J is for...

"Jesus Freak" by DC Talk


It's technically J day, so here we go.  I went out of my way to put this right next to the previous entry, to be like two sides of the same coin.  Before all the things that happened in that last entry, back when my problems were small and withdrawn, I had a brief period where I listened to CCM.  That's Contemporary Christian Music, for those not in the know.  When I was thirteen or so this stuff was the coolest.  It was like real music, but we were allowed to play it in our Christian school and at home without out parents getting mad at us.  One of my teachers even printed off some chart from the Internet that listed secular groups and their more godly counterparts like this one.

What's funny about that list is they have a Christian counterpart for Bad Religion.  Bad Religion, if you were unaware, has an explicitly atheistic message, so if you like them you probably wouldn't even want to find a Christian equivalent.

My involvement with this genre was short lived, since I got into punk rock around high school.  However, there were a couple groups I really, genuinely liked.  There was Relient K, which I actually still listen to, and DC Talk, which I don't.  DC Talk was a big deal because they wrote songs like "Jesus Freak" that made Christianity seem kind of cool and rebellious.  And teenagers love nothing more than being cool and rebellious.

It was a weird time.  Looking back on it is kind of like watching a kitten bat around a mouse toy.  From my vantage point now it's silly and cute, but that kitten seriously thinks it's a badass.