Does Anyone Miss Worship Music?

[Jay Ketcherside]

Although "CCM" was quite popular when I was growing up, I was pretty much a traditionalist ... preferring worship music one would hear in church over something some pseudo rock back would put out with Jesus lyrics. For a while, I wanted to be a music minister ... but then, puberty struck, and I turned into a homo.

 

Kinda put a block on those plans! LOL

[Guest Babylonian Dream]

I've listened to some because I was a baptist fundamentalist, and I was told that nonchristian rock was the devil's, even though the only music they have that sounds half way decent is rock (which they took the style from the asatru pagans and others who've embraced the metal genre of music).

 

I miss worship music like I miss "christian side hug", the worst rap song ever

[Vomit Comet]

though the only music they have that sounds half way decent is rock (which they took the style from the asatru pagans and others who've embraced the metal genre of music).

 

You mean like Extol? They were actually pretty good, and were touring with Opeth for a bit. I guess the Swedes are a bit more open-minded than the Norweigans would be.

[★ Citsonga ★]

Opeth

 

Great band!

[SilentLoner]

Yes, I'll admit it. Blech.

[Guest Babylonian Dream]

You mean like Extol? They were actually pretty good, and were touring with Opeth for a bit. I guess the Swedes are a bit more open-minded than the Norweigans would be.

I dont remember any of the names. I was 15/16 the last time I was christian. I've been out so long I almost forgot what the fear of hell was like. Now I can just imagine it. 5 years has made a difference on me.

[Abmin9]

I should change my username to Min7Flat5 - one of my personal favorites (esp. as "ii" in a ii-V-I progression).

 

Stevo, Absolutely!! Especially when the fourth of that ii chord is in the melody!!! Like in Lush Life on the second part of "-ness" of the words "temp me to madness." Ahhhh....

 

I like the Abmin9 in 'Round Midnight. B-7 E-7 Bb-7 Eb-7 Abmin9

 

At this point, I'd like to apologize to those I've lost!

[decafaholic]

Funny you should bring this up. Today, I joined SwapACD.com so I could send my Christian CD's to a good home now that I no longer use them. Some were easy to let go of. If I never hear Casting Crowns again, it will be too soon. I refer to Casting Crowns as "music for depressed Christians. Their songs are just so..."In the darkest night of my life I am failing and flailing around in a dark, stormy sea with no way out and I cry out to God to have mercy on me" desperate stuff. But I couldn't part with Kutless just yet. Too much emotional attachment.

 

I think most modern worship music is CRAP-ola. I heard of a Christian music drinking game where you do a shot every time you hear "your name". You could also probably get pretty blitzed doing a shot for every time you hear "the nations".

 

I miss being in crowds who are really into the music, screaming along every word. Most of the time in the assemblies of god, the music was carefully planned to produce the maximum emotional effect. When I visited my friends' baptist churches and we sang out of the hymnbook, I thought "How can you people live like this??"

 

I'm learning that it's ok to let myself be moved by music again. I'm really into Alicia Keys right now.

[StevoMuso]

Stevo, Absolutely!! Especially when the fourth of that ii chord is in the melody!!! Like in Lush Life on the second part of "-ness" of the words "temp me to madness." Ahhhh....

 

I like the Abmin9 in 'Round Midnight. B-7 E-7 Bb-7 Eb-7 Abmin9

Dude ... you speak my language. I even have a band called 'Round Midnight - small dinner band for those laid-back jazz gigs. Love the song too and find the chord-change surprises refreshingly different (like why go from E-7 to Bb-7 ... sounds weird until you put the Abmin9 in, then it makes sense).

 

I think this is why we still enjoy some of the sacred choral music. We have moved away from the church coz the message is all a trumped-up lie, but some of the music ... aaaah ... to simply listen to the way the chords change and how the music builds tension and releases it, and how the chord textures change constantly ... it's really moving and beautiful.

[Guest Valkyrie0010]

I never hate a real love or hate for worship music when I was a believer.

 

Now it sounds like nails on chalkboards to me, but anyway.

[Neon Genesis]

Funny you should bring this up. Today, I joined SwapACD.com so I could send my Christian CD's to a good home now that I no longer use them. Some were easy to let go of. If I never hear Casting Crowns again, it will be too soon. I refer to Casting Crowns as "music for depressed Christians. Their songs are just so..."In the darkest night of my life I am failing and flailing around in a dark, stormy sea with no way out and I cry out to God to have mercy on me" desperate stuff.

I can't stand Casting Crowns. Their lyrics are too pro-fundamentalist, pro-theocracy yet the music is catchy and so they get stuck in my head. But I can't stand that one Casting Crowns song where they're whining about how America is murdering unborn children, kids can't pray in schools no more, and how if only people would listen to Jesus instead of Oprah, all their marriage problems would be solved because obviously Oprah is the only source of why people have divorces.

