Christian alternative rock is a form of

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

music that is lyrically grounded in a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

worldview. Some critics have suggested that unlike CCM and older

Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus, typically performed by self-proclaimed Christian individuals. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly C ...

, Christian alternative rock generally emphasizes musical style over lyrical content as a defining genre characteristic, though the degree to which the faith appears in the music varies from artist to artist.

History

Christian alternative music has its roots in the early 1980s, as the earliest efforts at

Christian punk Christian punk is a form of Christian music and a subgenre of punk rock which contain Christian lyrical content. Much disagreement persists about the boundaries of the subgenre, and the extent that their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies a ...

and new wave were recorded by artists like Andy McCarroll and Moral Support,

Undercover To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an ind ...

the 77s The 77s (alternatively spelled the Seventy Sevens, the 77's, or simply 77's) is an American rock band consisting of Michael Roe on vocals/guitar, Mark Harmon on bass guitar, and Bruce Spencer on drums. History The group was “formed at a ch ...

, Steve Scott, Adam Again, Quickflight,

Daniel Amos Daniel Amos (aka D. A., Dä) is an American Christian rock band formed in 1974 by Terry Scott Taylor on guitars and vocals, Marty Dieckmeyer on bass guitar, Steve Baxter on guitars and Jerry Chamberlain on lead guitars. The band currently con ...

, Youth Choir (later renamed the Choir), Lifesavers Underground, Michael Knott,

the Prayer Chain The Prayer Chain was a 1990s Christian alternative rock band. The band has been called "the epitome of the Christian underground". The Prayer Chain was known for producing moody, angst-ridden music which was, in turn, the result of creative diff ...

Altar Boys Altar Boys were a Christian punk band from California formed in 1982. The original members were Mike Stand (vocals, songwriting and guitar), Jeff Crandall (drums), Steve Pannier (guitars) and Ric Alba (bass guitar and backing vocals). Mark Ro ...

Breakfast with Amy Breakfast with Amy was an American Christian alternative rock band, formed in 1986 in La Habra, California at the La Habra Four-Square church. At that time, the band consisted of vocalist David Koval, bassist Jeff "Tennessee Beans" Beahn, guitari ...

, Steve Taylor,

4-4-1 4-4-1 (also written as "441") are an alternative-pop Christian rock band who played primarily in the 1980s. 4-4-1 consisted of lead singer/guitarist John McNamara, drummer Steve Giali, lead guitarist John Giali and bassist/keyboardist Glenn Hol ...

, David Edwards and

Vector Vector most often refers to: *Euclidean vector, a quantity with a magnitude and a direction *Vector (epidemiology), an agent that carries and transmits an infectious pathogen into another living organism Vector may also refer to: Mathematic ...

. Early labels, most now-defunct, included

Blonde Vinyl Blonde Vinyl was an independent record label founded in 1990 by Michael Knott. The ''Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music'' describes the label as "one of Christian music's first true indie labels." Background Blonde Vinyl signed bands w ...

Frontline Front line refers to the forward-most forces on a battlefield. Front line, front lines or variants may also refer to: Books and publications * ''Front Lines'' (novel), young adult historical novel by American author Michael Grant * ''Frontlines ...

, Exit, and Refuge. By the 1990s, many of these bands and artists had disbanded, were no longer performing, or were being carried by independent labels because their music tended to be more lyrically complex (and often more controversial) than mainstream

Christian pop Contemporary Christian music, also known as CCM, Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and s ...

. The modern market is currently supported by labels such as Tooth & Nail, Gotee and Floodgate. These companies are often children of, or partially owned, by general market labels such as Warner, EMI, and

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of not ...

, giving successful artists an opportunity to "cross over" into mainstream markets.

References

External links

God Save the Teens: Local Kids Seek a New Kind of Church Through Hardcore and Hip-Hop
by Lauren Sandler in the

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...

30 May - 5 June 2001 {{DEFAULTSORT:Christian Alternative Rock 20th-century music genres Alternative rock genres

Alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

History

See also

References

External links