Where’s Artistry in Christian Rock?

In Robert Hilburn’s review of DC Talk’s concert, he accurately characterized contemporary Christian music as having “little sense of struggle or self-doubt” (“DC Talk Delivers a Raw Mixture of Heaven and Earth,” Calendar, May 6).

Later, he wrote that if DC Talk could inject more personal commentary into its music, “the group--which has helped infuse Christian rock with the trimmings of real rock--might also give the movement a sense of genuine artistry.”

The irony is, many Christian rock bands have tried in the past to bring “a sense of genuine artistry” to Christian music--long before DC Talk came along. The sad truth is that the Christian music “industry” traditionally has not rewarded subtle artistry. Those who have tried to bring a sense of artistry to contemporary Christian music have been profoundly misunderstood and soundly rejected by both the industry and Christian record buyers.

Christian radio has been obtusely conservative and entrenched when it comes to artistic and lyrical subtleties. This has tended to “chill” artistic growth in Christian rock bands. Those who try to push the envelope invariably do not flourish.

Having labored in Christian music for a decade, I could rattle off half a dozen seminal bands that imbued their mostly overlooked records with a “sense of struggle or self-doubt” as far back as the ‘80s. These musically and lyrically adventurous groups languished in a Dead-end Sea of cult followings and four-digit record sales.

These were (and still are) truly gifted artists who attempted to express themselves in an industry and a market that could not appreciate this kind of artistic expression.

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So far, no one has really been able to change the Christian music industry monolith. Those who have tried have been sidestepped and ignored. Artists learn that they will do far better if they package themselves as an easy pill to swallow.

Many found that the ground started getting spongy when they tried to couch the Gospel Message in figurative, artistic or poetic terms. There are plenty of Christian artists out there chomping at the bit to provide well-crafted, spiritual art, but there’s very little market for it.

No wonder DC Talk “spells everything out for the listener,” as Hilburn observes. It wants to sell records! And even though the group is in the midst of “crossing over,” believe me: It wants to hang on to its Christian record-buying base. In this business, success depends on a clear, unambiguous (and preferably upbeat) message.

Until this changes, it will remain quite a feat for anybody to “give the [Christian rock] movement a sense of artistry.”