How good is bad?
What should we look for in music? Perhaps more to the point, what should we avoid in music? If we accept that music is an artform, in it's ideal form it has meaning as well as entertainment value. Both the music itself (the sound, rhythm, beat, harmony, etc.) and the lyrics can be full of emotion, shared expression and, ultimately, hope or happiness. I say hope or happiness not in the way that one might first expect. Let me explain...
I almost never listen to explicitly Christian rock. The majority of it is simply not good music, but that is certainly no different from secular music. The difference, I believe, is that the message of most Christian rock is always the same, always completely blunt and obvious and so rarely contains what I consider beauty. Simply because someone uses the words "Jesus," "Lord," "Hallelujiah," or "Praise" in a song does not mean that I must be moved in my soul. Such as thing is, I believe, a misuse of the sacred name of God. The Lord's name matters... really matters. It is not something to be used as a chant in a song to get me "up."
On the other side, I often feel or have felt pain, heartbreak, loss, anger, sadness, rage and a host of other "negative" emotions. Where is the "Christian" music that explores this aspect of life? Not everything is sunshine and roses, but so often music tries to be auto-inspirational. It's not for me. If I am in pain, I will explore pain through music that I love. I will never run from my negative emotions, but embrace them, learn from them and ultimately move past them. How desperately I need music that does the same.
(continued tomorrow)
I almost never listen to explicitly Christian rock. The majority of it is simply not good music, but that is certainly no different from secular music. The difference, I believe, is that the message of most Christian rock is always the same, always completely blunt and obvious and so rarely contains what I consider beauty. Simply because someone uses the words "Jesus," "Lord," "Hallelujiah," or "Praise" in a song does not mean that I must be moved in my soul. Such as thing is, I believe, a misuse of the sacred name of God. The Lord's name matters... really matters. It is not something to be used as a chant in a song to get me "up."
On the other side, I often feel or have felt pain, heartbreak, loss, anger, sadness, rage and a host of other "negative" emotions. Where is the "Christian" music that explores this aspect of life? Not everything is sunshine and roses, but so often music tries to be auto-inspirational. It's not for me. If I am in pain, I will explore pain through music that I love. I will never run from my negative emotions, but embrace them, learn from them and ultimately move past them. How desperately I need music that does the same.
(continued tomorrow)