Jeremy Camp: ‘I Will Follow’ album review

“In this life, there is one guarantee/ this broken world will only leave me empty/ but there’s a life that healed my heart/ and it holds firm when I’m falling apart,” sings Jeremy Camp in the opening track, “Living Word.” It sets the scene for his latest offering, I Will Follow, a solid record bathed in scripture, and saturated with a more mature sound from Camp. Polished songs like, “Christ in Me,” show an impressive evolution in musical arrangement from the now-veteran singer, though lyrically they are more streamlined than previous releases. This fact could hurt other singers, but Camp pushes forth a gutsier vocal coupled with more purposeful, albeit simpler, lyrics. “Only in You” explores a more acoustic driven sound (think NEEDTOBREATHE), where listeners will get to revel in a less raspy lead vocal without the breathiness that creeps into other parts of the record. “Finally Home” feels a bit of a misfit among the other, more crisp songs, but it’s hardly a failure, just dwarfed a bit by stellar tracks like “Here I Am.” Though his signature sound (big guitars and even bigger choruses) is still present, I Will Follow represents a grown-up version of the artist, and it’s a stalwart and near-perfect effort.