Why Most Christian Bands Stink
5 Feb
Stryper
“Christian rock?” I asked my friend Adam as he proudly pointed toward the new Stryper poster adorning his bedroom wall. ”They can’t be real Christians!” I exclaimed.
“Yes they can!” Adam protested back. “They’re Christian rockers!”
I remained deeply suspicious, secretly knowing these Maya-the-Bee-cartoon-character-knock-offs in multi-colored tights were undercover agents of the Devil.
It’s kind of funny looking back on it. An eight-year-old, conservatively raised, Church of Christ preacher’s kid growing up next door to a much more expressive, nine-year-old, Pentecostal preacher’s kid (okay, so they weren’t really Pentecostal – they were non-denominational, but definitely with charismatic Pentecostal leanings).
More than once I’d told Adam it was a safe bet both he and his family were on their way to the hot place (I mean, they all had mullets and were fans of Benny Hinn for goodness sakes). This whole “Christian rocker” thing was simply another log on the fire.
Stryper wasn’t the only baptized devil music Adam was in to – Petra, Carman, D.C. Talk – all were introduced to me by him way back in the 80s, and so I listened.
At first, I had no real frame of reference to compare Christian bands to, but as I grew older and was introduced to other more well-known “secular” bands – Beck, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Sublime, Alice in Chains, 311, and more – I realized just how sub-par Christian bands tended to be regarding actual talent. They were several steps below the mainstream, and showing no real signs of improvement.
And so, after being in to DC Talk as an eleven-year-old (after getting their Free At Last album for Christmas), I eventually became disenfranchised with “Christian” music. Not coincidentally, this move away from Christian music coincided with my move away from all things Christian. Indeed, for many years I lived as an unbeliever.
But when I came to Jesus in my early twenties, I never returned to Christian rock. My foray away from faith for a few years had led me into the mainstream music industry working at several radio stations as a modern rock DJ (not that a Christian can’t be a modern rock DJ, but I certainly wasn’t). An expert, if you will, on the then-current rock music scene.
My taste in music had been refined. I’d observed enough as a working professional to recognize talent and distinguish the difference between a good band and the unfortunate alternative. As skill went, most secular bands didn’t make the cut, and Christian bands barely had a chance since, in their musical culture, real talent had largely been a missing key ingredient for years (you can accuse me of over-generalizing, but deep down you know I’m telling the truth).
In my estimation, bands were signed to Christian labels, not because they had the right “stuff”, but because they had the right message – the right lyrics. In Christian rock, the message in the lyrics had always been more important than the technical skill involved in creating a great track. This always irked me, because I believe an artist’s display of technical skill is part of the message of their art.
If a song is technically sound, that says a lot. Whoever produced it is saying, “I’m passionate about this. I care about this a lot. I care about what I’m saying in this song so much, that I want to do everything right to make sure you listen, because what I’m saying is really, really important. What I’m saying is close to my heart, and I don’t want anything to get in the way of the message of this song or the experience I want you to have in listening.”
Conversely, if a song is technically unsound and put together in a shabby way, that communicates a lot too. It says, “I’m not very passionate about my music. What I’m saying in this song isn’t incredibly important because I’m going to let all these other things distract you. Off key? No problem. Cheesy chorus? Check. Lyrics that could have been written by a first grader at recess? You got it. But hey, I’m in a Christian band, so the Christian label signed me because of my professed faith – not because of my skill. Did I forget to mention that I don’t really have skill? Oh, my bad. Now listen and enjoy!”
Okay, so maybe I’m being a little harsh, but this is seriously where my mind goes when not enough attention is paid to detail by a “professional.” What they’re saying without knowing it is, “This really isn’t the right profession for me” (to be clear, I don’t apply this type of thinking to amateur musicians – just professionals or wanna-be professionals – but I do apply this type of thinking to other things. I’ll leave it up to you to guess what else I may be talking about :p ).
Anyway, this is on my mind today because I just finished reading Body Piercing Saved My Life: Inside the Phenomenon of Christian Rock by Andrew Beaujon for a class I’m taking at Fuller. To be honest, I wasn’t looking forward to reading this book, but after diving into the first chapter a couple of days ago I knew the rest was going to be good and it was.
Technical skill? This dude has lots of it when it comes to prose. Beaujon is a regular contributor to The Washington Times, Spin Magazine, and several other noted publications. In addition to that, he isn’t a Christian, so reading his book covering the Christian music scene gave me an outsider’s perspective – something I really appreciate when it comes to any aspect of faith.
