An Informal Indictment on Christian Bands and Bands That Happen To Be Christian

So there I was at Hammerstein Ballroom, seeing Switchfoot live for the 2nd time (the first being at Creation Fest in PA). I was a big fan back when I first heard “New Way To Be Human” and had “Learning To Breathe” on repeat. But I started losing interest when they were all up on “A Walk To Remember”- maybe it was their proximity to Mandy Moore. Anyway, I was standing there enjoying the music, thinking that they sound amazing live, and patiently waited to see if they would talk about Jesus, or even utter the name of “God”. After all, they are a “Christian Band” as opposed to a “band that happens to be Christian” (more on that distinction later). Jon Foreman has never been one to be shy or abstract about his faith in his lyrics, even making direct references in their major label debut. But the real test I have for Christian artists is their willingness to unabashedly share their faith, especially in a secular context where even mentioning “God” or “Christ” is inescapably groan-inducing. But alas, Christ has called us to be bold, especially in the face of persecution. So I waited for them to say something, anything, on stage. They were an hour into their set. Still nothing. Last song before they walked off. Oh, well they’re gonna come back for an encore, maybe then. They came back. They played two more. Still nothing. “Goodnight everybody! Thanks for coming out!” They walked off. House lights. Nothing.
Needless to say, I was disappointed. Not that I hold these guys to some self-righteous standard or anything but I was let down mainly for two reasons: 1. I have been completely changed and saved by the love of Christ and I know that they’ve been completely changed and saved by the love of Christ, and 2. The stage is the most powerful outlet to share something, especially a message, to a broad audience. And I know, for a fact, that there were hundreds of people in there, probably more, (Hammerstein Ballroom holds about 3900 and the show was sold out) that needed to hear the gospel and would even be receptive to it. But they said absolutely nothing. They barely said hi, let alone any in-between-songs banter.

Switchfoot, before they became mainstream via a leukemic Mandy Moore, was openly Christian and belonged exclusively to the CCM (Contemporary Christian Music) Market. They toured churches, played all the Christian festivals, and even thanked “Jesus Christ” in their liner notes. It wasn’t until they broke through that mid-west Christian bubble and became a major label act that this Christianity of theirs somehow transmogrified into a “positive outlook”. No longer were they a couple of Bible-thumpers that happened to also play music- they were now a rock band that happened to be Christian.
You see, a Christian band is a band that openly declares their beliefs and is even willing to be identified by those beliefs. Now, on the flipside, there are the bands that just happen to have members in it that are Christians. These are bands that vehemently abhor the “Christian” or “CCM” label and want to distinguish themselves as far as possible from said labels. Because really, come on bro, Christian bands are totally lame with their cross necklaces and WWJD bracelets. That’s not Rock-n-Roll! But woah woah, we don’t drink, we don’t smoke, because we happen to be Christians! Their single most important mantra is “we’re not trying to shove our beliefs down anyone’s throat.” And as a result, they decide not to share the gospel at all, no matter how many indirect references they make to God in their songs- “I only want you”, “You are my everything”, which are, at the end of the day, far too ambiguous and can easily be read as a romantic love song to another person rather than an Almighty Deity (a point which South Park so astutely made). No matter how much they love God or follow Jesus, they don’t want to alienate any of their listeners and want them to enjoy their music, despite their religious inclinations. “We want Jews and Muslims to love our music just as much as the Jesus Freaks do!” And so, you’ll often find in magazine or website interviews, that when the question of religion comes up, an almost belligerent response will appear, seemingly defensive and offended, like the interviewer just accused the band of being anti-Semitic. “Dude, that’s just the religion that happens to be my choice. I’m not against Buddhism or even atheism. I respect that. I respect all beliefs. Whatever you believe is cool with me. You do you. I just happen to read the Bible and believe in those maxims, so that’s what I write about in my songs. I’m not trying to shove my beliefs down anyone’s throat.”

So there I was at Roseland Ballroom, seeing Thrice for the 2nd time in concert (the first being at Bamboozle in NJ). Here’s a band whose songs have some explicit references to the Bible and the writings of C. S. Lewis (“don’t store your treasures up with moth and rust, where thieves break in and steal” - Dust of Nations) but they never really identified themselves with Christian music or even Christianity; only two of the four members happen to be Christians. So I didn’t expect any fire and brimstone preaching from the stage, just a good ol’ fashioned rock show. And that’s what they delivered.

