(Photo :The City Harmonic "Heart" Album Review  )

Jesus is more than just an insurance sales man.  Our Lord did not just come so that our eternity can be well taken care of.  Rather, he also came to make us truly human.  He came to restore the lofty calling Adam abdicated at the Fall and that is to be God's representatives here on earth.  Just as the temple in the Old Testament was indwelt by the Holy Spirit, in the New Testament a believer is called a temple of God with the Spirit living in us.  Just as the temple was supposed to represent the physical presence of God where all nations congregate to worship God, we too are to be representatives of God drawing people of all nationalities to the worship of God.  Thus, to have a heart that is truly human starts with our hearts being broken; one that has been broken in by Jesus Christ through faith and repentance.  And this is explicitly captured by the City Harmonic on the opening cut "Here and Now:"  "The heart is like Pandora box, with just a crack it's opened up to beat anew/when all is lost, to run, crawl, come home..."  Further, their cover of their latest album "Heart" depicts a picture of the true human envisioned by Leonardo Da Vinci in his "Virturvian Man" c. 1490.  A symmetrical proportional human being inscribed within a circle (the divine) and a square (the human).

The City Harmonic is a Dove Award norminated, three-time Covenant Award winning and Juno Award winning Canadian worship band formed in 2009.  Elias Dummer (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Eric Fusilier (bass), Aaron Powell (guitar), and Josh Vanderlaan (drums) collectively make up The City Harmonic. Signed to Integrity Music, their first full-length album titled "I Have A Dream (It Feels Like Home)"released in 2011was a hit.  Now, they are back with their sophomore full length album "Heart."  Save for the hymn "My Jesus, I Love You" and the single "A City on A Hill," "Heart" features 12 brand new songs coming singlehandedly scripted by the team.  So, what distinguishes the City Harmonic from the copious worship bands out there?   The City Harmonic introduces to millenniumists what Elton John inaugurated in the 80s and Joshua Kadison in the 90s: in the midst of all the hurrah of techno-frittered pop there is always room for the beautiful sounds of the piano/keys over deftly-crafted melodies.  Their prevalent use of keys/piano, Brit-folk dabbling and their cohesive theme of what it means to be truly human make "Heart" stand head and shoulders above the average worship album.

As far as what it means to be truly human, lead single "A City on a Hill" hits the nail on the head.  Co-penned by Ben Cantelion, Nick Herbert and Elias Dummer, "A City on a Hill" tells us that as redeemed human beings our existence is not aimless.  Rather, we are called to live to glorify Him: "We will shine/Light of the world: we can't hide it/This beautiful light it shines/For all of the world to believe/We can be a city on a hill."  Being human beings redeemed by the Cross also radically changes our relationships.  No longer is the goal of our marriages our fleeting notions of happiness.  Rather, on the unusually titled "1+1," the City Harmonic teaches us that holiness is.  "Alive Alive," based on Psalm 23, starts with some slow narrated lines before bursting into a rowdy celebratory chorus with lots of crashing guitar riffs.  However, being truly human doesn't exempt us from the sufferings of this world.  Rather, it guarantees us the perpetual presence of God.  The sturdy sounding ballad "Strong" was ironically written by Eric Fusilier during his bout with cancer when he was at his weakest emotionally and physically.

The City Harmonic does offer a few pleasant surprises:  "Long Walk Back" is not like any Christian song you hear on the radio.  With a haunting echo of Beatles' "A Long and Winding Road" over lyrics that calls to mind the treasury of John Bunyan's "Pilgrim Progress," "Long Walk Back" traces the slow and  reflective steps of a prodigal returning to the Father.  What is most stellar of this track is this:  City Harmonic brings us into the tensions, emotions and struggles of the protagonist that in many ways reflect our very own.  The album ends with the hymn "My Jesus, I Love Thee."  Given that label mate Darlene Zschech, Building 429 and Kathy Troccoli have all revived this hymn within the last six months one somehow would wish they would have tackled another one.  Nevertheless, "Heart" is a record with great spiritual benefits:  with choke full of great worship songs listening to them  seriously tames us from our beastly rebellions against God.  And with the Spirit's help, these songs make us more and more like the Son of Man.