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In 2001, Pastor Derek Evans launched a church in his home. Within this intimate setting, his oldest daughter, Victoria Evans, was already grooming her talents as a musician and songwriter while inspiring her three sisters to join in praise and worship. In fact, she was the entire orchestra for their church, City of God International, while her sisters Talitha, Tiffany and Alexis formed the in-house choir. As the quartet was ministering in their home every Sunday, they were preparing to increase their musical territory in other churches where their father preached in their hometown of Lansing, Michigan. A friend of the Evans family eventually caught wind of the quartet – now called His Devoted - and introduced them to producer Lawrence Welton.
Nearly a decade went by before His Devoted finally signed with Welton’s label, Chicago-based eNsight Records, and released their debut, Adoration, a showcase of original praise and worship primarily written by Victoria Evans and producer Welton.
The most striking aspect of Adoration is His Devoted’s tight, secured harmonies, even as the group’s shared and alternating lead vocals occasionally waver between excellent and fair. “Number One” is loaded with jack swing fun and cheerleading punches of “praise God” and “number one.” The dancehall reggae bouncer, “Go the Way of Christ,” is fueled by rock guitar fills from Antoine Brumfield. “Keep Looking Up” is practically the spitting image of an SUV power ballad and “Best Friend” oozes with conviction and is the most consistent vocal turn on Adoration. His Devoted honors their church roots with two respectable a cappella turns, the title track and “This Vow,” though some of the sisters’ vocal punch is lost on the former, when their sweet flowing harmonic sweeps are massively overdubbed, drowning out the soloist.
As a debut project, Adoration shows the potential that the Evans sisters bring, even if at times the recording itself wavers in quality of production and lead vocals. Most powerful are the tight harmonies that help even middling songs rise to a higher level of praise. So, while not perfect, Adoration has enough bright spots to highlight the burgeoning talent of His Devoted and to make us look forward to the further development of this talented young group.
Vocals: 3.0 stars
Music: 2.0 stars
Lyrics: 2.5 stars
Production: 2.0 stars
SoulTracks Call: Modestly Recommended
By Peggy Oliver