But I couldn’t help but wonder how powerful it would be if at least Dustin Kensrue, the main songwriter who pens all the lyrics, mentioned the name of Christ from that position of influence and how offering His hope could at least become salvation for at least one of their listeners, which would be a monumental victory in its own right. I remember reading an interview with Dustin, where he was asked about his religious beliefs, and how, rather than discussing the living faith, hope, and love that was in his life, he just kept downplaying a heavy-handed proclivity to force others to believe it and, there it was again, he wasn’t trying to “shove his beliefs down anyone’s throat”. In fact, I even got to see the members of Thrice after their show, because I signed up for their fan club and got a free pass for a meet & greet (total groupie, I know). And though I was a bit tongue-tied (I’m not very good with meeting famous people), I did distinctly mention more than a few times how I was thankful to GOD for using them and how it must be awesome for GOD to BLESS their creativity. And even face to face, with no one else listening, and just me, revealing so blatantly just how Christian I was, all they responded with were a couple of curt “cool”s and “I see”s. They didn’t even smile. And yeah, it could’ve been that they were tired from a long show and even longer tour and yeah, I could’ve come across as way too fanboyish, but for a band that sings about “The Abolition of Man” (actual song title, lifted right off a C. S. Lewis book), they seemed more put off than turned on by God.

All I’m saying is this: if you are someone saved by Christ and are, in eternal gratitude, indebted to Him for saving you, and on top of that, are given a platform or position of influence for many to hear your voice, then why would you intentionally hide the most important factor in your life? And you know what, it’s granted that there is this dreadful backlash to right-winged fanatical Christian fundamentalism that bombs abortion clinics and pickets everything from Gay Pride Parades to R-Rated movies. And granted, most of these hardcore Jesus terrorists are from backwards red states but in reality, they give Christianity a bad name just as much as liberal open-minded universalist Christians who accept all religions. Both extremes are off the mark.

But let’s say you discovered a place that had the meanest, most deliciously mouth-watering, taste bud annihilating corn dog known to man. And let’s say you had a group of friends that you really wanted to try it. But the only problem was, all the corn dogs that they’ve tasted have been fried in overly re-used oil, covered in way too salty batter, and had a hot dog that they swear was made out of left over rat parts, never mind an actual pig. Would you say to yourself, Well, they tried so many shitty corn dogs so what’s the use of them trying this incredibly awesome version? No, you’d be like, Guys, fuck that other bullshit, this corn dog is the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE, and once you try it, your faith in corn dogs, nay, fried foods, nay, HUMANITY, will be completely restored.

Just because there are a bunch of dogmatic idiots and flaky cowards doesn’t mean that one’s faith should be kept hidden, like a shameful secret, in hopes that it won’t scare anybody off. If I found the world’s greatest corn dog, then it would be selfish of me to keep it to myself and I am going to try and share it with everyone and if they accept it, amazing, if they reject it, that’s too bad.

Back to the point, for Christians who have access to one of the most influential mediums in the world, music, especially pop music whose choruses people sing over and over repeatedly, and for them to keep the Savior’s truth to themselves, to me, is not respectful. It is spineless. It is the biggest cop out. Because the truth is, it’s not that they’re afraid of imposing their beliefs on their listeners, it’s that they don’t want to be rejected. If you are a Christian, then that means that you should unequivocally follow His commands, especially those that Christ laid out for us, plain and simple, for thousands of years, in the Bible. The last of which, being the most important, was to “Go and make disciples of all nations.” This is not a suggestion nor a voluntary option. It is an imperative. “Okay guys, I’m about to go up to heaven now but… before I go, can you guys like.. do me this one solid and just like, if you have the time or whatever, try and just like… just try and bring me up in a conversation or something? Don’t be too brash or anything! Just, you know, mention me if the situation feels right… Okay? Thanks so much, you guys are the best!” No, Jesus is not an obsequious pussy. He is a fierce leader and King. “Guys, GO and make disciples of all nations. You must do this. This is not an option to think twice about. Do it because the world needs me. Do it because I am the only Answer. You know this. So do not hesitate to go.”

For someone to know and profess to love Christ, and completely fail to introduce Him to others, when they have millions of ears and eyes, wide open in rapt attention to their every word, is not just a disservice to the Lord, it is a slap in His face. How is it that just writing lyrics about Him can be enough? “Well, come on, I’m so obviously singing about Him here, and isn’t having this whole audience sing those worshipful words enough?” Dude, first of all, you’re not even saying his freakin’ name for GOD’S sake so how the hell are they supposed to know who they’re singing to, and second of all, if you saw someone about to jump off a bridge, would you write them a fucking poem?! No, you would shout at the top of your lungs for them to reconsider and take your hand to step away from the ledge. And that is not to say that if you don’t have Christ, you are committing suicide, but in life, you’re either living or dying. Relying on yourself, in my experience, has always led to death. If you found some other answer that leads to genuine life change, then I’d like to see it because I’ve only found one hope that works, and I’d like to stick to what works.

