Come Together - Third Day (Essential)

Sounds like … modern alternative rock that showcases the group's several southern-fried influences.

At a Glance … Third Day attempts to live up to the buzz on this disc, and for the most part succeeds with another batch of well-planned songs.

Third Day's latest, Come Together, is clearly one of the most anticipated releases of this last quarter of the year. The buzz is justified considering Third Day's success story thus far. They started as a group unwilling to get a record deal and uninterested in the fame that comes along with super-stardom. Just over five years later, the group has experienced just the opposite with two million album sales. Thankfully they've maintained the humble attitude they originally had.

It all started when Third Day inked a deal with independent label Gray Dot for their self-titled debut, which was soon swooped up by Reunion Records for distribution on their label. After releasing the 1996 Billboard Video Award for Best Contemporary Christian New Artist Video ("Consuming Fire") and landing a 1997 Dove Award Nomination for New Artist of the Year, Third Day officially made their entrance onto the scene. Their popularity mounted throughout the remainder of the decade. After switching over to Essential Records, their subsequent southern-fried rock discs, Conspiracy No. 5 and Time, both earned them a boatload of hit singles (from "My Hope Is You" to "I've Always Loved You") and propelled the group on several headlining tours. But it wasn't until last year's Offerings — A Worship Album that the group was able to return to their original intentions of making music that directly glorified God. That project's spiritual triumph surprisingly earned them even greater commercial appeal, fueling the trend for countless other acts to deliver worship projects. Offerings sold more than half a million copies and delivered hits such as "These Thousand Hills" and "Your Love Oh Lord," making Third Day a household name and a guaranteed sellout in any concert venue.

Because of all of this acclaim, there was little doubt that Come Together would create such a buzz, with anticipation running especially high from fans that saw the group's new material on their last tour. Now the anticipation is over, and it's time to see if it was worth it as Come Together hits the street. I'm happy to report that, except for some lack of variety on the second half of the disc, Come Together is a fantastic album. It starts out on an artistic high with the rousing title cut, destined to be a hit single. The song draws from the group's obvious interest in southern rock bands from the '70s (Lynyrd Skynyrd, .38 Special) but also keeps things current with lead singer Powell's prowess matching that of Hootie and the Blowfish's Darius Rucker or Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder. But those comparisons have been made time and time again, and although they're accurate, Third Day is a step above a copycat band, particularly on "Come Together," which is driven by their brimming guitar strums and uplifting harmonies. "40 Days" continues in that vein, featuring Powell and company's powerful rock-laden enthusiasm. The song bears a vague resemblance to the group's "Did You Mean It" from their self-titled debut....

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