[Dagaz]

Christian music seemed bland and insipid to me even when I WAS a Christian. I don't miss it at all-- it just seems to get lodged into my brain distressingly often, so then I have to go and crank up Therion or Tyr or something to exorcise it.

[relentless]

Oh golly. I've always disliked Christian music...it's so rare to find anything unique in contemporary music of that genre. It's boring; there isn't much variety, and there isn't much to choose from. Jimmy Needham was cool to me when he debuted, because his music was different. He got annoying because his lyrics were unoriginal.

It seems like every other band pretty much does this: start off with an edgy-sounding first verse, then a transitional, but still relatively edgy-sounding bridge, then to (what I like to refer to as) a 'victorious' chorus that clashes completely with the rest of the tone of the song by introducing a completely new melody entirely (case in point-Starfield, 'From the Corners of the Earth'). I remember when this concept of music was actually first making its way onto the Christian music scene. I was like, 'yes, finally! Some badass Christian bands!' But...no. Just no.

 

Oooh, and I liked Red for a while, though I drifted from them for the same reasons I drifted from Jimmy Needham. Aside from the fact that they were nothing new...the lyrics just sounded stupid. They were so simple. Nothing deep or meaningful, and they tried to give off the appearance of being profound, but ended up being a big fat fail.

 

 

I enjoy Underoath from time to time, but I've always really loved electronic music and trance, even while I was in the faith. Because trance is mostly instrumental and isn't really a popular subgenre, it was only marginally less than impossible to acquire, especially if I needed something with 'Christian' overtones. Mostly I'm just enjoying the freedom to listen to whatever the hell I want without feeling guilty about it. Now I don't have to yell at my boyfriend anymore for playing Whitechapel in the car! Hooray for atheism!

[Xerces]

Believe me when I say Gospel and other "Xtian" music pales in comparison to other music. About the only band that I like that is supposedly xtian is that one band called flyleaf, especially the song "I'm so Sick"

[Michael]

I do not miss worship music. I can not sing most of the lyrics, because they are so trivial.

But I am still listening to the Kevin Prosch project "Black peppercorns"(Tumbling ground). It is one of the best albums I have ever heard. I also still like the album "circle slide" from "the choir".

[Darklady]

no never always disliked christian music -

[Freedom from Guilt]

I REALLY hate contemporary christian music. Now for years, I LOVED worship music but I differentiatied that from ccm. Today ccm is basically worship music. A few years ago, I came to the realization that worship music was "manufacturing" god's spirit and that REALLY ticked me off. I could see the emotional strings the songs were pulling and I was no longer able to "worship" like I was before. I especially hate Chris Tomlin songs. They always have that big build up, like an orgasim, and everyone acts like they are the most annointed, awesome songs EVER. Blech. I can't listen to it anymore. It makes me feel raped.

 

freedom

[MagickMonkey]

I've filled that void with Metallica, Disturbed, Black Sabbath, Zeppelin, etc.... BTW, As much as I like a lot of heavy metal, christian heavey metal baffles me. I don't understand how christians can use HM music to express love for god and all that. I guess the meme must evolve to survive.

[★ Citsonga ★]

As much as I like a lot of heavy metal, christian heavey metal baffles me. I don't understand how christians can use HM music to express love for god and all that. I guess the meme must evolve to survive.

 

That perspective baffles me. Music is just music, plain and simple. If someone believes christianity and wants to express it through music and just happens to prefer heavy metal, what's the issue? I played in a couple christian metal / hard rock bands when I was a believer, and I listened to a lot of christian metal / hard rock. It's just music.

 

Granted, the religious lyrics now annoy me, but when I believed religion it seemed natural.

[Deva]

To answer the question on the thread -- not at all - not one itsy bitsy bit.

 

However, I do miss some of the old hymns I was raised with. Every few years I pass a Baptist Church and think about dropping in just for the singing. Then I always think better of it.

[Phanta]

I've always enjoyed the old hymns. I never got into the contemporary stuff, though my friends were into DC Talk and Michael W. Smith. I was into Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, and Elton John. (I was a weird kid).

 

Have any of you folks who still like gospel-style music style heard of Diane Birch? I got her debut album, "Bible Belt", a few months ago and adore it. Gospel is just one of the many influences. She herself has a gothy edge to her. From her bio:

 

Birch was born in Michigan, but at a very young age she moved to Zimbabwe with her South African-born parents. Her dad was a conservative pastor who moved his family from continent to continent. So the young Birch migrated with her folks from Zimbabwe to South Africa to Australia, following her father’s mission.

