for Kissers and Killers, and "Wilderness" would be the fifth new track for the album. Because Hindalong was self-conscious about his vocal performance on "Let the Sky Fall," that song was not included on Speckled Bird. Artwork and packaging The central image featured on the front of Speckled Bird was a female model portraying a spotted bird chained inside a wooden box. While the band "went for it at the time for its dramatic effect," it was retrospectively called "unfortunate cover art" by Mark Allan Powell in the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music. The image was soon quietly updated with additional feathers to cover the slightly revealing nude shot of the model's buttocks. Release Speckled Bird was released on July 1, 1994 on CD and cassette. The title track was released to Christian radio, and reached #2 on the Christian Rock charts on September 26, 1994. Response Critical reaction Critical response at the time was positive. Liz Liew, writing for Cross Rhythms, said that "Derri's prominent tremelo fuzzy guitar effects provide the underlying thread throughout the album, which often takes precedence over his vocals." While critical of the remix of "Yellow Skies" because it replaced "the original guitar breaks with vocal interludes," she praised "Like a Cloud" as the highlight of the album for "its trippy, ethereal washes of keyboard, masterful orchestration and tremelo guitar." Retrospectively, Tom Demalon at AllMusic was less enthusiastic, giving the Choir one of the lowest ratings of any of their albums on that platform. Claiming that "there's just precious little on Speckled Bird to attract the listener's attention," he added that "the music is plodding and rather aimless, rarely achieving the evocative moodiness that the group seems to desire. Lyrically, the band's Christian leanings are subtly incorporated, but they often overly rely on repeated images such as flowers, clouds, and birds to define situations and relationships." Other critics have been more positive, particularly regarding the lyrical content, with Barry Alfonso pointing out that Speckled Bird "returned to themes of spiritual struggle and awakening on tracks like 'Gripped' and the title song." Powell, in the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, was even more favorable, writing that the "album is beloved by critics as one of Christian music's ironic high points," and added that "themes of transcendent faith, hope, and love abound, amidst the realization that 'everyone travels in the wilderness.'" Accolades CCM Magazine Reader's Choice: Best