Bringing Christian music into the 21st Century

"Christians shouldn't be allowed near rock n roll - it's not for them."It's fair to say that Billy Connolly isn't alone in thinking that Christianity and contemporary music don't go hand in hand.

 

Despite the best efforts of bands such as Delirious?, who had a string of top 20 hits and were nominated for a Grammy, there still seems to be a stigma surrounding modern day worship songs.

 

Would you, for example, expect to walk into any of Suffolk's traditional live music venues on a Friday night and expect to hear a set of songs dedicated to God?

But according to three Suffolk musicians, one of whom recently played to a full house in Ipswich, this is an unfair reflection on a genre which is now far removed from the likes of Kumbaya and Shine Jesus Shine.

 

"Over the decades people have stuck to those hymns that were contemporary but maybe are no longer contemporary," said Steve Squires, who along with his wife Jo has produced an 11 track album titled God's Love is Unstoppable. "I think it's a bit sad because I think God wants us to be writing music that is contemporary and current, and sounds wicked."

 

Steve was born and bred in Ipswich but moved to Birmingham where he set up the Big Ministries charity with Jo. The music on their album is described as being "God focused" and varying from "air-guitar anthems to boy-band ballads, rhythmic rap to girly pop".

 

“We need to be on the cutting edge of the music world," said Steve, who drew inspiration from Linkin Park, Girls Aloud and Will Smith.

 

There are heavy bass lines and even a take on Dizzee Rascal's hit Bonkers - "Some people say I'm crazy, but I just say I'm free, when I jump up and down and tell the world that God loves me". "If we believe God is the most creative being in the universe and that we have God living in us, then we should have loads of creativity in us," said Steve.

 

"Personally, I get quite annoyed that so much Christian music is a bit dull, or uninventive. I think we can talk about who God is and what he has to say about the world in a way which is really creative and interesting. "I think churches have lost some of their creativity and it's only now that we're seeing some creativity, with arts, painting and sculpture coming back to the church. To me that's a really exciting thing. It's about reinventing the old stuff but creating new stuff as well."

Doug Ross is a lifetime friend of Steve's. Like Steve, Doug grew up in Suffolk before moving away and is now a successful DJ, promoter and artist manager dealing with a very contemporary side of Christian music in Brighton. "I run an organisation called Spilt Milk Bookings," said Doug. "I'm management to a couple of artists, and we have about 15 artists on our books that we push out to conferences, festivals, one-off events. "All of our artists are Christian artists but they cross over to the secular world."

 

With his pseudonym as drum and bass DJ Kubiks, Doug highlights a less familiar side of Christian music. His MySpace page boasts favourable reviews from Mixmag and leader of the genre Fabio and lists forthcoming appearances across Europe and in Japan.

"As a DJ myself I don't really play any Christian music but I play at plenty of Christian festivals and events and also secular clubs."

 

Although Doug's music, and that of the artists he works with, strays from the traditional Christian worship songs he says he'd never have a bad word to say about his faith's musical heritage. "Worship music throughout the ages has been such a key part in people's lives in terms of them connecting with God."

 

But Doug's delivery of the message is more subtle and he looks to Canadian rapper Manafest as an example of how Christian musicians can connect with a young audience. "He's a cool cat and he's very proactive about getting good morals into young people's lives. His message would be about positivity and encouragement - not pushing the Bible down people's necks. He is an evangelist, a solid Christian I'd say, but the way he portrays himself by having good values and morals shines through and when he's built relationships there's the chance to bring God in to that mix as well."

Back in Suffolk, around 250 high school aged children attended a Christian live music event in March 2010 at the St Nicholas Centre, Ipswich. The night was hosted by Christian Youth Ministries (CYM) and was part of a wider scheme by Ignite and A Pasison for Life to see 'people of all ages and backgrounds in our country reborn to glorify God'.

 

Seth Bannister is singer with PS:95, who are loosely based in the Stonham area and were on the bill in Ipswich. “Our name comes from a Bible passage which speaks about making a joyful noise to the Lord."

 

PS:95 are a five piece who range in age from teenagers to guitarist Ian who's in his thirties. Seth says they're still finding their feet as a band, are yet to record any of their tracks, and base their live set around a mixture of covers ("Muse and bands like that") and some of their originals. "Our own songs are all about walking in faith and glorifying God. One song called Sacrifice talks about Lord Jesus Christ dying on the cross, another called Someone Who Can is about letting people who are listening to it know they're not on their own - and there's someone out there looking over them. We know music is powerful. It can bring out all sorts of emotions in people and we hope it will have a positive impact on those who are listening."

 

Seth says there is a stigma attached to Christian rock music, and perhaps as a result PS:95 are yet to venture away from the church youth group arenas. But like other bands we speak to on BBC Suffolk Introducing, it seems that social networking sites are providing a valuable service in opening up new opportunities - with Seth surprised by the people who have become a 'fan' of their Facebook page. "There are a lot of people who wouldn't go to church, just friends who have come along and heard what we're playing, because it's not all about the lyrics it's about the power of sound."

 

As well as their commitment to their religion, Steve, Doug and Seth share the aim of relating to a young audience - whether it's in the hope of offering enlightenment or to have someone to eventually pass the torch to.

 

And music, as Doug points out, rather than being a turn-off that some would suggest, could be the key to reaching this audience. "You've only got to look at culture today," said Doug. "Everything you see young people portraying you can guarantee you've seen it in a music video. There's an urban culture in our society at the moment and that's definitely reflected in the fashion and how people talk. Music in general is a worldwide language, and whether you're Christian or not, if it's good quality music young people will listen to it and their ears will stand up."