The sound of freedom in the air

Trinity Street EP
Artist: Trinity
Label: The Fuel Music
Length: 5 songs/17 minutes

Party band. This reference to Trinity has stayed with me. Their style is one of celebration. It’s the sound of freedom in the air.

This reminded me of a thought from the late A. W. Tozer, considered a modern day prophet in his time. He once lamented the lack of joy in the average church gathering. It’s absence may be related to being bound inside.

On this release Trinity reminds listeners that we are the same in many ways and can return to freedom once known. They invite us to gather and celebrate on the opening title track: “we are a crazy family with everyone we meet/so come and join the party down on Trinity street.”

I mentioned in a review of Desert Rain, a prior release, that the band has a multi-cultural sound. Here they are decidedly Celtic with fast acoustic strumming augmented by flutes and Uillean pipes. The interplay and blend can be sublime.

The three brothers and close friend that comprise the core of the band come from the Netherlands but having done missions work for a number of years in Ireland giving them an appreciation for this acoustic style. Though it may be mostly Celtic, world influences are still present. On the last track, “Awake My Soul,” a Mumford & Sons cover, a few lines are sung in Spanish. I enjoy this characteristic change-up of breaking into another language.

They join voices on the hearty chorus, as they often do here, but it’s this second stanza that initially puzzled me:

Lend me your hand and we’ll conquer them all
But lend me your heart and I’ll just let you fall
Lend me your eyes I can change what you see
But your soul you must keep, totally free

We can take the hand to help but should never try to gain the allegiance of the heart. How often, especially recently, have leaders let us down? We can never take the place of God in someone’s life.

The chorus makes this the most overtly spiritual track. The rest of the songs might be a bit more subtle, which is a trait of the band. They never take a heavy-handed approach to their faith. It just informs their songs because it’s their frame of reference.

I like the energy in “Don’t Be Scared,” which has a fast tempo until it slows down at the end when the chorus becomes the focus:

Don’t be scared
Don’t be scared
There will always be enough love
Don’t be scared

“There will always be enough love” is such a comforting thought. It reminds me of the line from the old hymn:

To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry
Nor could the scroll contain the whole
Though stretched from sky to sky

“Back to the Heartwell” highlights another aspect: “whatever comes our way/love will always be the same.”

How vast! How measureless! There will always be enough. No scarcity, only abundance. No change. Listeners are encouraged to “hold on/you’re almost there.”

Musically, “Don’t Be Scared” starts with penny whistle, followed by vigorous strumming on guitars, which includes a mando-guitar. There is also an accordion in the background.

“Rewilding the Wild” has a driving acoustic rhythm that sounds somewhat like U2’s “Where the Streets Have No Name.” The chorus is exuberant both musically and lyrically. It echoes a theme of unshackled freedom, “living with hearts open wide.” It’s source is beyond ourselves:

It’s the spirit inside
Opening our eyes
To the wonder, divine.

It’s living with childlike abandon. That’s what these songs touch on in different ways. It’s a welcome message when so often life can leave us diminished and confined. Trinity encourages us to live largely.

Michael Dalton