Beaujon, like me, believes that most Christian bands aren’t worth listening to, and (also like me) believes the reason most of them get signed to a label is because of their squeaky-clean image and the content of their lyrics – not because they’re actually any good. There are exceptions, however, and many are noted in his book.
I know Christian rock music has come a long way since the 80s. You people who listen to Jeremy Camp, Hillsong, Kutless, or Casting Crowns can put down your sticks – there are some good bands involved in the Christian music scene today, BUT they are few and far between. I believe the industry will remain this way until Christian labels and bands alike resolve to place the same amount of value on technical skill and production quality as on message and band image.
Until this happens, Christians bands will stink. But times are a’changing.
Tags: casting crowns, christian music stinks, christian music sucks, christian rock, d.c. talk, dc talk, hillsong, jeremy camp, kutless, petra, stryper, toby mac, why christian music stinks
*slowly putting down my stick*
actually, i wasn’t interested in christian rock music as a teen either,
the first song I remember really liking was Flood by Jars of Clay that was a minor crossover hit and got radio play on our local station.
I really started listening to Mercy Me, Casting Crowns, and Third Day, Mike W. Smith, etc. since I was 24
Jars of Clay was actually okay – I liked them. Average, but definitely not sub-par.
P.O.D. is probably my favorite Christian band, though they don’t like that label. They instead prefer to think of themselves as Christians IN a band, which is great – they’ve been able to take their message mainstream (but without sacrificing technical skill).
We’ve got to go to ‘King of the Hill’ yet again for this one:
Hank: Can’t you see you’re not making Christianity better, you’re just making rock n’ roll worse.
Pastor ‘K’: You people are all the same. You look at us and think we’re freaks. Hey man, even Jesus had long hair.
Hank: That’s because I’m not his father.
LoL!
Harsh!! C’mon Wes there are quite a few christian bands that make up for the lifeless watered down crap christian rock has a reputation for.. Third Day is uh-mazing, definitely one of my fav’s. Check out their stuff! Revelation is a great cd.
http://www.thirdday.com/revelation.htm
Like I said, times are a’changing, but let’s not lie to ourselves – most of it still stinks!
Third Day is alright, but they’re an exception.
*stands*
*applause*
Wes, you hit the nail on the head. I have disliked most all Christian music for some time now, but when I tell people that they look at me like I’m a horrible person and “how could I not loooooove Casting Crowns? Their music is so good!”
*pukes* I admit, I do have some of their music, but that’s like a few songs not entire albums. If I did I would get annoyed since every song sounds the exact same. Sure, that argument can be made for a lot of “secular” (am I the only one who can’t stand that term?) bands, but they at least write their own music, can sing and/or play an instrument(s) well and sing about real life without cliche imagery of lights and fountains and whatever other nonsense.
I hope my fellow commenters don’t throw their stick at me…
Pillar is one band that keeps growing on me for both talent and fun to listen to.
I beg to differ sir…
Thousand Foot Krutch, Disciple, Norma Jean, Derek Webb, Andrew Peterson, Bleach, Blindeside, The Supertones, Relient K, 116 Clique, Lecrae, Justifide, Spoken, Waterdeep, Anberlin, Copeland, Emery, MxPx, Project 86, Underoath, The 7 Method, Zao, Demon Hunter, Pillar, August Burns Red, Five Iron Frenzy, etc etc etc… Are all good bands (just to name a very few)… Maybe you are just looking in the wrong places, like Christian radio…
As someone who has worked in the Christian music industry organizing and producing concerts I assure you that there are loads and loads of excellent bands out there who profess Christ…
Also, I saw striper a while back at an event with a bunch of retired WWF wrestlers, Ron Jeremy and xxxChurch Pastor Craig Gross… Very strange event!
Rogueminister hit it with several of the bands that started to turn my hatred to respect for the genre having some future hope….
…Thousand Foot Krutch, Disciple, Bleach, Blindeside, The Supertones, Relient K, Waterdeep, Underoath & The 7 Method are on my iPod too, bro!
Heck I’ve been listening to MxPx since about the time vinyl turned to CD’s and they keep getting better all the time!
Yeah, several of those he mentioned are pretty good, but try as they might, they don’t make up for years of mediocrity … not yet anyway :p
Things are, however, slowly getting better.
fyi commenters:
relient k, anberlin, copeland, cool hand luke, mae and some others, while Christians are not “Christian bands” just bands with Christian members.
