SOUL HYMNS

“Soul Hymns is the tenth record release from Isla Vista Worship, our little family/collective of artists & worshippers within the 1-square-mile city of Isla Vista, CA.

Our sound is typically a colorful array, gleaming with the flavors of individuals who are a part of the worship movement at the given time. The current catalogue consists of Acoustic Worship, Synth Pop, Indie Rock, and Alt Rock.
The Soul Hymns record is the first Soul/R&B project from our beachtown worship team.

The pilot of the record, Mark Barlow, is our Chicagoan ‘blue eyed soul,” easily recognized by his buttery chord progressions and fireplace falsetto. He’s best known for his work on “So In Love” from our most recent record, “Isla Vista Worship 2.”

Closing up an 8 year process that began with a dream of creating a soulful, personal worship EP, Barlow finally brings his heart to the table with a minimalist mindset. With mostly down-tempo and keys-and-percussion driven orchestration, Soul Hymns is heavily informed by the styles of Daniel Caesar, Honne, Tom Misch, Vulfpeck, Kiefer, Sam Smith, and Mac Ayres.

Barlow describes Soul Hymns as a ‘humble expression of familiarity with our heavenly Father; a meek, inviting musical experience to aide time spent surrendering, basking in God’s kindness & mercy.’”

Soul Hymns are designed to make you hungrier for time with Jesus.
Candied cinnamon rolls. Salted caramel latte. Blueberry crisp casserole. Cookiebutter cheesecake. Ohhhh my lanta, I'm ready. Take me now, Lord! Even WORDS about my favorite munchies bring me in, they cause me hunger, reminding me of the sweetness.

Jesus is the only one who has words of life that'll nourish your entire being for the rest of eternity.
Like I said, this project was designed to make you hungrier for time with Jesus.

I’ve dreamed of releasing this type of record for 8 years. I couldn’t have poured my heart and soul into this unless SO MANY of my friends had done the same in SO many different ways. Dad, Mom, Ethan, Kenny, Olivia, Hailey, Justin, Dave, John Mark, Ryan, Jaye, Benji, Daniel, Rachel, Noah, Josh, Danny, Joey, Mama Jeanne, James & Jess, the entire ISLA VISTA WORSHIP fam, as well as everybody who financially supported me & this project.

A special shoutout to my roommates Kyle, Michael and Ryland who would sweetly not come into our bedroom when we were recording HAHAHA. You guys are the best.

Without further ado, I give you:
Soul Hymns.