''Upstairs'' is the third studio album by the

contemporary worship Contemporary worship is a form of Christian worship that emerged within Western evangelical Protestantism in the 20th century. It was originally confined to the charismatic movement, but is now found in a wide range of churches, including many w ...

duo

Shane & Shane Shane & Shane is a Texas-based contemporary worship music band known for acoustic praise and worship music. The band consists of Shane Barnard (vocals, acoustic guitar) and Shane Everett (vocals). They are often joined by their drummer and manag ...

. The album was released on May 18, 2004, by

Inpop Records Inpop Records is an independent contemporary Christian music record label based in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. It was launched in July 1999 by Australians Peter Furler, Dale Bray, and Wes Campbell. The name was derived from the idea of wanting ...

label, and the producers on the effort is Will Hunt and Shane & Shane.

Music and lyrics

Dave Urbanski of ''

CCM Magazine ''CCM Magazine'' is a twice-monthly online magazine focusing on contemporary Christian music, published by Salem Publishing, a division of Salem Communications. History ''CCM'' was first published in July 1978, as a printed magazine. It has bee ...

'' wrote that the release "sports a stellar sound", but has a feel that "is homogeneous, meandering and lyrically simplistic." At ''

Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "evange ...

'', Russ Breimeier wrote that to "some have said The Shanes are popular because they've found a way to express God's Word simply, yet effectively. There's truth to that, but don't discount their often overlooked musicianship and production, which helps elevate The Shanes' music from basic folk pop to worship music that is powerful, captivating, and intelligent."

Cross Rhythms Cross Rhythms is a Christian media organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It operates an FM and online radio station, produces radio shows sent internationally, and its website has resources about contemporary Christian music. Hi ...

' Tom Lennie noted how "the lyrics are profound and intimate, the music creative, with interesting, varied percussion overlaid with deft guitar (and a touch of banjo/accordion in places) all topped with this duo's intense, yearning vocals."

Josh Taylor Josh or Joshua Taylor may refer to: * Josh Taylor (actor) (born 1943), American comedy and dramatic television actor * Josh Taylor (baseball) (born 1993), American professional baseball pitcher * Josh Taylor (boxer) (born 1991), Scottish profession ...

of Jesus Freak Hideout evoked that "it seems the entire disc is aiming to please the fans that did not start listening because of the 'catchy pop' side of them."

Reception

Critical

''Upstairs'' has received generally positive reviews from the music critics. At ''

'', Russ Breimeier told that "''Upstairs'' is not 'for fans only,' and is much better than one is led to believe." Tom Lennie of

stated that "all in all, this has got to be one of the most original and beautiful acoustic worship sounds I've heard", which he wrote that "it's thumbs up all the way." Jesus Freak Hideout's Josh Taylor found this to be the duos' "least accessible disc to date", yet he called the effort a "brilliant album lyrically and will appeal to their folk fans most of all." At ''

'', Dave Urbanski told that the album feels "off-the-cuff".

Commercial

For the week of May 29, 2004 music charts by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'', ''Upstairs'' was on the breaking and entering chart selling at No. 25 on the

Heatseekers Albums Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...

, and it was on the genre charting

Christian Albums Top Christian Albums is a weekly chart published in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the best-performing Christian albums in the United States. Like the ''Billboard'' 200, the data is compiled by Nielsen Soundscan based on each album's weekly ...

in the No. 11 slot. It also charted on the

Top Internet Albums The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the '' ...

Music and lyrics

Reception

Critical

Commercial

Track listing

Charts

References