Surprised nobody mentioned Evanescence. Of course, they’re not a “Christian band” either – just a band with Christians in it.
oh yeah….i forgot about them.
Mags, not entirely true. Though, I guess there really is no such thing as a ‘christian’ band any more than there can be a ‘christian’ coat hanger, but the guys from Relient K and Copeland at least use there music specifically with the goal of sharing the gospel and minister to people’s needs. They even often share the gospel message at concerts…
Interesting thought! However, it seems to me that many bands spread only a “version” of the gospel…or as I call it…their gospel. For example, upon attending Kingsfest…many bands “with christians” attended and included casting crowns, jeremy camp, and many others. One thing I noticed was a constant changing of different “gospels.” What I mean is, one band would share its message that speaks of an “experience” given to them which saved them. another, speaks of a prayer which saved them while another spoke of a savior who died and asks for a sinners prayer of devotion. While it is true that they are spreading “a” gospel…I often wonder if any are spreading “the” gospel or are they just confusing people? Not saying this is their intent…just that it seems to happen.
Wes,
I don’t know about the talen pool being anymore shallow in the Christian Music biz as it is in Mainstream Rock biz (although in this catagory, I see some promising signs of turnaround). It seems record companies, in an effort to make money, will turn out anything if it will sell for its ’15 minutes of fame’ regardless of its talent (or lack there of).
I do like the late Rich Mullins, Casting Crowns, and some of Steven Curtis Chapem’s and Michael W. Smith’s music. Lyrically I am not going to argue with any of them because their lyrics speak of a faith we share in common. But stylistically, IMHO most of the Christian music falls into the same catagory as mainstream bands like Chicago, Air Supply, Back Street Boys, Jonas Bros., etc… they call it AOR music in the industry and it is the style that always sends me thumping my index finger on the radio scan button.
I grew up listening to hard rock/heavy metal…the other day I heard on the radio a song I haven’t heard in a while…Motorhead “The Ace of Spades.” Now there’s a song that will get me going. Think Deep Purple “Highway Star”, Aerosmith “Toys in the Atic” Ozzy Osbourne “Crazy Train”, AC/DC “Thunder Struck”, Cinderella “Shake Me”, Metallica “Master of Puppets”, Megadeth “Peace Sells”…
There is a list of songs where the style of the music alone makes me want to crank that volume louder and louder…oh if I could find a Christian band that musically/stylistically played with that sort of frenzy…which Stryper mostly had until they came out with that AOR album called “In God We Trust”.
Just some thoughts.
Rex
P.S., I have seen both Steven Curtis Chapmen and Casting Crowns in two separate concerts and they definitely have the live talent.
One more thing…back in the early college years my roomate and I used to have our alarm wake us to Pantera…talk about a shock to the system when you are half asleep.
Living Sacrifice. Enough said.
Grant – Living Sacrifice eventually became P.O.D. unless that’s a lie someone told me.
And that was a lie someone told me – I found the scoop here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Truby
That kid Adam I mention in the article (who is still my friend) went to church with the Trubys – I remember his younger brother, Chad. Jason was an original member of Living Sacrifice and also a member of P.O.D. for a while.
Yeah, they actually broke up for awhile and the guitarist went on to be the drummer for Evanescence. But now they are back together. They just put out a new album and they are playing at Juanitas here in Little Rock tonight.
Cool. I haven’t been to a show at Juanita’s since I was DJing for Lick 106.3. Great place to see a band!
Wes, you are so right on this.
I had to delete my thoughts before I posted them, I don’t want to come across as attacking people or tastes. It’s fine with me if you prefer to listen to Christian music. That’s your choice.
However, please don’t tell me that I need to. Don’t tell me that I just need to hear YOUR band or this ONE song and then I’ll like it. I won’t. Trust me. And if it’s ok for you to listen to Christian music (despite its flaws), then it should be ok for me to listen to my music. That’s my choice.
I always laugh when my friends would listen to Air-1 Christian radio and talk about people who became Christians because of the music that was there. I just can’t see a non-Christian listening to a lot of that rubbish. It might happen I suppose, The Spirit surprises me a lot. He is amazing like that.
I always cringe when the commercial for “Songs for Worship” album put out by Time Life comes on. Here we have all these cheesy music and everyone looks as if they are brainwashed. What must that look like to non-believers? If I were a non-believer, I wouldn’t want to be part of that. In fact, I am a believer and I don’t want to be part of something that seems to have very little depth.