Christianity: Details about 'Christian Rock'
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Christian rock is a form of rock music played by bands where the musicians are openly Christian. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies between bands. In the 1970s, Larry Norman was a popular Christian rock musician who challenged a view held by some conservative Christians (predominantly fundamentalists) that rock music was anti-Christian. One of his songs, "Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?", summarized his attitude and his quest to pioneer Christian rock music. Such attitudes toward new types of music have been found in many periods of history.
"Christian rock" band definitionsThere are multiple definitions of what qualifies as a "Christian Rock" band. Christian rock bands that explicitly state their beliefs and use Christian imagery in their lyrics tend to be considered a part of the contemporary Christian music (CCM) industry and play for a predominantly Christian market. Other bands perform music influenced by their faith but see their audience as the general public. They may generally avoid specific mention of God or Jesus. Such bands are sometimes rejected by the CCM rock scene and may specifically reject the CCM label. Possibly the very first documented appearance of a Christian Rock band is Mind Garage in 1967, whose Electric Liturgy, finally recorded on RCA in 1970, gives them credibility as a cornerstone in the creation of the Christian Rock genre. Some bands such as U2, Letterkills, Anberlin, Project 86, Lifehouse, 12 Stones, Creed, King's X, Thrice, Evanescence, Blessid Union of Souls, One Step Back and MxPx don't claim to be "Christian bands", but include members who openly profess to be Christians and feature Christian thought, imagery, scripture or other influences in their music. There is a tendency among some Christian rock music fans to label rock music bands as Christian where their lyrics are seen as consistent with the fans' understanding of Christian belief, but this is generally not accepted by the contemporary Christian music industry. Related genres are Christian alternative music, Christian metal and Christian punk. Critiques of Christian rockSome critics of Christian rock complain that Christian music trends are clichéd derivative of rock music and pop music in that they copy these styles and trends without creating original sounds of their own. The critics' stereotype of Christian rock is a censored or plagiarised version of whatever is popular on the radio . Others respond that all music is in some way derived from previous works, as the concepts inspired by work, and not the work itself is within the public domain. For instance, U2's lead singer Bono has said, "Every poet is a thief." Another common response is that Christian music is the only major genre to be grouped by its content rather than its style- for example, on the online music store iTunes, Christian performers as diverse as worship artists like Steven Curtis Chapman, hip-hop groups such as Grits, pop-rockers such as Superchick and hardcore groups such as Project 86 are all grouped under the 'Inspirational' section of the store, despite the diversity of their sounds. Many of those critiques are also levied against indie music. Another critique of Christian Rock is that some critics also feel that in reaching out to the main stream listeners, Christian Rock waters down the Christian message and content into amorphous love songs. Amy Grant, for example, received criticism for her song, "Baby, Baby" because it wasn't clear whether she was singing to God or to a good looking man in the music video. Steve Camp, Christian music critic, complains that Christian music has become "yodels of a Christ-less, watered-down, pabulum-based, positive alternative, aura-fluff, cream of wheat, mush-kind-of-syrupy, God-as-my-girlfriend kind of thing." . Others respond that expressions of unconditional love reminiscent of romantic love are consistent with God's agape love and the tradition of the biblical book, Song of Solomon. Christian rock festivalsThere are many held worldwide every year, including the Cornerstone Festival, Ichthus, Spirit West Coast, Parachute and Shout Fest. They range from single day events to four day festivals that provide camping and other activities. Christian rock can also be heard at other Christian festivals that are not exclusive to rock, such as the Creation Festival. Musicians and bandsThese are alphabetically sorted by first name. Note: Gospel, hip hop, and rap artists do not belong on this list. However, most others are acceptable. #
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