Glorious Ruins is the 22nd live worship album by Hillsong Church. It was recorded live in London, England, and Sydney, Australia by the Hillsong Worship team from around the world including Reuben Morgan, Joel Houston, Ben Fielding, Hillsong United, and international teams from London, Stockholm, and Cape Town. The album includes 12 songs including "Man of Sorrows", "Glorious Ruins", "Christ Is Enough", "Anchor", and "You Crown the Year". It was released on 28 June 2013 in Australia and New Zealand and on 2 July 2013 internationally.[1][2] The album reached No. 3 on the ARIA Albums Chart.[3]
Background
On 27 and 28 October 2012, Hillsong Live recorded the first part at the Hillsong Convention Centre in Sydney with a worship night called "This Is for Everyone".[citation needed] The second part of the album was recorded by Hillsong London at London's Dominion Theatre on 17 February 2013. "Man of Sorrows", the first single from the album, was released as a free download just before Easter.[4]
Hillsong Live announced the new album by releasing its cover artwork 3 April 2013.[5] A trailer for the album and the live video for "Man of Sorrows" was released on 4 June 2013.[citation needed] The album was officially released on 2 July 2013.[citation needed]
Vision and inspiration
"Let the ruins come to life | In the beauty of Your Name | Rising up from the ashes | God forever You reign"
This chorus of the title track, Glorious Ruins, was an underlying theme through the life of Hillsong Church in the lead up to the Hillsong Live praise & worship album recording, Glorious Ruins. It’s a vivid image which captures the imagination and stirs the soul. Brian Houston, Senior Pastor of Hillsong Church explains, “Ruins can speak of crushing defeat or perhaps of something abandoned, but the good news today is that the ruins come to life. …Through Jesus Christ what we look at is ruins that become glorious..." Whether it be through times of personal devotion or in your church, we pray that the lyrics contained in this album stir your faith & love in Jesus Christ.[6]
Before its release, the album received positive reviews from Louder Than the Music's Jono Davies, who wrote, "there aren't many Christian bands that make the world stop and listen when they release a new album, but Hillsong are one of them." And describes the album's sound as "is this album much of the same classic Hillsong sound, or a new fresh style of worship? Well, a bit of both to be honest, but more on that later." And ends saying "How do you sum up an album like this? I don't know if words are enough. People will love this album simply because it's another classic from Hillsong, who seem to be getting better and better with each release. The band have been more creative in the last few years, which must be commended. I actually think the songs on this album are stronger than previous albums. If some albums in the past worked well as a package, this album has much stronger songs that can stand on their own in times of worship."[8] The album received three four-and-a-half-star-out-of-five ratings.
