The History Of Christian Rock Charlotte

By Daphne Bowen


Christian rock has always been quite popular these days as this sub genre of music has been very much favored by people who love this kind of music but are Christians. Although there are a lot of controversies still surrounding Christian rock Charlotte, there is no doubt that this sub genre has created a big impact on the secular music world and is continuing to do so. Now for those who are quite curious of how this sub genre became popular, here is a brief look at the history.

Now for the longest time, many Christians have been against rock music stating that this genre is known to be evil in nature due to the nature of their sounds, their vocals, and their lyrics. Most of these songs during those days were actually sexual in theme or violent which prompted many Christians to say that rock is the music of the devil. However, many unconventional people thought otherwise and decided to create gospel songs in this genre.

Among the first bands to join this bandwagon was none other than the Crusaders. As they were the first to come out into the scene, they were not as widely accepted because of the beliefs of the church during that time. Eventually the band become more well loved by the public and then many other bands soon followed their example.

One of the people who really made this sub genre fly was none other than Larry Norman who eventually became the father of Christian rock music. His influence as a musician and as a composer became so great that he became the influence of so many bands that came into this sub genre afterwards. Because of this man, many more popular bands came into the spotlight and further boosted the popularity of this type of music.

During the time that glam rock and metal became famous, one striking band known as Stryper made its appearance. They were a glam band that talked about their religion and how proud they were about it. They are the ones that almost completely dominated the secular music world as not only Christians listened to them but non Christians as well.

In the eighties, the music world was dominated by the presence of thrash metal bands with the big four being Metallica, Anthrax, Megadeth and Slayer. During the late eighties, one band came out with a Christian label known as Tourniquet and became popular for their thrash sound. In fact, they were also compared to the big four but were never placed there because of the complexity in their music.

When the nineties came, this sub genre became more mainstream. Alternative bands and punk bands like Relient K, Kutless, and many more started coming out. In fact, many mainstream bands who are Christians also use religious references in some of their songs.

This sub genre is definitely a growing one. The growth can be seen over the time because of the support that was given to the bands that carried the name. In fact, if one would go to Charlotte SC, many more news bands are emerging.




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