Confessions of a Christian-rock Band Fan
Don't you hate it when you really like a band and then find out they're a CHRISTIAN ROCK band?
And don't you REALLY hate it when you STILL like their music?
And the kicker? When they stop getting played on the radio, and you STILL like their music. Years later.
Okay, I'll admit it. Hi, my name is Mikaela, and I like Collective Soul. Jesus Christ. They couldn't even come up with a half-way decent name.
I've been rocking out for the past 2 weeks on their latest (now you know what I consider "recent music") album. I can't listen to them very often, because I have to listen covertly. When I'm dating anyone, they get buried under the stacks of "cool" music that's socially acceptable.When I'm single, out they come, all dusty and in love with the lord.
Thank god, their lyrics are actually poetic, so I can just pretend they mean something other than what I'm sure they're intended to mean.
I have all their albums, and I like them all. They really do have range, within a heavy-metal, metal-ballad, Grunge-era genre. That's saying a lot, right? Saying something, anyway.
So now you know. I love a lord-loving band.
Amen.
posted by mjae @ 2:10 PM
4 Comments:
[insert Nelson Muntz "HA HA" here]
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I only recall Collective Soul's radio hit some ten or so years ago, but I've often read they're an outstanding live band.
I once had some friends (story of my life, ha!) who were Christians and had a semi-impressive band themselves. They claimed Corrosion of Conformity was a Christian band - a claim that still seems murky, at best. All I know is COC rocks very hard with a killer groove. One of my few metal faves.
Sam Phillips, whose avant pop gives me chills, is another favorite. Her songs have a distinct spiritual flavor, and long ago she was a rising star in the Christian music scene (and went by "Leslie Phillips") before fleeing with her sanity intact. She doesn't talk about it much, but hers is a fascinating story. She is now a powerful songwriter and as she was maturing artistically, the Christian music industry couldn't tolerate the hard questions she asked and the issues she confronted in her music. Typical. I still get goosebumps when I hear her sing the line...
Our ideas
of perfect
are so imperfect
Sam Phillips has long been married to musician and producer extraordinaire, T-Bone Burnett, himself a Christian with some impressive solo work to his credit.
Wow, I had no idea that Collective Soul was a CHRISTIAN band! What??? I just bought one of their CDs that I used to have on tape in the used bin at Natural Sounds. So now I realize that less than a month ago, I too supported a Christian rock band with my purchase! What is the world coming to? Next you'll find me at the Baptist bake sale or something. Yikes.
I totally hear you on the "single" music, though. Why is it that music can be so much more important in our lives when we're not in a relationship?
yeah, i didn't know they were christian either. but i didn't know them at all until i started living with single mikaela. forget the cool music mikaela - always go with what you truly love when it comes to music.
hey arvin -- isn't it weird when you realize you're friends with bona fide practising christians?
Sure is, marjorie.
To their credit, my old friends looked like freaks and rejected the long whip of the Religious Right, though they were still very much conservative in their own way. They were raised abroad by missionary parents and I don't think they ever allowed themselves the freedom to experience life through a different lens because it would've meant being completely estranged from their only family. Because of their curiosity, talent and intelligence, this was something I found very sad.
What they were good at, however, was listening and considering - to a point - others' points of view. Their tolerance was very much the opposite of what we all too often see from contemporary evangelicals.
But to end this post on a positive note, at least I turned Mary into a fan of the great P.J. Harvey. I guess I have an evangelical side, too.
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