Victory- Glory Hour
"Open thy mouth, and I will fill it"
Let’s play a little game. I’ll describe an artist, and you picture in your mind what her music sounds like: Born in Detroit. Built up her musical chops busking in Central Park with her siblings. Signed to the prestigious Roc Nation label by Jay-Z himself. Has songwriting credits for some of the biggest stars in hip-hop.
Ok, got all that? Good. Is this what you expected?
There are thousands of tremendously talented people currently making music for God’s glory, but in terms of production quality and songwriting skills, few have impressed me as much as Victory Boyd. These skills didn’t come easy; in every interview, she emphasizes that she was really lucky to get signed to such a prestigious label but that it was not an overnight breakthrough. In one particularly excellent conversation on the Makers & Mystics podcast, she explained that her competitive spirit drove her to keep pace with her older siblings, especially when it came to music. This compulsion for achieving brilliance paid dividends in the form of great songs and a contract with Roc Nation (I hear Jay-Z is a tough man to impress). Needless to say, the quality of the music from her debut album The Broken Instrument is staggering, especially “Who Am I”. Her voice floats and sinks amidst the vortex of instrumentation, calling for justice for all African-Americans amidst exploration of uncomfortable truths about her cultural identity. It's a mesmerizing feat of songcraft and a good omen for the standards she has for her art.
After over a decade of relentless perfectionism, though, something had to give. In her case, it came from in the form of burnout. The pressure she put on herself was just too much, and she didn’t find a lot of joy in music anymore. That all changed after one of her songwriting sessions, where the artist she was working with spent basically the whole session confidently “scatting” and spit-balling any and all thoughts that popped into his head. She left inspired, learning from the experience that her art had meaning simply because she made it rather than its objective artistic merits. In response, she fundamentally altered her recording process for her second album, titled Glory Hour. Instead of meticulously fleshing out lyrics over several sessions, she would just hit record on her phone and sing whatever came to mind before subjecting the vocals to her studio wizardry.
It would be easy to question the wisdom of drastically changing all the methods that served her so well as a songwriter for 10 years, but Glory Hour rapidly dispels any cause for concern. “El Shaddai”, the first full song, is absolutely jaw-dropping. She starts small, slowly adding more elements as the song blossoms from an eerie ballad into a gorgeous praise song. This isn’t just any praise song, though; this is a song that you listen to and sing along with in the pitch black of night. It’s the sound of staying strong in the face of the quiet, ominous, creeping oppression of darkness.
“El Shaddai” is followed by “Just As In Heaven”, one of the most mystifying recordings I’ve heard this decade. It starts with a coffee shop acoustic vibe as Boyd quietly calls for the Lord’s will to be done “on earth as in heaven”. At no point in the first verse does she ever tip her hand that the chorus will announce itself with a bass drop. It’s a cool bass drop too, oozing and weaving around all over the place. But wait, there’s more! A flute makes its presence known as the most memorable hook of the song! All these competing elements suddenly appear in the chorus, giving off the impression that Boyd is trying her best to harness the chaotic energy around her and direct it to the Lord. At the end of the chorus, all of that progression cuts, and the acoustic guitar is given a little room to breathe before the bass drop hits a second time. The third time around, the drummer can contain himself no longer, ratcheting up the momentum while the choir of voices that’s been lurking in the background fight to assert themselves as well. It’s a disorienting ride at breakneck speed that only ends when the cacophony of voices have said their piece, leaving that murky bassline to slither off into the darkness.
Glory Hour only gets more grandiose and ambitious from there. “Righteous” and “Rejoice” are both longer than five minutes, with the latter approaching seven. As is the case with most of the album, these songs progress on satisfying journeys to dizzying heights as Boyd’s resolve intensifies. “Righteous” contains my favorite moment on the album too, with a devastating vocal run around the 5:20 mark. Despite the length, tracks never get monotonous thanks to her masterful sense of song progression and the talent of the studio musicians. Just when a song seems like it might be running out of steam, a guitar will reveal itself with a cool riff, background vocals will inject some more excitement, or a cool beat will work in a way that doesn’t make any sense. The best example of this is “One Thing”, the longest track on Glory Hour and (as of now) the most-streamed original song of hers. The sheer number of times Boyd can repeat the sentiment of wanting to be with God “every single day of her life” while still leaving the listener wanting more is mind-boggling.
Around the 2/3rds mark, she pumps the brakes on the grandiosity, and this final portion of the album is filled out with comparatively straightforward arrangements and a cover of a classic hymn. “David’s Brother’s” puts a cool spin on the David and Goliath story, emphasizing the commitment of David (and Boyd herself) to finding strength in the Lord:
Many have tried and they failed
Though qualified they didn't prevail
What makes you think that you will?
Look at the giant, then look at yourself
“Secret Place” and “Glory to God” are easier-to-digest iterations of the sound she explored to its logical conclusion earlier in the album and “Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled” is a sunny, joyous conclusion, though the real gem of the closing stretch is “Warfare”. This two minute and 29 second ditty is without a doubt the most ominous passage of music Boyd has ever released, a black hole within the streak of optimistic and beautiful songs. The tension builds and builds to an almost unbearable level, and then it…just ends. In an album full of impressive crescendos, it’s a truly shocking twist, and the silence is deafening.
It’s not a common phenomenon to listen to only the second full-length album from a relatively new artist and wonder “where could they possibly go from here?” Glory Hour is such a well-realized, fully-articulated artistic vision that I have no idea what’s next for Victory Boyd. She threw out the book when it came to what she knew about songwriting, and it resulted in the most confident-sounding gospel-inspired record I’ve heard in years. If you like good music, this album is a must-listen.
BONUS RECOMMENDATION
Victory Boyd and her backing musicians performed a really cool and unique arrangement of “Just Like in Heaven” on the Today Show. In some ways I even prefer it to the original!