Religious people - Which music is pure?

[Alex K]

I grew up in a fundementalist pentacostal home as a musician so my mother was extremely lurked over my music like the big eye in the sky. I remember having to hide a hard rock tape (from a group called SHOUT) in a box under the deck. Oh yes, I never stopped to ask myself the questions you've asked...at least back then. I just accepted it was bad. Our church showed us just what secular music could do your mind with all the evil spirits that jumped on you by making us watch old 80s videos of musical back-masking etc. I was crushed when Rush's 2112 album was a feature on one of these videos.

You ever try listening to the Christian rock or Christian praise music, if not you might be in for a surprise at the talented people involved. Not your everyday beat out a few cords with the volume so high you can't hear all their mistakes kinda' rock n' roll. Good solid well composed music with many different and great instruments blended together.

I've listened to more American contemporary praise music than is good for me (and why would you think we haven't). Much of it was professionally crafted, with harmonies and instrumentation like out of the textbook, if that's what you are going for. At the same time it was so saccharine and one-dimensional that it gives me cancer.

The band "New Songs" earlier CDs remind me of the old rock band "Chicago" when it comes to using a multitude of instruments in their music. "Chicago" was a highly liked and talented band during my teens and early twenties a band I enjoyed very much and still have a real respect for their talents. If you are truly a lover of music then you should find some Christian bands to your liking, unlike some of the tone deaf kids who think a repeated cord and a pluck or two is all it takes to produce music, oh yeah the volume has to be up in the range of critically damaging the ear drums of coarse before they see it as music. Not that I do not like to play my music with some volume to it, I do come from the age of Rock&Roll.

Of course one should always use ear plugs when going to hard rock concerts in the widest sense. But coming back to the nicely composed harmonic worship pop music - it ironically completely lacks soul, it sounds to me like the mindless drone from a worship drone that is on an unnaturally perpetual high and can't get down. That "pluck or two" on a string contains more music if it comes from the heart than a tonne of impeccably (over)produced sterile worship drivel.