# Is there deep Christian rock? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 15, 2011, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011 "2011-11-15T16:01:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ennui](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ennui/32/3396_2.png) [@Ennui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ennui)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/41 "2011-11-18T01:29:38Z")
> [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](#): > > Almost 40 posts and no mention of [Larry Norman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Norman) or [Randy Stonehill](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Stonehill)? I second that notion. I don’t really self identify as Christian anymore but back when I was selling my old vinyl album collection Larry was one of about a dozen artists I wouldn’t part with. [(A YouTube link of perhaps his signature song to give folks an idea)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-x_WyBjO6Y&feature=related) Larry may or may not have been the grand father of Christian Rock but I’m pretty sure he was the first outspoken and unapologetic Christian artist recording rock and roll on a major label. Now we have an entire “contemporary Christian music” industry but when Larry started out, the main stream American Christian establishment wanted nothing to do with rock and roll and I’m pretty sure the feeling was mutual. Despite that he cranked out a few truly amazing albums. A few samples: [Here’s prescient some media criticism in the form of a Vietnam protest song.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSS6mEyw3W0&feature=related) [_Be Careful What You Sign_ is a little hard to characterize but it’s a long time favorite.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7hqse8ClPg&feature=related) [_Watch What You’re Doing_ has one of the greatest "Yeah"s in recorded history.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ug7iLguh7A&feature=related) All pretty much “classic rock” which may or may not be your thing, his most creative decade was the 1970s. His career is a little hard to understand, it seems like even as Christian rock was expanding in acceptance he wasn’t. In the 80’s he formed his own record label named Phydeaux, a small joke on his part saying that if “Christian music was going to the dogs he wanted to be on the cutting edge.” There have been some controversy about his legacy (he passed away a few years ago) even a documentary which was rather critical of him. He may not have been all that easy to work with and _perhaps_ there may have been some sins of the flesh involved, Larry had his flaws. But the man was a hell of a musician who’s work I enjoy to this day and to some extent he deserves credit for establishing the commercial viability of Christian rock. And to answer the OP, yeah the man was deep. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/42 "2011-11-18T01:37:31Z")
> [@Trom](#): > > Pedro the Lion maybe? Their lead singer, David Bazan, used to be Christian and “acceptable” in Christian music circles. Now, he’s apparently agnostic, or at least rejects his old beliefs. He’s lost a portion of a fan base because of it. Compared to other Christian music, his lyrics were “deeper.” > > Also, I really like his music, philosophical underpinnings notwithstanding. > > Here’s “Secret of the Easy Yoke” (from his “Christian phase”) > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgMtg3ccZhQ](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgMtg3ccZhQ) I’m extremely interested in this group. What CD of theirs would you recommend most for a first time buyer? ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/43 "2011-11-18T03:24:21Z")
Oh yeah, how about Chicago’s own Resurrection Band? They’ve been around since the '70s. I found some good clips from a 1991 concert: [Afrikaans](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=romSRVF8ydY) ([Lyrics](http://www.lipwalklyrics.com/lyrics/408120-resurrectionband-afrikaans.html)) [Military Man](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQGP-SE3rO0) ([Lyrics](http://www.lipwalklyrics.com/lyrics/408238-resurrectionband-militaryman.html)) And a couple other good ones: [American Dream](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utvQERML6t8) ([Lyrics](http://www.lipwalklyrics.com/lyrics/408130-resurrectionband-americandream.html)) [City Streets](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBb6zj4Itfo) ([Lyrics](http://www.lipwalklyrics.com/lyrics/408159-resurrectionband-citystreets.html)) Some of the subject matter is a bit dated, since most of this is from the '80s, but still good stuff IMO. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 10:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/44 "2011-11-18T10:46:50Z")
I wouldn’t necessarily call it deep, but **Switchfoot’s** [Selling the News (YouTube w/lyrics)](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHl-k5oAdu0&feature=related) is a nice criticism of mainstream news, My guess is mainly Fox News. I dig it. Another nod for **Relient K’s** later stuff. Although, I really dug **Mmm Hmm.** They’ve really found their sound, and are writing some really good stuff. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2011, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/45 "2011-11-18T10:59:34Z")
