Music: Crossing Over Since ‘99
The 71s
U2 put out a new album this past week, which is my excuse for no new blogs. It is a weak excuse, I admit, but I have to cling to something. I will say that I did spend some good time with friends this week, and saw some great music on Saturday courtesy of The 71s (a rocktastic Houston band). I thought about doing some “live blogging” during the show, but I decided to just enjoy it instead, and not be the weird guy at the back buried in his iPhone.
While we are on the subject of music, I should mention that the members of The 71s are Christians, though they do not necessarily claim to be a “Christian band”. Again, we get back to those old labels. What does this mean? Well, they play shows at music venues, like Fitzgerald’s in Houston, and they play churches. Their music is spiritual, but it is not what you would expect “church music” to sound like. They do not preach from the stage … at least not at the concert I went to.
I can’t officially comment on The 71s stance on this issue, because I haven’t officially asked them about it. But I bring it up because a) they’re good, and b) I would hate for someone to make a judgement on them based on the fact that they are four Christian guys in a rock band.
Why would anyone do that?
It’s a hard life for the Christian rocker, because Christian rockers face a particular type of challenge. When I say that they are judged because they are four Christian guys in a rock band, I am alluding to the fact that Christian musicians often get it from both barrels. The non-Christian crowd assumes their music is bad, they’re preachy, and they shouldn’t be in a club. The Christian crowd doesn’t care if they’re bad, they want them to preach, and they shouldn’t be in a club. The Christian guys in the rock band wants to be good, they don’t necessarily feel the need to preach from every stage, and they want to play their music wherever they can … including clubs.
I remember when P.O.D. crossed over. They were the first rock band to have the number one video on MTV’s TRL in the quality-free age of teen pop. Finally a “Christian” act was getting some love from the secular media … and they were singled out and vilified by the Christian media. There were those in the secular crowd who could never get over the fact that they were Christian, and plenty more in the Christian bubble who tossed them out because they dared to bring their amazing talents to MTV.
It is a hard-knock life for the Christians-in-a-band rockers, but their willingness to stick it to the man via the Christian-bubble while at the same time kind of stickin’ it to the man via the secular arena, by daring to claim the name of Christ in an industry that doesn’t necessarily look to him for guidance, is pretty hard-core. According to Jack Black, stickin’ it to the man is what it is all about.
In that spirit, I now give you my Top 5 all-time favorite Christians-in-a-band, crossover, etc. musical groups. Enjoy.
5. Jars of Clay
You got to give love to the trailblazers. Their song “Flood” was a hit in both the secular and Christian markets, and they were one of the first Christian “rock” bands to do this, though I am not sure I ever agreed with their neo-acoustic sound being considered “rock”. Though they didn’t really stay in the secular eye for long after “Flood”, they have continued to make great music, embracing a more mellow, folksy sound a la Wilco. I am not sure whether or not they still consider themselves to be a “Christian band”, but the excellence of their work honors God in both its thoughtful lyrics and splendid songwriting.
4. Sixpence None the Richer
Who can forget “Kiss Me“, the most romantically sweet song ever to come out of Nashville. Sixpence None the Richer had been around awhile before their 1999 hit made them a household name. They produced some of Christianity’s earliest alt-rock; their album This Beautiful Mess has some crazy tracks on it. But they are known for a song about kissing. Not only was it a success in the charts, but it was featured in the teen comedy She’s All That and used during one of the royal weddings (sorry, I forgot which one … I don’t know my European monarchs). The secular world may consider them to be a one-hit-wonder, but what a hit it was! Just ask everyone who was lucky enough to go to prom in 1999.
3. Switchfoot
The Beautiful Letdown, Switchfoot’s fourth album, was their first cross-over success, amazingly going double-platinum. It produced two top-20 songs, “Meant to Live“, and “Dare You to Move“. While their next two albums have not had near that level of success, they continue to record and tour. Jon Foreman recently started a side-project with Nickel Creek guitarist Sean Watkins called Fiction Family, an amazing work of folk/pop that takes these guys to a new place musically.
2. P.O.D.
The aforementioned P.O.D. … They took it to a whole new level with Satellite, both in terms of their success and in terms of their artistry. It was a special album that was given well-deserved respect in the secular media. I don’t care what James Dobson says, we owe them our allegiance.
1. Mute Math
You may not have heard of Mute Math, or you might be sick of all the attention they get, since it has been a few years since their amazing first full-length album. I made them number one because a) they blow me away, and b) they have an amazing story. Here’s a band that signed a record deal, only to discover that they were being packaged in the “Christian/Country” genre. They wanted to be “Christians in a band” and not a product sold to Southern soccer moms, so they went through the legal hassle of getting their good name back, self-distributing their album, and taking on an insane tour schedule with one of the most energetic and entertaining live shows ever brought to your local club. They have been featured on television, at big festivals, and on major tours, and their shows sell out venues that are typically only sold out by much “bigger” bands. Their legion of fans is truly a cross-over mix of both “Christian” and secular. We’ll see if their next album can generate as much buzz. Given their talent and passion for performing, I have no doubt they can.
