CITY ON OUR KNEES If You Gotta Start Somewhere, Why Not Here

Christian rapper tobyMac clarifies the personal intention behind his album “City on Our Knees,” especially the title song. One has high expectations of the author’s narration of his own work. However, as a musician he has seemed to rely too much on digital enhancement, and this is a problem in his reading, as well. He is too focused on making the work sound like a text instead of performing it. The work definitely has the sound of “a book,” which is what he may have been aiming at. But what is lost is an experience of emotional authenticity. J.E. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2011]