Revelation is the ninth studio album by American Christian rock band Third Day, released on July 29, 2008. The album was produced by Howard Benson, who had decided to work with the band after rock singer Chris Daughtry drew attention to lead singer Mac Powell's vocal ability. Although they were initially uncomfortable working with Benson, Third Day achieved a positive working relationship with Benson, who felt that their different religious beliefs made them challenge each other in a way reflected in the record.
In recording Revelation, Third Day aimed to produce a southern rock album while being more creative musically; the band felt the result was their best record to date. As a whole, the album is noted as adopting a heavier and edgier rock sound than Third Day's previous adult contemporary-projects such as Wherever You Are (2005), while the album's lyrics reflect Christian themes. The album features guest appearances from Chris Daughtry, Lacey Mosley of alternative metal band Flyleaf, and pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph.
Revelation received positive reviews from music critics. Although some expressed minor concerns about the short length of the album's songs and the quality of the record's second half as compared to its first, many critics regarded it as one of Third Day's best studio albums while others praised the guest appearances on the album. It won several awards at the 40th GMA Dove Awards while the song "Born Again" received multiple nominations at the 52nd Grammy Awards. Revelation debuted at number six on the Billboard 200, number two on the Rock Albums chart, and number one on the Christian Albums chart, selling a total of 75,000 copies in its first week. The album's four singles all performed successfully on Christian radio, three of them topping at least one Christian chart format. Revelation has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), signifying shipments of over 500,000 copies.
Background and recording
Third Day, intending to "shake things up", made some significant changes to its management prior to the production of Revelation. The band left Creative Trust Management and signed with Red Light, which represented such artists as Dave Matthews Band, Switchfoot, and Rodney Atkins. They also chose to work with mainstream producer Howard Benson, who had worked on projects with other bands that Third Day had enjoyed. Benson decided he wanted to work with Third Day after Chris Daughtry drew his attention to Mac Powell's vocal ability. Benson, who is Jewish, said that he enjoys working with Christian artists such as Third Day because they believe in something. He added that their different religious beliefs prompted discussions about faith between himself and the band, which Benson said "comes out in the record because of the way I challenge them and they challenge me". Third Day were initially uncomfortable at first working with Benson, as the band's achievements in the Christian music realm meant nothing in the world of mainstream record production. Despite the band's insecurity at the start, they appreciated the experience the end of the process. The decision to use Benson led to the band recording the album in Los Angeles instead of Atlanta, Georgia.
During production, Benson felt one recording session with Lacey Mosley of Flyleaf went beyond the ordinary to the point where he left the recording room and told Powell "You have to go out there, and you and her do this because you're coming to God right now in front of my eyes. You guys handle it". According to Benson, both he and Mosley were moved to tears by the session and Benson felt that something like that does not happen often in a recording studio. In a separate session with Mosley, bassist Tai Anderson said that, after recording the end of the song "Run to You", Mosley said she could not believe she was recording with the band. Concerned that Mosley might have been pressured by her management team into doing the collaboration, Anderson said they told Mosley that she didn't have to do the recording. Mosley assuaged their concerns by telling the band that she was actually excited to be able to perform on their album as the band's music had helped her during a difficult period in her teenage years.
With Revelation, Third Day aimed to give their fans a record with their southern rock sound while being more creative. The band said they pushed themselves hard for the record, pushing the album's release date back so they could work on lyrics and songs despite pressure from their label for a finished product. They ultimately felt the album was among their best lyrically and "more than what fans were expecting [musically]". The band's drummer, David Carr, acknowledged the cliche of a band member calling their latest effort their best one, but was confident that Revelation would be the best if all the band's previous efforts were compared. Tai Anderson, the group's bassist, said they did not intend the album to be a mainstream record, pointing to the cross on the album's cover. However, he said that they didn't rule out the possibility of mainstream exposure. After the album was complete, guitarist Brad Avery left the band.
Revelation was produced by Howard Benson. Recording was handled by Mike Plontikoff at Bay 7 Studios in Valley Village and at Sparky Dark Studio in Calabasas, California; it was mixed by Chris Lord-Alge at Resonate Music in Burbank, California. Pre-production was handled at Haunted Hollow Studio in Charlottesville, Virginia by Rob Evans and Steve Miller, at Tree Sound Studios in Norcross, Georgia by Don McCollister, and at Sonica Recording in Atlanta, Georgia by Jon Briglevich. Mastering was handled by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering in Portland, Maine. Digital editing was handled by Paul Decarli, and audio engineering was handled by Ashburn Miller, with additional engineering handled by Hatsukazu Inagaki.
