Undoubtedly his best album to date, Israel Tutson delivers a strong performance on his latest installment: Sand Castles. Upbeat, smooth tempo, swooning ballads, even orchestral compositions; this album has it all! Israel wastes no time in providing us with some of the best music of the year so far! After a brief intro, the album opens with Track 2: 'Prodigal Son' a mid-tempo groove reminiscent of some of the smooth r&b made popular during the mid 90's. The lyrics aim to encourage former Believers that have fallen away from their faith to "come back home." The bouncing rhythm and baseline of this song is infectious and in no time you'll be bobbing your head excited to hear what else is in store! If the next laid-back track: 'So Good', puts you completely into chill-mode, then track 4 will take you completely out of it! After debuting his rap skills on his last album, Red Carpet, Israel once again flexes his lyrical prowess on 'Ten & Two': a head-bobbing rap freestyle where the artist, among other topics, discusses his motivation for pursuing his musical dreams: "I do this for the love, I do this for the music, I do this for my God, trying to spread the word through this." Israel, shows much growth in his lyrical content and delivery style, solidifying himself as a legitimate double-threat rapper/singer. If there is a definition of 'Smooth Urban Gospel', then the title track: 'Sand Castles' is it! Israel's Neo Soul harmonies waft over the perfect backdrop of Fender Rhodes, Piano, Strings, Electric Bass and a simple kick drum and rimshot. Don't be so caught up on the overly-delicous recipe though, that you miss the powerful lyrics of the song: "We're just Castles in the Sand, fashioned by His Heavenly Hands, here but for a moment till the tide comes in!" Sand Castles offers a discourse on both the brevity of human life and the vanity of life without Christ all on top of a mellow vibe that will have you pressing the repeat button! Even with so many legitimate hits throughout the first seven songs, the second half of the Sand Castles album does not taper down. Israel saves some of the best for last as he offers ''Here I am' (an extremely catchy reggae tune), "If I could" (a surprisingly operatic vocal performance over symphony strings), and one of my favorites: 'The Real Me' (a Drake-ish, rap/singing style open letter to God where the artist lays bare his truest sentiments. Overall, Sand Castles is a very thorough, well-rounded collection of music that is guaranteed to be one of the best Indie Gospel albums of the year! Both written and produced by Israel himself, the music and lyrics and vocal performances of the album are seamlessly interwoven to raise the bar for himself and future artists of the Urban Gospel Genre. This will be the best ten bucks you will probably spend all summer.