A Collision due to rights issues.
Neon Steeple and American Prodigal have parallel track counts, with American Prodigal frequently directly calling back to the lyrics of Neon Steeple:
The intros begin with a third-person plea to God. Rather than talking directly to God, Crowder speaks impersonally about the nature of his needs from God. Neon Intro says, "Where you are, I don't care, but whoever brought me here is gonna have to take me home." American Intro says "I'm singing and need a choir straight from heaven to sing along."
Prove It talks about freedom and loosing chains. "Chains" is the subtitle of Lift Your Head, Weary Sinner.
Come As You Are and All You Burdens both repeat the theme of the previous song, talking about laying down our burdens at the cross.
Promised Land (Glory, Hallelujah) repeats the refrain "Oh, my sweet Lord"--the title of the song with which it lines up.
The second verse of Shouting Grounds says "No grave gonna hold me down", almost word for word with the chorus of Ain't No Grave.
Both outros close out the album by acknowledging how God has answered the prayer from the intro.
The regular editions of the first 3 albums contain 44 tracks total, which is also the total number of tracks which was originally intended to be included in the first 3 David Crowder*Band albums before they were forced to change the track count of A Collision due to rights issues.
Neon Steeple and American Prodigal have parallel track counts, with American Prodigal frequently directly calling back to the lyrics of Neon Steeple:
The intros begin with a third-person plea to God. Rather than talking directly to God, Crowder speaks impersonally about the nature of his needs from God. Neon Intro says, "Where you are, I don't care, but whoever brought me here is gonna have to take me home." American Intro says "I'm singing and need a choir straight from heaven to sing along."
Prove It talks about freedom and loosing chains. "Chains" is the subtitle of Lift Your Head, Weary Sinner.
Come As You Are and All You Burdens both repeat the theme of the previous song, talking about laying down our burdens at the cross.
Promised Land (Glory, Hallelujah) repeats the refrain "Oh, my sweet Lord"--the title of the song with which it lines up.
The second verse of Shouting Grounds says "No grave gonna hold me down", almost word for word with the chorus of Ain't No Grave.
Both outros close out the album by acknowledging how God has answered the prayer from the intro.