Kings Kaleidoscope – Safe Retreat (feat. Braille)

A relatively recent ten-piece band, releasing their first major label debut album Becoming Who We Are released in 2014, Kings Kaleidoscope smashes several genres of music into a cohesive chimera of sorts, including alternative, indie, rock, pop, hip-hop, and much, much more!  Their follow-up is a mix-tape album, The Beauty Between, loaded with heavy influences of hip-hop music.

Featuring the Humble Beast poster child and Trinity Church elder/pastor, Braille accompanies Kings Kaleidoscope in Safe Retreat, a song heavily referencing Proverbs 18:10 and reminds me of Kutless’ Strong Tower.

Lyrics can be found at https://genius.com/Kings-kaleidoscope-safe-retreat-lyrics.

Note to new users: This is a different kind of review site!  Read About the Berean Test and Evaluation Criteria prior to reading this review.

1. What message does the song communicate?

The overall theme is hiding in God as a place of refuge during an immense thunderstorm, a metaphor for…well, Kings Kaleidoscope never really explains that, do they?  Perhaps they were going for the “storms of this life”, something that many have sung about in the past.  It is certainly hinted within the intro. The majority of lyrics are slight variations of the same theme: there’s a storm brewin’, so find shelter in God.  While this is a great message, and it sounds clever when sung, it is highly repetitive, leading to boredom.

It is not until Verse 2 that we see more interesting, theological truth.  Braille raps about running from God, His omniscience, self-deception, holy living, desire, his sinful nature, idolatry, and repentance.  That is a lot of material to cover!  It connects smoothly to the overall theme by describing God’s rest.

Score: 7/10

2. How much of the lyrics line up with Scripture?

While the majority of it is biblically sound, two lines are unclear, making them inevaluable.  There is one line that is not biblically accurate.

[Intro]

Lines 1-3: Philippians 4:6-7 tells us that we are not to be anxious about anything.  Rather, we are to pray to God and allow His peace to guard our minds and hearts.  It is obvious that Kings Kaleidoscope is using storms as a metaphor.  What is not obvious is what the metaphor is, which makes it difficult to evaluate biblically.  Perhaps James 1:2-8 is applicable if they are communicating trials and tribulation as the metaphor.

Lines 4-5: While it is true that God protects those who are His (Psalm 18:1-3, Psalm 27:1-5, Psalm 31:19-24, Psalm 46:1-3, Psalm 71:1-6, Psalm 91:1-4, Proverbs 14:26, Proverbs 18:10, and Isaiah 25:1-5), we must also understand that God does not protect us from everything.  As Christ followers, we should expect persecution when we follow Jesus (Matthew 10:16:23, John 15:20, and 2 Timothy 3:12).

[Hook]

Lines 1, 2, and 5: Repeated theme as Lines 4-5 in Intro.

Lines 3 and 4: Repeated theme as Lines 1-3 in Intro.

[Verse 1]

Lines 1-4: Repeated theme as Lines 1-3 in Intro.

Line 5: Repeated theme as Lines 4-5 in Intro.

Line 6-8: We find rest when we come to God/Jesus as our refuge and source of strength (Matthew 11:28-30).  Also, see Hebrews 3 and 4 regarding entering God’s rest, with a more in-depth explanation from Got Questions.

Line 9: Repeated theme as Lines 1-3 in Intro.

Line 10: Repeated theme as Lines 4-5 in Intro.

[Verse 2: Braille]

Lines 1 and 2: Like Jonah did in Jonah 1:1-17, Braille tried to hide from God, underneath his rock.  As we will find out, this plan will not work.

Line 3: The inklings of repentance shine through.  It starts when we admit we were wrong, much like David did in Psalm 51:1-4.

Line 4-7: God is omniscient; He knows all things (1 Kings 8:39, 1 Chronicles 28:9, Psalm 44:21, Psalm 139:4, Psalm 147:4-5, Isaiah 40:28, Matthew 10:30, John 16:30 [reference to Jesus], John 21:17 [reference to Jesus], Acts 1:24, Hebrews 4:13, and 1 John 3:20).

Line 8: Similar to line 3, this is an honest admission of self-deception; guiltiness before God.