Another recent one by the **Newsboys,** [Your Live is Better than Life (YouTube w/Lyrics).](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJvgqSHJzkk) I’m not necessarily a fan, but my wife is. However, I found this refreshingly honest for a very evangelic band, really admitting “I dunno”, meaning it could all be dogma, and probably is (christian moral: all that matters is their love in God), but at least they brought up some questions. Catchy too. ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 8:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/46 "2011-11-19T08:31:52Z")
I don’t listen to Christian music, but I worked with a woman that did. The band Third Day is pretty damn good. (I’ve even gone to see them in concert twice.) > **[Third Day](https://www.thirdday.com/)** At one of the concerts, they were opened by Robert Randolph and Family [http://www.robertrandolph.net/](http://www.robertrandolph.net/) Blues/Gospel—AWESOME!!! ---
**Author:** ![Naxos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/50afbb/32.png) [@Naxos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Naxos)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/47 "2011-11-19T09:00:21Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > […] ‘God, why did you give my mother cancer?’" To which she said, “Oh. Yeah, there’s stuff like that out there.” Your question is not worth replying to. If you married a religioner - someone who would rather believe in fantasy instead of acknowledging reality - then deal with the irrational on your own. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/48 "2011-11-19T09:41:15Z")
**Wovenhand** are maybe not really Christian as much as suffused with religion and the singer’s (David Eugene Edwards, formerly of **16 Horsepower** ) personal faith, and it’s probably not really ‘rock’ by most takes, and of course, whether it’s deep or not is a bit of a matter of one’s personal take on it, but I really love their music for its hypnotic, southern-gothic influenced, ecstatic in the sense of falling-down-and-speaking-in-tongues character… Some of my favorites are _[To Make A Ring](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHz5neKtmzQ)_ and _[The Threshingfloor](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQVCg14PiOM)_. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/49 "2011-11-19T12:01:28Z")
I too am going to be looking for Pedro the Lion due to the link. ::::hijack::::: . For some reason, my mind is always wanting to link bands in pairs, and can do so when they sound similar enough (even if they are not emulating or copying each other on purpose). So for instance, I always think of Weezer when I think of All American Rejects and vice versa; Fall Out Boy and Riddlin Kids; When Buckcherry came out they naturally filled a place next to AC/DC. Well, my mind didn’t have anything to associate with Jimmy Eat World until I saw this link. Which makes sense as they both grew up in Christian Rock circles. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/50 "2011-11-19T13:13:47Z")
> [@Naxos](#): > > Your question is not worth replying to. > > If you married a religioner - someone who would rather believe in fantasy instead of acknowledging reality - then deal with the irrational on your own. **Naxos** , you’re in Cafe Society, not Great Debates. This is neither helpful nor appropriate as a response. Don’t do this again. No warning issued. **twickster** , Cafe Society moderator ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2011, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/51 "2011-11-19T16:19:55Z")
Not sure if it’s the kind of song that gets played on Christian rock stations, but The Rainmakers’ [“The Wages Of Sin”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGPJHLW-7y4) gets pretty deep. _I was praying last night when an angel broke the line She said “I’m gonna have to put you on hold for a time” I said “Hold like Hell, let me talk to the Boss” She said “Sorry sinner, it’s the Boss’s day off” And I realized then that the wages of sin Was two bucks an hour and working weekends_ ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/52 "2011-11-21T14:57:06Z")
[Waterdeep](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOyCwRmkqOE&feature=related) [had](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oz7989fcE08&feature=related) [some](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpsTbfFmddo&feature=related) [really](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJZSxDfG8gk) nice examples, I think… ---
