Chase the Kangaroo
| Chase the Kangaroo | ||||
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| Studio album by The Choir | ||||
| Released | March 24, 1988 | |||
| Recorded |
Neverland Studios Los Alamitos, California, 1987 |
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| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 46:49 | |||
| Label | Myrrh | |||
| Producer |
Derri Daugherty Steve Hindalong |
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| The Choir chronology | ||||
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| Alternative covers | ||||
The cassette version.
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The CD version.
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   |
Chase the Kangaroo is the fourth studio album from Christian alternative rock band The Choir, released in 1988.
Chase the Kangaroo was a radical departure from the upbeat, alternative pop sounds of Diamonds and Rain, and quickly proved to be a seminal work—not only for The Choir, but for Contemporary Christian music in general. A variety of artists such as Jars of Clay, Switchfoot and Sixpence None the Richer have pointed to this album as a strong musical influence, and it singlehandedly pushed contemporary Christian music into lyrical and musical terrain it had never before explored. Because of this, the album is listed at No. 50 in the book CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music.
Unlike Diamonds and Rain, which was recorded in a scant 12 weeks, Chase the Kangaroo took six months of experimentation in the studio to complete, and even then, it was still being recorded and mixed up to the last minute before its release, which led to some confusion as to song order and inclusion on the LP and cassette versions. Because the album deals almost exclusively with sadness, grief and loss — not exactly Christian pop chart material —Myrrh Records couldn't determine how to market the album, so it ultimately received little promotion. The lead-off track, "Consider," did prove to be a No. 1 Christian rock hit, but the song was the last one written for the record in order to satisfy the label's desire for a radio-friendly single, according to drummer and lyricist Steve Hindalong.
The questioning and even sad nature of the album has to do with difficult and tragic events that the band experienced in the year prior to recording. Contrary to the idea that even successful Christian musicians are well-to-do, Hindalong was forced to work in construction to make ends meet, and his frustration with being reduced to digging ditches is directly addressed in the title track. In addition, his wife Nancy had suffered her second miscarriage, and "Sad Face" was written in response.
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