Line 9: Indeed, this is the work of God (John 6:29).  It is the Father who draws people to Jesus (John 6:44), enabling us to seek Him, which we would not do on our own (Psalm 14:1-3, Psalm 53:1-3, and Romans 3:10–12).

Line 10: Though God does not tempt us (James 1:13-15), He provides the way of escape when we face temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13); however, if we sin, we can return to Jesus for forgiveness (1 John 2:1-2).

Line 11: The entire Old Testament is replete with examples of idolatry leading to disgrace, contrary to God’s command in Exodus 20:3-6.  One in particular in 1 Kings 11:1-13 is King Solomon’s idolatry with his many wives, who turned him away to other gods.  This sin led to the tearing of the Israelite people into two kingdoms: Israel and Judah.  Insofar as I know, every instance of idolatry mentioned in the Bible by those in authority has devastating consequences.

Line 12: The vicious cycle of sin cannot be broken through human effort alone (Romans 3:20, Philippians 3:8-9, and Galatians 2:14-21).

Line 13: God will not despise a broken and contrite heart (Psalm 51:17).  It is the broken that God will save (Psalm 34:18); those who know that they are guilty and need a savior, as one who knows they are sick and needs a cure (Matthew 9:12, Mark 2:17, and Luke 5:31).  Not the man who stubbornly thinks the doctor is wrong and he is fine.

Line 14-15: See Verse 1, line 6-8, above.

Line 16: That is the entire purpose of Jesus’ death on a cross.  See John 3:16-21, John 5:24 and Ephesians 2:1-22.

[Bridge]

Line 1: I am not sure what Kings Kaleidoscope means by this.  Is he referring to our time on earth?  Our past mistakes?  Human effort?  Without a clear understanding of this line, it is impossible to evaluate biblically.

Line 2: The website God questions describes the process of sanctification in three steps.  This line references the second step: a life-long journey from sinner to saint.  See 2 Corinthians 3:18, Philippians 1:16, Philippians 2:13, Philippians 3:12, and Colossians 3:10.

Lines 3 and 4: Although line 3 is obviously true, line 4 in connection with it is ambiguous.  Is this about original sin?  Deep suffering?  Deep lasting emotional hurt?  I do not know and I cannot evaluate biblically lines that are vague.

Lines 5 and 6: A simile referring to all people across the globe, though in connection with lines 3 and 4, which are obscure at best.

Line 7: We belong to Jesus (Romans 8:9, 1 Corinthians 3:18-23, and Ephesians 1:5).  Hope is something Jesus offers (Matthew 11:28-30, Romans 5:1-8, Romans 8:24-39, Romans 15:13, 1 Corinthians 15:54-58, and 1 Peter 1:3-6).  It is not something we belong to.

Line 8: Most likely referring to the Kingdom of God.  This is preceded by an expectation of repentance, which was expressed earlier in the song and explicitly stated by Jesus (Matthew 3:2, Matthew 4:17, and Mark 1:15).

[Outro]

Repeated hook.

Score: 7/10

3. How would an outsider interpret the song?

This song is especially difficult to discern an outsider’s reaction.  Will they take the intro as a promise from God or a general rule of thumb?  Will they tire of mass repetition?  It is hard to say.  Verse 2 will have the biggest impact on their lives, with language crafted for seekers.  It contains a smattering of church-ese that might sail over their heads however small it might be.

Score: 7/10

4. What does this song glorify?

There is a huge emphasis on God as our Protector throughout the entire song, with major theological depth in Verse 2.  Though it contains two vague lines and one incorrect statement (see section 2, above), it glorifies God more than anything else.

Score: 7/10

Closing Comments

Despite its monotonous and unvaried language, Kings Kaleidoscope’s Safe Retreat has some redeeming qualities, specifically in Verse 2.  This brings some amount of glory to God and will serve as a lasting impact both for believers and unsaved alike.

Final Score: 7/10

Artist Info

Track: Safe Retreat (listen to the song)

Artist: Kings Kaleidoscope

Album: The Beauty Between

Genre: Alternative Rock, Hip Hop/Rap

Release Year: 2017

Duration: 4:42

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