Jars of Clay effectively delivers its message

CLEARWATER -- Out of a mist of AM radio-era static, Dan Haseltine sang a plaintive prayer -- not of praise, but of doubt.

"I got a question," sang Haseltine, of the Christian band Jars of Clay. "Where are you?"

Thus began the final act of a Christian-themed concert Friday night before a crowd organizers estimated at 10,000 (and the number looked to be right) jammed into Coachman Park. Jars of Clay, the headliner, offered a diverse set awash in distorted guitar and expertly layered harmonies, as well as a couple of unexpected touches.

The band, formed when the members were in college in the mid 1990s, has broadened its sound from the driving acoustic rhythms of its eponymous 1995 debut album to include dashes of folk, techno and rock. All styles were on display Friday night.

After posing the urgent questions contained in its first song, the ballad Silence, the band moved directly to its heavier sounds.

Disappear, from the just-released CD Eleventh Hour, as well as older cuts Collide, Unforgettable You and Crazy Times had a heavier sound than on the records. On Crazy Times in particular, lead guitarist Stephen Mason turned up the heat with blistering, shrieking solos ending in feedback.

The trademark trebly acoustic guitar sound was still there, particularly on Flood, the band's best-known song. Jars threw in snippets of the Beatles' Here Comes the Sun and the Steve Miller Band'sSwingtown for good measure.

Almost in answer to the questions of their first song, the band closed with Worlds Apart off its first CD, its voices fading away as an image of Christ lingered on the video screen above.

Singer-songwriter Jennifer Knapp preceded Jars of Clay with a tight, raucous set that seemed to gain momentum as it went.

Her voice, somehow creamy and coarse at the same time, was tentative at first, and sound problems plagued her first song, By and By. But when she turned to an acoustic sound for a few songs mid set, Knapp seemed to catch fire. Say Won't You Say and More Than I Can Give were particular highlights.

The first performer was Shaun Groves, also a singer-songwriter who has won multiple Dove Awards (from the Gospel Music Association) for his first album, Invitation to Eavesdrop, released last year. He was in fine voice but sang only four songs, accompanying himself on guitar or keyboard, including his top-selling single Welcome Home.

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