 

Compared to the average American teenager, Birch was truly exotic, both in terms of where she had resided and in how she had lived – within the confines of a strict religious community that had little interaction with its secular neighbors. She had to be resilient and adaptable, which at times meant seeking refuge in a rich fantasy life, imagining herself as someone living in say, the eighteenth century, conjuring up imaginary friends/muses like Valentino, the subject of one of her songs, an Amadeus like-figure, somewhat more dashing in proportion than the real Mozart. Until she arrived in the States, she’d had scant exposure to the radio or television and little knowledge of popular culture; she’d only listened to classical music, opera and, of course, church hymns.

 

Birch initially cycled through a serious Goth phase, perfect for an “old soul” trying to define itself. She embraced Goth both musically and sartorially, as musical inspiration and teenage rebellion - listening to the Sisters of Mercy, Joy Division, the Cure, even Christian Death; arriving at her father’s church in a floor-length black cape and waiting until the rest of the congregation was seated before swanning up the aisle.

 

Great image, that.

 

This is quintessential Birch:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kJCioYV1Dw&feature=channel

 

There are a fair number of religious references, most (but not all) irreverent/rebellious. Some songs totally avoid the language/style.

 

A favorite of mine:

 

 

This one seems religious due to the language, but then it might be about leaving religion, as it's definitely referencing a break-up. In any case, I love it.

 

Phanta

[MagickMonkey]

MagickMonkey, on 12 August 2010 - 08:37 AM, said:

 

As much as I like a lot of heavy metal, christian heavey metal baffles me. I don't understand how christians can use HM music to express love for god and all that. I guess the meme must evolve to survive.

 

That perspective baffles me. Music is just music, plain and simple. If someone believes christianity and wants to express it through music and just happens to prefer heavy metal, what's the issue? I played in a couple christian metal / hard rock bands when I was a believer, and I listened to a lot of christian metal / hard rock. It's just music.

 

Granted, the religious lyrics now annoy me, but when I believed religion it seemed natural.

 

I guess what baffles me about christian hm is that hm is a way to express anger, sadness, rage, etc. God's message, according to the ones inventing god's message, is supposedly about piece, love, hope,etc. I have a feeling that christian hm is an attempt for c hm musicians to reconcile thinking hm rocks and at the same time being christian rather than trying to truly express their christian experience through hm music. In my head, the two just do not match up. But maybe I just do not get it. Maybe if I looked into it more, I'd have an epiphany and it would all make sense. I doubt it, but maybe. I guess it doesn't really matter, though, because any worship of god ultimately makes no sense regardless of the flavor of the worship. BTW, there was a christian hm song I enjoyed, lyrics aside. The name of the song is "hunger". I don't know the band name, but the song is often erroneously credited to Metallica. I think the band was from Oklahoma.

[MagickMonkey]

I forgot to mention that I sometimes listen to bluegrass and thoroughly enjoy it despite it being pervasively contaminated with christian mythology.

[StriveForTolerance]

I was just about to start a thread like this, but I searched first to see if someone already had, and found this one!

 

In answer to the question, absolutely. I miss being able to totally let go around other people (even though half of it was probably acting on my part). When I went to youth group after my deconversion, the "worship" time was the hardest time for me. It was ingrained in my mind that I was supposed to be raising my hands and jumping around (I went for two years+ to a Pentacostal youth group).

 

As for "Xtian rock", I always despised it, and even when I was Christian I refused to listen to the Christian radio stations that played that sort of drivel. I listened to three Christian bands regularly: Jars of Clay, Casting Crowns, and U2. That to me is the extent of decent Xtain music. I tried writing a christian song, and realized how difficult it is to say anything about religion that hasn't already been said (over and over and OVER AGAIN). Despite that, I think I did moderately well in avoiding the clichés that abound in Xtian music. Hmm. I should post that song here sometime....

[nightcomeson]

I think I originally got into CCM because 1) I wanted to immerse myself as much in Christian culture as possible from the time I converted at 16, and 2) I had no taste in music at all. Avalon, Caedmon's Call, Rich Mullins, Jars of Clay, Steven Curtis Chapman, Michael W. Smith, whatever bands provided the basis for the songs we sang in youth group...I think I still have those albums laying around somewhere here.

 

These days, the only Christian bands I can listen to are Jars of Clay (specifically the doubt-filled pieces on The Eleventh Hour) and Pedro the Lion. Even Sufjan Stevens cloys too much to enjoy.

 

And I admit it gave me a little bit of joy when I found out that David Bazan deconverted a few years back. I'd recommend Curse Your Branches to anyone still working through their loss of faith in an instant.