2015 might seem like a little while ago, but for Aaron Gray and Josh Arnett it probably doesn’t seem like much time has passed. A little over 3 and a half years ago, these two contractors took a short break from a home remodel to cover the very popular Christian song, “How Great Thou Art.” Little did these guys know, this cover would soon send them flying all over YouTube, with over 100,000,000 hits! After that cover song went viral, they started to invest more time into making music that praises the Lord. Now, they are releasing their debut, 16-track album, Working On A Building, this Friday.
The title track for the album keeps with their original feel by singing about a building, physically and metaphorically relating it to their personal relationships with the Lord. In this particular song, there are some cool quirks with their voices that are very rare nowadays. The vocals are entirely pure throughout and the whole song has sort of a hymn type feel with a little shake of contemporary salt in there for good measure.
Another standout song on this album is “Life’s Railway To Heaven.” Right at the beginning, this song explodes with an incredible acoustic guitar sound. If you are a fan of Crowder, you will definitely love this song. The beat never slows down for a minute and the lyrics have a great message. This whole album is a good mix of hymns and contemporary Christian music.
Later on in the tracklist, The Singing Contractors tackle a song that has been covered many times but never gets old. Gray and Arnett’s rendition of “God Bless America” is one that you will not forget anytime soon. They also cover a lot of traditional Christian songs on this album with a very modern feel and of course they have the song that they first covered on YouTube as the last song on the album.
The Singing Contractors’ debut project is a refreshing change of pace in CCM that is sure to continue their viral success. Arnett and Gray do an incredible job of combining older hymns with the upbeat music of today’s popular Christian music culture. It may not be for everyone, but I would give the album a try as you might just surprise yourself. Watch out for Working On A Building by The Singing Contractors, being released February 1st of this year!
