Trailblazin Ministries

Flame - Rewind

Written by LaRosa Johnson
Wednesday, February 22, 2006

Album Overview

Flame is back like the 80's with his sophomore release titled Rewind. Now, I had an opportunity to see the brother live back in '02 when he was on tour with CM (before being signed to CMR) and I absolutely loved the dude; he was raw! Then came his debut self-titled release last year which made me absolutely fall in love with the brother as an emcee. If memory serves me correctly, there wasn't a single track on that album that I didn't love! That left me anticipating this sophomore release, and now I've finally got my hands on it; so, here's my review of Rewind.

When I got to listen to the album, I really didn't have any kind of expectations for it, so I knew that writing this review was going to be pretty easy. So, I started to play it and give it a good listen one time through with no interruptions. My initial thoughts? The album was so-so. So, I spun it again all the way through. Thoughts? The exact same feeling; the album was so-so. Fast forward a couple weeks and quite a few spins later, and a lot of the spiritual meat is starts to show through and prove that there is a lot to be heard from this album, especially from the standpoint of a site like ours that looks for biblical truth in every album. So, from here, I'll give you the scoop on this album and show you how the Lord worked through this project.

First things first, the vast majority of the tracks were H-O-T HOT! Seriously, the tracks (minus the few with weak hooks and/or production) were absolutely superb. One such track is the track titled "To My Heart" featuring Lampmode recording artist shai linne. On this particular song, Flame is speaking directly to his heart saying that he'll never trust it again because it keeps leading him into sin. As a rebuttal, shai linne comes in, speaking as Flame's heart, saying that he & Flame are one in the same, so there's no reason for Flame to be shifting the blame on his heart. He then goes on to say that there wouldn't be a problem if Flame had done a better job protecting his heart from the ways of this world (i.e. movies, music & lifestyle). Flame then comes back apologizing to his heart and taking responsibility for his current condition, but warns his heart that he'll never trust it again if it tries to lead him to sin. This track alone makes the album worth purchasing because this is something that every Christian deals with and I've never heard it put so eloquently; by far, this is the best song on the album.

Just like in the above track, you clearly see that the strong point of this album lies in its sound biblical content and Flame's lyricism. The Scriptural basis for this album is absolutely solid and there are passages slung all over the project. There is also a lot of testimony found on this album, where Flame speaks about his struggles with church and false doctrine. One such track where Flame gets raw with his testimony is "Give Us the Truth Pt. 2." It is on this track where he continues where he left off on the first album and continues to discuss his struggles after starting college and the problems he had with himself and the church that he was attending. A track where he deals with the preaching of faulty doctrine can be found in the title track "Rewind." It's on this track where he talks about how he was watching TV one time and heard a preacher preaching from Isaiah and how the preacher was using that passage to preach about proclaiming healing from sickness, when in actuality it was dealing with being healed from our sin sickness by referencing the coming of Jesus Christ. He then tackles other issues of false doctrine in the track.

One of the things that is really enjoyable about this album, and what you don't get a lot of times from your typical Cross Movement type album, is that it's very personal and shares a lot of personal struggles. Marcus Gray is very transparent on this project, and it really makes the album shine. One song in particular where his testimony shines through is "War of the Minds" featuring J.R., a fellow CMR artist. It is on this song where he talks about having to deal with mental issues, such as depression and how he was able to cope with them. He then uses the song to encourage those that are dealing with those issues to give them the strength to know that they too can overcome if they find their hope in Jesus. For me, this was a very encouraging piece of work because I vividly remember times where I had to deal with depression head on; I wish that I had song like this during those times to help give me that extra boost!

Another track worth mentioning is "Cross Movement." This is a song that Flame wrote as a dedication to the crew that basically changed his life and launched him into the current ministry position that he holds now. He goes on to give his testimony of how he came to find out about Cross Movement and how he came to meet them and so on. It's definitely a nice tribute track; you don't hear songs like this too often, so it is indeed a nice listen. And rounding out the album is the bonus track "We Preach Christ," which makes you reflect on everything you heard on the album up to that point and puts in your heart the urge to preach the gospel. You see, on this song, he really gets to the heart of the issue about how so many people would rather die than listen and take to heart the message of the gospel; it's definitely a song that tugs at the heart & spirit, and makes you want to put Matthew 28:19-20 into action.

Overall, I really liked how Flame setup Rewind in the format of a radio show, because it's pretty original; I can say that I haven't heard anything like it, at least not in Holy Hip-Hop. What you get in this album is a pile of undeniable biblical truth and heartfelt testimony unlike you'll find in any other album. Flame did his thing on Rewind, and I'm really impressed with his effort. At first, I wasn't sure about this album, but I'm a believer and the Word of God is what ultimately shines through in this release. All I can say is "Uh-oh, the real truth is coming now!"

Key Tracks

No Silence, Context, Give Us the Truth Pt. 2, To My Heart