Because as with most Christan music, a good majority of it doesn't actually reference anything in particular, and could be mistaken for that generic love song your grandma purchased for your iTunes when you have Foobar2000.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm not that interested in branching out. I only like some of Eminem's stuff. Just the catchy melodies, because they are quite catchy. Also, I hesitate to say my tastes are particularly theory trained. I did take music theory, but I failed the class. Its also been over ten years, and I have done nothing with the knowledge that I gained in that class, and therefore lost most of it. The circle of fifths is like the most important thing in music theory, and its probably the first thing I forgot. Without it, pretty much every thing else that isn't history related is useless to me.

I do really like classical music, but to be honest, I think that's because I had the Empire Strikes Back soundtrack on cassette when I was pretty young, and I would listen to the whole thing every night. The fact that I like classical music is probably a big part of why I like Oheney though. He was trained in classical music before he became a rapper. It really comes out in his music.

True. If you "sin" every second of everyday like most people, you don't want to hear music about a book and a god that says you are going to burn in hell for all eternity after you die. Very negative and unpleasant music for most people. People like to be happy, obviously.

But that is because they want sympathy, something that makes them happy. :) They love being a "Poor Baby".

True enough, true enough.

I liked a Jars of Clay song once.

I don't have an issue with Christian rock despite being agnostic. A lot of my favorite "normal" bands have religious messages in their songs. I just haven't heard much specific "Christian rock" I liked.

The major thing to understand about hip-hop is that it's not about theory, it's a way of life. Five elements blended together to form a culture that values knowledge, self-expression, etc.

Rap/breaks/DJing came about because inner city schools cut out music programs across the board, and as most of those families could not afford instruments, they began to "make their own" by utilizing a record player AS their instrument. By capturing beats, breakdowns, snippets of music, they created a patchwork quilt of sound that meshed together to form rudimentary beat and bass driven music that was extremely danceable, and lended itself quite well to a party atmosphere. It wasn't until Melly Mel dropped "The Message" and Kool Moe Dee destroyed Busy Bee Starsky that the real MC began to become the voice of the people who no longer had one of their own.

They took poetry, so they created their own, with their own language, linguistic elements, style, cadence, flow. Over time, they were able to break down rhythmic word play, metaphorical content, simile, punchline jokes, etc, into a 8-16 bar format, which is where that expression in urban usage comes from.

The beautiful thing about this culture is its realization that music has no color, despite its origins, and that good production work is not just "copy pasting someone elses music."

I think it says something about how deep real hiphop can actually penetrate into the mainstream, to even people like Mobius who doesn't necessarily like every part of the genre, but can appreciate some forms of it.

Also, on topic: Billy Connolly nails it.

EDIT: ^Hah, I've got to stop leaving tabs open!

Billy Connolly put it quite well I think:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUSwLWh5Huk (NSFW, obviously)

Now, i've got pretty wide musical tastes, but I have yet to hear any christian "rock" that wasn't complete shite.

I'm sure there must be a few bands that aren't (in the line of the "monkeys on typewriters" idea) but there's just so much better music in almost any other genre, why should I wade through even deeper sewage than usual to find it?

I didn't mean to be stepping on any toes over this. I realize that my not liking other genres is due to my personal preferences, or out right just not getting the music. Obviously, there must be some reason why some people like punk rock, for example. I cant fathom what that reason is. I could assume its a problem with them, but Its much more likely that I just don't get it. I also didn't mean to put down lyrics in rap either. I don't care for the music, but I don't have an issue with the lyrics in general. I have an issue with specific lyrics, sure, but that's not any different than any other music. Even with classical music. I fricken hate the Harpsichord, and I think it ruins everything its in, and its in a lot. Plus, If I look at things in reverse, I only know two other people who listen to classical music. We are in the minority.

IMO, one of the better christian hard rock bands would be Bride.

Had a cassette tape of theirs from way back. A G'n'R sound to them. Thanks to this thread I'm gonna look em up and have another listen after all these years.

I can't speak for why anyone else dislikes it, but I tend to avoid the vast majority of it because of the system that pushes it. You wouldn't expect it, but the Christian music industry is quite possibly even more money-centric than the "regular" music industry. I've had long conversations with people involved with the financial side of things that were truly disgusting.

It's also incredibly insular; they have their own musical ecosystem, complete with their own radio stations and tours and there's not a lot of overlap with regular music, so few people are actually exposed to it. Also—and again, this is just speaking for myself—many Christian songs lack cojones. Yes, you can replace the word "Jesus" with "love" to aim at widespread appeal (and this happens a lot), but more often than not it just comes across as cowardly and obvious.

That being said, I've met several Christian artists and there are a few truly great, genuine, and courageous people in the industry (amid a sea of egotistical, fake jagoffs), but even fewer making music worth listening to/financially supporting.

It's just so lyric oriented vs trying to make something great.

Not that I really listen to rock that much, but still.

Here I thought it was a pathetic example of religious propaganda and an attempt to pander to vulnerable Christian youths.

I think to a degree there's skepticism about if it's genuine or not. Do they sing it, or do they live it? When I was growing up it seemed more of a marketing thing. I went to a so-called Christian rock show and wasn't feeling anything spiritual going on (I was religious then), and it all seemed sort of Jim Baker-ish to me. Some musicians I've talked to who knew the guys in the christian bands say behind the scenes it's not so pretty. Just my $0.02