Style: hard rock, blues-rock, heavy metal, Christian
Label: Grrr Records
Year: 1995
Home: Chicago
Members: Glenn Kaiser ~ guitar/vocals/dulcimer/harmonica
Wendy Kaiser ~ vocals
Stu Heiss ~ guitar/keyboards
Roy Montroy ~ bass/b. vocals
John Herrin ~ Drums
Guest: Ty Tabor ~ guitar
Additional: Roger Heiss, Ed Bialach ~ percussion
Chris Cameron ~ organ
Hilde Bialach ~ cello
Eric Clayton ~ pan pipes
Julie Andrews, Diane Borden, Colleen Davick, Shelli Friede, Chris Garno, Micky Griffin, Bonnie Groth, Laurel Heiss, Lottie Jones, Caryl Montroy,
Andrea Spicer ~ b. vocals
Christian rock fathers Rez Band, formerly Resurrection Band only to return to the old moniker with this album, produced an outstanding catalog of music before their break-up in 2000 that spanned 3 decades & ranged from psychedelic to heavy metal to hard rock to pop to power ballads & the blues, barely a style of music passed through the music charts without Rez Band following suit with great success. Albeit, due to their heavy Christian lyrics they never got the commercial success that their mainstream peers had, though it was for no lack of trying or talent. While most of their albums tended to fall comfortably into one of these categories
The Lament stands out as an experiment that is a mix of the blues-rock with other elements to make something unique that in many ways brings them back to their early progressive albums. The songs still rock hard & heavy but the blistering metal of previous albums has been reigned in & the outcome is something hypnotic & intense. It's laced with some of their most emotionally powerful ballads with intricate lyrics that went beyond just Christian themes or praise songs. Part of this was due to the inclusion of producer Ty Tabor, lead singer of fellow Christian rockers King's X, but it's also because
The Lament is Rez Band's first concept album, dealing with a man's disillusionment with life & the necessity of spiritual change. The result has been hailed as one of the best Rez Band albums which it is definitely a contender for. But, with the diversity of music over a 30 year career its almost an injustice to what came before to call this the highlight as the band wouldn't have been around so long with the success it did had if it hadn't always been putting out great music.
The Lament would be the final studio output of the band & it's nothing but an absolutely wonderful curtain call. They'd reunite to record
Ampendectomy but that was only a re-arrangement of their hits in an acoustic setting to take advantage of the Unplugged craze sweeping the nation. Ironically,
Ampendectomy is a wonderful album could have potentially led to an acoustic reinvention of Rez Band, or a literal resurrection, but Glenn Kaiser was pumping out the blues in a solo career & Rez band was set aside not to be ... resurrected again in the studio. Even for Lazarus there comes a curtain call. But, it's a curtain call that is anything but a lament the title implies as the music is too joyful to let the listener feel sad that no more is to come. Both the curtain call & the encore are fan necessities. Few bands have called it a day in such a graceful way. Anyone who thinks Christian music doesn't 'kick ass' has never heard Rez Band.
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