But this indictment, like the title of this blog states, is not just on ambiguously Christian bands. It is also to the self-declared Christian and CCM bands that just loooove to say Jesus every breathing moment they get and are never afraid to talk about what chapter of the Bible they’re currently studying for their QT. The only problem is… you’re preaching to the choir. Most Christian bands remain stuck in the CCM market (which is not small, by any means- in fact, it’s one of the most lucrative industries in the entertainment field in America) and their fan base consists solely of people who already regularly attend churches, retreats, revivals, etc. No opposition here at the utterance of “Jesus Christ”, or rather, “The main man JC” at their concerts. And yes, of course there’s a place to edify the body and build up the church to grow in their faith and love for God. But that shouldn’t be the only facet of ministry. Artists and leaders should be concentrating on both, encouraging believers as well as preaching the gospel to the unchurched. And I would think, that reaching the unreached, is more important, because after all, it was the very last commandment that Christ gave! And yet, CCM bands refrain from ever venturing into the secular markets. They just choose to lay low in their comfy little Christian sub-cultures.

And then you have the Christian bands that always seem to be involved with charity work in third world countries. And I have nothing against that. I won’t be so sanctimonious as to say that they’re doing it for selfish reasons because they’re probably doing it with very magnanimous and Christlike hearts to help the unfortunate and the sick and dying. It’s honorable and commendable. But what about the unfortunate and the sick and dying in metropolitan cities? What about the spiritually starving and morally depraved? Are they not suffering in their vicious cycles of chasing after illusory dreams of materialism and status, which is arguably worse off than someone who is dying of hunger and thirst in a third world nation? Because in my opinion, the soul is far more important than the physical body- one remains forever while the other will eventually disappear. If they’re so willing to disseminate money and resources to help the physically starving, why not expend their creative faculties to save the spiritually famished that aren’t an ocean away, but rather, in their own backyard, that are only a tweet, blog, or iTunes purchase away?

But of course, there are always the exceptions- Christian artists who actively engage in fearless mission and unambiguously discuss the gospel, in whatever market or field or demographic they might be addressing. And it’s sad that these bands are not the majority, but rather the anomalies. A few examples come to mind.


The first is UnderOath, whom I’ve seen a number of times, as part of a bigger festival, as the opening act, and as the headliner. In every occasion, wherever they were, they always had a moment in the concert where the singer directly addressed the crowd and said it as clear as day: “We thank you guys for coming here and being so awesome. And we appreciate all the support. We just want to say, that the whole reason why we do this, what keeps us going, is the truth that we’ve found in Jesus Christ. And if that’s not something that you agree with, that’s completely cool, we respect that. But we just want to let you know that He’s the reason why we’re here, doing what we do.”


Another is mewithoutYou and all you have to do is look up the lyrics to any one of their songs to see that theology and the gospel is inextricably tied to their music. And when I saw them at the Knitting Factory, which was a tiny sardine box of a venue in lower Manhattan, Aaron Weiss, the singer, was not shy about who He was singing about. “We just want to take this time to mention, that this is all because of a man named Jesus Christ, and we’d like to share Him with you.” At “Jesus Christ”, a lot of people clapped and cheered to which Aaron wryly responded, “Well, this isn’t a pep rally.” It’s even harder to talk about the gospel in a smaller venue because it’s so much more intimate, there’s no wall of lights that separates the audience from the band; because you’re literally a foot away, it’s just like having a personal conversation and the band can see every person’s facial expression as opposed to an amorphous sea of dark faces, so immediate rejection would be instantly received.


And last but not least, there’s Keith Green. Oh Keith you beautiful Christ-loving soul. You artist of artists. How sad that you left us so early. Here’s a guy who, in the midst of a generation that was booming with hippie culture and free love and a sexual revolution, sang daringly about purity, asking God to “create in me a clean heart”. He lived with integrity and an unabashed love for Christ and commitment to God that could not be hidden. And he didn’t just play in churches. He toured everywhere and was one of the key forerunners of the Jesus Movement. And quite honestly, his singing voice wasn’t the most phenomenal. But it was his love for God that shone through terrifically and his music and life are still huge influences today.

If you were saved by grace, and were blessed with a voice and a stage to speak it on, then why not speak or sing, in no unclear terms, about that Amazing Grace? The world needs less entertainment and more raw, honest to God, truth. The world doesn’t need a song so much as they need a cure.