Using gentle and thoughtful strides to share his message,  Brad Surovec’s band EXPEDITION has created a gem of an album worth many a listen to. The comfortable acoustic strumming, piano, soft drums, sax, etc., and thoughtful lyrics always point out the answer to our hectic lives. He sings, “caught in the middle of a thousand urgent needs to mind, tugging in all directions all at the same point in time, heart racing palpitations trying to implode, I need a Savior to break this overload, then He said, come ye heavy laden and I will give you rest…

   With only a couple of electric guitar-driven exceptions, Journey to a Whole New World plays like a James Taylor album or even the Vineyard Music Group’s Acoustic Worship series (particularly "Isn’t He" with Brian Doerksen). His voice and the whole album also remind me very much of Gary Chapman’s “Man After Your Own Heart”, one of my personal favorite songs and therefore an admitted bias on my part. I also observed an 80’s feel to some tracks with songs like “Morning Light”, which has a somewhat mysterious sound about it; perhaps evidence of Genesis (an influence of his) or other bands of the era that used synthesizers and the like in their sound. I even heard a little bit of bands like Kansas in songs like “Tell Me” (a favorite of mine) and possibly Paul Simon as in “Does Your Heart Know”.

   Brad sings as a man who really has experienced “the storm clouds” of life, yet found true hope in Jesus, “the one and only cure”. With Journey to a Whole New World, EXPEDITION is able to share a simple message of hope and redemption without the 90’s usual wall of sound, driving drums, and yelling. He and his cohorts have really created a terrific “quiet time” and worship album that deserves a place in your collection. Finally, Brad notes that “God has been faithful every time, all the time, and in every way”. This album is certainly no exception to that wise rule of thumb!

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