Music Review | “Better Than I Found It” By Phil Joel

With a passion for people and all things musical, Randy…

Much can be said of the creativity coming from being quarantined for nearly a year. Musical acts of all genres have found the home studio is the best and safest way to go about producing the reflections they have had during the pandemic. Newsboys co-founder-turned-solo-artist Phil Joel joins the cadre of home produced music offerings with his newest release, his eighth solo offering, Better Than I Found It.

It is evident that this 6-track EP was intended for the time of transition in which the world currently finds itself. Laced with unifying, reflective, and oftentimes thought provoking lyric, the entire album attempts to do just what the title cut suggests: leave every situation, every interaction, every instant better than when you were inserted into it.

The stand out track is “Alright,” which opens with an address by President Kennedy and closes with a message by Dr. Martin Luther King, reminding us that we have come through similar times, yet these messages are timeless.

More: Joel is at his best when he is in the edgy, up-tempo arena. Because of this, “Better Than I Found It” and “Alright” are the best tracks on the EP.

Less: The remaining tracks are good, yet they don’t have the flair to which we have become accustomed to hearing from Phil Joel.

Learn more about Phil Joel here.

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Randy Cross

With a passion for people and all things musical, Randy joined Trinity’s staff in September 2002. He and his wife Tammy have been married since 1986. Their family includes 3 daughters, 1 son, 3 grandsons, and 1 granddaughter. “Worship as a lifestyle” is the driving philosophy to Randy’s ministry at Trinity. He serves as support personnel in the multigenerational ministries of Trinity in an effort to show others that “worship” involves more than just the musical aspects that are so many oftentimes associated with the word. He is a member of the Arkansas Master’Singers, where he sings tenor and plays french horn. Randy also plays french horn and trumpet in the ASU-Beebe, Symphonic band. He can be seen on his Youtube channel Cross & Kin and is the author of the weekly blog Tuesday’s Musical Notes.