The Other Problem with Christian Music (That No One Will Talk About)

You've probably read articles about what's wrong with Christian music. In one popular post, Michael Gungor explained why music on Christian radio stations seems so corny. In another, Switchfoot pointed out that C.S. Lewis didn't talk about Jesus in his fiction, reminding us that not every piece of Christian expression needed to be a Sunday School lesson.

These articles are spot on, but they miss out on one important point: Christian music, in its current state, is popular. Very popular. No matter how repetitive, dull, and unimaginative it is, a lot of people want to hear it because they actually like it.

If you ask me, every song on Christian radio sounds the same. The guitars all use identical, "safe" overdrive settings while playing a I-V-VI-IV chord progression. The drums and bass are always doing the same 4/4, quarter note pulse, devoid of syncopation. The vocals are loud and overbearing, as if every syllable needs to be a tidal wave of feelings.

And it works. These sorts of Christian bands sell millions of albums, and their fans can't understand why someone like me wants to hear anything different. How is this happening? It doesn't have anything to do with the church - the problems with Christian music are just an outcropping of the poor state of the music industry.

I watched five minutes of one of those "sing-off" TV shows. (I can't stand them.) The singers were obnoxiously loud, and the songs couldn't have been more derivative. Sadly, it was exactly the sort of over-produced, "Radio Disney" style of pop music that I hear from the top Christian groups. (And I turned it off just as quickly.) When given a choice, this cheesy music is what most consumers will want to purchase, rather than listening to someone like Willie Nelson or Carol King. Music lovers are, and have always been, a minority group with a small impact on record sales.

In mainstream music, I hear great bands that never have the success of boring, pop groups. As a music lover, this frustrates me to no end, but it's always been this way. The cast of Glee has had more hits than the Beatles, for example, because corny music always outsells the good stuff. In the Christian music industry we see the same thing, but since the playing field is smaller there's even less of a chance that you'll ever hear interesting music on those religious stations.

The people have spoken, and they want terrible music.

(Sorry, it's not nice to leave you with such a depressing blog entry on a cold, Monday morning. Here's a cat trying to play the drums to cheer you up.)

The Surfing Violinist and His Interesting Travels

A friend of mine who works in video production in India asked me to take at some work from The Surfing Violinist. I normally hate watching videos online (why can't everything be a 3-second .gif about cats falling down?) but I checked it out, and I'm glad I did.

These videos tell the story of a family moving to India and dealing with a fascinating and different culture. The humorous, fast-paced storytelling appealed to my easily bored, adolescent mind, and the other stuff appealed to the side of me that watches documentaries. I'll try and post more videos since there are many of them and a new one is made each week, but you can subscribe to them on your own, here.

Enjoy.




If you have an attention span like mine, then watch this while it loads:

New Year's Resolutions... Maybe there's something to them after all.

Lots of folks think there's nothing special about making resolutions on a specific day of the year. There is some evidence, however, that suggests there just might be something to aligning our new commitments with the calendar; that rhythms and, dare I say, liturgies, are a part of the way we work. Check out this short dry-erase video that talks a bit about why. (Aren't dry-erase vids the funnest?)

Did you make resolutions this year? What have you resolved to do differently in 2014?

10 New Year's Resolutions for Churches Everywhere

If I had one wish that I could wish this holiday season, it would be for all the churches of the world to join hands and sing together in the spirit of harmony and peace, and that they would take these ten resolutions to heart:

1 - I will not confuse furthering my political agenda with preaching the Gospel.

2 - When someone's opinion angers me, I will calm down and buy them a coffee instead of arguing with them. I will listen to their point of view and kindly consider it, rather than treating them as an enemy.

3 - I will create a positive impact on my community, rather than being known as a sanctimonious isolationist.

4 - If someone is confused about God, I will allow them to search for answers rather than insisting that they believe blindly everything that I tell them is true. (In other words, I will minister like Jesus, and not like David Koresh.)

5 - I will allow the church to be a place of beauty by encouraging works of art and new music so that people will understand the power of redemption just by being there.

6 - People who visit my church are as messed up as I have been in my life, and I will treat them with sympathy rather than forcing them to live up to my expectations.

7 - I will create a place where everyone in my community can feel safe and accepted, even if they do not believe as I do.

8 - I will do as much charity work as I can and be as kind to others as possible so that even my strongest critics will be forced to admit that I am a force for good.

9 - Tradition will not be valued over truth. (Honestly, I really wish that more churches still used organs, but I don't complain about it. Much.)


10 - I will err on the side of love, and will not pride myself on how well I push away those people who make me uncomfortable.