I See Things Upside Down

I See Things Upside Down (2004) is the second solo studio album from singer-songwriter Derek Webb. It was recorded at The Smoakstack recording studio in Nashville, Tennessee and engineered by Justin Loucks. This album branches out musically from what Webb had done in the past, and Webb has stated that he wanted to “dismantle everyone’s idea of what kind of music they could expect” from him.

Referencing the paradoxes provided in Christ’s teachings, I See Things Upside Down investigates the idea that perhaps, contrary to our religious and social standards, failure equals success, poverty equals riches, weakness equals strength, and foolishness equals understanding. “What are the things that we American Christians value in our culture and how is that different and often ‘upside down’ from true Kingdom values? I’ve found that often success looks more like failure, riches more like poverty, and that real life often feels more like death,” Webb said in a press release.