Christian artists and “Christian” music

I was recently approached by a guy from church who told me that he was interested in getting into Christian music more.  He asked me if I could put together a list of Christian musicians and what they compare to in the secular music world…..
I thought this was a great idea, and immediately began to research Christian artists (from my own library and online).  2 weeks later, I’m still not ready to put together a comparison chart, and there are a few reasons why.

The first reason is because I don’t know enough of these artists work to feel that I’m giving an accurate comparison.  I’ve looked at tons of these comparison charts online, and I think that most of them are horrible…..

And I’ve decided that the genre of “Christian music” is non-existent and annoying.  If you go to itunes and look up your favorite Christian musician, you’ll find that they almost all get lumped into one category:  Inspirational.  This is frustrating to me – lyrics are what make a song inspirational (in my opinion), not the music itself.  When you take away the lyrics of a song, what’s left is what defines the genre of the music….or at least it should be, in my opinion.

So what I’m gonna do is list some genres of music along with Christian artists who fall into this genre.  Then I’m going to list some Christian artists who are already in the mainstream – they get played regularly on radio stations and are actually classified on itunes to their genre, not their faith.  These are some of the artists who inspire me most; artists who live and operate outside the box, making great music that is for everyone.

Here are some Christian artists who are already in the mainstream:

Switchfoot (Alternative) – anyone who knows me well knows that this is my favorite band.  These guys are great musicians with even greater hearts.  Songs like New Way To Be Human, Incomplete, Meant to Live, Love Is the Movement, Lonely Nation, American Dream & many others really articulate the band’s faith and desire for more than what this world offers. They have a new album coming out this summer – I can’t wait!!   Buy every album of theirs, for real.

Mat Kearney (Rock) – this guy has really got a sound all his own.  It’s more acoustic rock with a tiny bit of hip-hop thrown into it for something extra.  He’s also got a new album coming out May 19… Bonus Trivia – Pastor Ben loves his stuff!!

U2 (Rock) – some would say that I’m stepping out on a limb here in saying that these guys are Christians.  I would disagree.  In any case, their music is absolutely full of their faith – and what do you know, they just released a new album last week  (No Line On The Horizon).  Songs like Magnificent, Grace, Yahweh, Where the Streets Have No Name,  and countless others  hint openly about the band’s faith.

Here are some other Christians who are in the mainstream that you might not know about:  Relient K, Julianna Theory, The Fray, P.O.D., Lifehouse, Red, 12 Stones, Jon Foreman, Mute Math, Thrice, Stacie Orrico, Sixpence None the Richer, Sufjan Stevens, Mae, Family Force 5, Pedro the Lion, Hawk Nelson, Fiction Family, Luna Halo.   There are many others I’m sure.  These are just a few that I have heard of.  For a feel of what these artists sound like, download itunes on your computer (it’s free) and listen to the 30 second clips offered.  If you want to hear more, you can find TONS of stuff now on youtube just by searching the artist’s name.

Here are a list of some artists in the “Christian music” scene, and what genre of music I feel they really fall into.  You might not agree with all the genres, but that’s ok…..some of them overlap and cross over.

Alternative:

Thousand Foot Krutch, Pillar, Skillet, Kutless, Flyleaf, Day of Fire, Falling Up, Supertones, Fireflight

Rock:

Stellar Kart, Plumb, Starfield, Sanctus Real, The Afters, Vota, Jeremy Camp, Building 429, Third Day, Barlow Girl, Decemeradio, All Star United, Superchic, Newsboys

Pop:

Krystal Meyers, Rachel Lampa, Stacie Orrico, Chris Rice, Casting Crowns, Mercy Me, Jaci Velasquez, ZOE girl, Jump 5, Steven Curtis Chapman, Jennifer Knapp

Hip Hop

KJ52, Tobymac, Grits, John Reuben, L.A. Symphony

Punk

MXPX

Feel free to add to these categories or voice an opinion if an artist is out of place.  I also tried for the most part to stay away from artists or bands who have broken up and aren’t making music anymore…If you have any questions, feel free to ask.  I’m hoping that this is more of a guideline for those who might want to get into some Christian music more than anything else.

If you’re interested in some of the musicians whose songs we use at church, I’ll list some of those too.  These are musicians who write songs specifically for use by the church in praise and worship.  Some of the artists that have had a real impact in our church are:  

Paul Baloche (Because Of Your Love, Our God Saves, Rising, What Can I Do, I Will Boast, You Gave Your Life Away, Here and Now, All the Earth Will Sing Your Praises, Hosanna, Open the Eyes of My Heart)

Chris Tomlin (Forever, How Can I Keep From Singing, Famous One, Awesome Is the Lord Most High, Indescribable)

Lincoln Brewster (Amazed, All to You, For These Reasons, You Are the One, Everybody Praise the Lord, Today Is the Day, Everlasting God, God You Reign, Majestic, Love the Lord)

Hillsong (His Love, Still, Shout to the Lord, Across the Earth)

Hillsong United -for Detour – (Take It All, My Future Decided, Break Free, The Stand, Look to You, Salvation Is Here, What the World Will Never Take, All I Need Is You)

New Life Worship / Ross Parsley (Savior, Mighty King of Love, I Am Free, Everlasting God)

If you’re interested in any of these artists and have questions, please feel free to ask and I’ll do my best to point you in the right direction.

-Alan