Chris Daughtry provided backing vocals on "Slow Down". Lacey Mosley provided backing vocals on "Run to You" and a duet on "Born Again". Robert Randolph provided pedal steel work on "Otherside". Scotty Wilbanks provided piano on "Revelation". Debbie Lurie created the string arrangement on "Let Me Love You"; the string track was recorded at Entourage Studios. Brad Avery provided additional guitar work.
Composition
Revelation possesses a heavier, edgier rock sound than many of Third Day's previous albums, which leaned towards an adult contemporary sound; this is particularly noticeable when compared to 2005's Wherever You Are. The opening track "This Is Who I Am" is a southern rock song seen by reviewers as demonstrating the band's confidence and security in their musical style. Its lyrics call for God to accept people for their flaws and make them better. "Slow Down" is a rock song featuring backing vocals from Chris Daughtry of the rock band Daughtry and lyrics asking that God "pace our lives". The first single from the album, "Call My Name", is a pop rock song, while "Run to You" is a mid-tempo ballad set in time.
The title track addresses the uncertainty many Christians face in asking for God's intervention. "Otherside" has a "bluesy" and southern rock sound with an accompaniment from pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph. "Let Me Love You" is a love song for humanity written from the perspective of God. "I Will Always Be True" has a "jangly pop/rock style", while "Give Love" has influence from the folk music genre. "Ready" has a distinct energetic sound closer to past ballads made by Third Day, and "Take It All" is an adult contemporary song combining electric and acoustic guitar work with lyrics emphasizing spiritual surrender.
Packaging The liner notes for Revelation state that the album art is "an artistic interpretation" of Salvation Mountain, a monument created by Leonard Knight as "a public art project designed to send the message that 'God Loves Everyone'". Located in Calipatria, California, the location is entered in the Congressional Record as a 'national treasure'. The album cover is of Salvation Mountain with the song titles of Revelation composed on it, "to send [Third Day's] own message of God's love to the world". According to bassist Tai Anderson, the idea to use Salvation Mountain as the album cover art was lead vocalist Mac Powell's idea. Anderson recalled that Third Day received critiques about the album art, with people claiming it ripped off the cover art of Radiohead's album Hail to the Thief (2003). Although he admits there "are similarities" between the two, Anderson denied that the band based the design off of "outside sources". Anderson also said he was more concerned with the album art's coloring, as "red-skewed" album covers had been used by bands such as U2 and Green Day. In hindsight, Anderson felt that the band "probably would have used one of the other images from the packaging on the cover just so we wouldn't have to read the one star critiques on iTunes which never reference the music, just the album cover".
Reception
Reception to Revelation was positive, with some critics regarding the album as one of Third Day's best albums to date. Andree Farias of Allmusic gave the album four out of five stars and commented that "Revelation finds Third Day trying new things, but not to the extent that they sound like a different band". He felt that the change of environment "intimidated [Third Day] for the better", making them not settle for "middle of the road" songs. He described the album's sound as "muscular" and "anthemic ... unquestionably populist, yet the closest Third Day has come to replicating the Southern-fried goodness of Time". He regarded Revelation as "the best album Third Day has released this decade" and considered the album a return to the "unbridled fervor" Third Day was characterized by early in their career.
Deborah Evans-Price of Billboard magazine described the album as "one of the best of the year" and praised Mac Powell's vocals as "possessing just the right amount of gritty intensity combined with sweet Southern charm" and as "equally effective on tender ballads like "Let Me Love You" and such hard-charging rockers as "This Is Who I Am". Matt Conner of CCM Magazine gave Revelation four-and-a-half out of five stars, opining that "The production on Revelation showcases a seasoned band working with a new-yet-veteran producer in Howard Benson ... And the results are perhaps the band's best work to date" and praising the guest appearances by Chris Daughtry and Lacey Mosley.
Russ Breimeier of Christianity Today commented that "I've heard lead singer Mac Powell and the others say that they put more blood and sweat into their tenth studio album than any previous effort. It's not just hyperbole, it's a Revelation, and it ranks with their best albums so far", but noted that the album is "briskly paced with 13 songs in just 43 minutes; only the radio single "Call My Name" runs over 4 minutes. That's a good thing in that the album easily holds your attention from one lean song to another, but it deprives Third Day the opportunity to delve into longer instrumental jams or deeper lyrics about the conversations we share with God during the darker times in life". Graeme Crawford of Cross Rhythms gave the album nine out of ten stars and opined that "the newly slimmed down band deliver a quality record that all Third Day fans will enjoy" and that it "should be investigated by anyone with even a passing interest in rock music".