**Author:** ![FlyingRat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/59ef9b/32.png) [@FlyingRat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingRat)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/53 "2011-11-21T16:53:11Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > I was going to say U2! They are the secret Christian Rock band. This. And they’re not even all that secret-- at the core, they’ve been writing/singing about the same topics as when they started out, only revisiting them from different angles and perspectives as the band has grown and matured. It’s why each new album of theirs, for me, is like sitting down to continue a years-long conversation with an old friend you haven’t seen for a while, who has been shaped in interesting ways by their intervening experiences, but is the same core personality you remember and love. I’ve always thought their songs were “deep” in that they focus on what it means to have and struggle with faith in the face of a very imperfect, dirty and unjust world, not just in a sunshine-and-rainbows sense. “Wake Up Dead Man”, “If God Will Send His Angels”, “Please”, “The Wanderer”, “White as Snow” …even “With Or Without You” are all great for this. And “Grace”, especially, is (IMO) one of the single best expressions of the concept of grace that exists in musical form or otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Trom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@Trom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trom)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2011, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/54 "2011-11-21T16:54:50Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > I’m extremely interested in this group. What CD of theirs would you recommend most for a first time buyer? Cool! Without knowing what kind of music appeals to you, I suppose it makes sense to start at the beginning with [It’s Hard to Find a Friend.](http://www.amazon.com/Hard-Find-Friend-Pedro-Lion/dp/B00005O7SN/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1321893818&sr=1-1) I honestly like all of his albums. It’s hard to qualify one as “soft” or more “rock,” since they all contain both slow and high energy songs. I’d say I’m a big fan of the EP [Only Reason I Feel Secure](http://www.amazon.com/Only-Reason-I-Feel-Secure/dp/B00005O7SO/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1321894133&sr=1-1) (which now that I think about it, is definitely a slower CD.) To get an idea what he currently sounds like you could check out his most recent release from this year - [Strange Negotiations.](http://www.amazon.com/Strange-Negotiations/dp/B004YCO1D2/ref=pd_sim_m_a_2) Also, here’s an [interview](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YhZHIdJVjMg)of him explaining his split with the evangelical community. ---
**Author:** ![steronz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steronz/32/11765_2.png) [@steronz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/steronz)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2011, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/55 "2011-11-22T22:15:23Z")
Thanks for all the replies everyone! I had no idea there was so much tolerable christian music out there. I’m going to compile a bunch of these suggestions and go through them with my wife. Hopefully I’ll be able to report back at some point. Thanks again to everyone who’s responded with suggestions, links and lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![Boanerges](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5daacb/32.png) [@Boanerges](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boanerges)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2013, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011/56 "2013-06-14T15:36:02Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > My wife has been listening to a christian rock radio station recently. I can’t stomach it for more than 10 seconds, but I’m hoping there’s some fans here who can chime in. > > I asked her if there was any christian music that was deep and challenged the listener? Very quickly she said there was, and then she said that the music in her church was also pretty deep. Having sat through this music, I objected, clarifying, “No, I mean stuff like, ‘God, why did you give my mother cancer?’” To which she said, “Oh. Yeah, there’s stuff like that out there.” > > I remain skeptical. Is there any mainstream christian rock that tackles controversial or challenging subjects, or is it all just the “Yay Jesus” stuff I’ve heard so much? > > eta: And yes, upon specific recommendations I’ll try listening to some of the stuff. I know this reply is a couple years late but I stumbled upon this thread on google. If you are still looking/even read this reply you can try out the o.c. supertones, relient k, five iron frenzy, and there is always skillet. Depending on what album you listen to those first two may be more or less “rock”, not sure what kind of rock you are looking for exactly. And relient k’s earlier albums were probably geared more towards high school students, but they matured over the years. I know there are a lot of metal Christian bands out there, but I don’t know how “deep” they get because I can’t really understand what they say haha. If you are just looking for something that is deep and you don’t mind the rap/hiphop genre some of their artists are very deep and thought provoking. lecrae and trip lee come to mind. Regardless of what genres you listen to I would definitely recommend “I’m Guilty” by KJ 52 for a good soul wrenching [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-deep-christian-rock/603011.md?page=2)