Mini-Listen #19
Published June 07, 2004
Bless the Martyr & Kiss the Child - Norma Jean
My wife, who teaches at a very small christian school, occasionally brings home CD's from her students. I'm always interested in them because I want to see what the kids are listening to. Are they looking beyond the monstrosity of contemporary christian velveeta (or, as folkie Greg Brown sez, "Praise the lord, let's go to the mall!")?
Anyway, late Friday night my wife announces that she's going off to bed to read and listen to some music she borrowed from a student. A few minutes later I hear this heinous blast of sound coming from behind the bedroom door. Concussive drums, metalic sludgy guitar and some cookie-monsterish vocals. The door flies open and the poor wife has quite the bemused look on her face. So much for the quiet listening session!
Obviously, Norma Jean has nothing to do with contempo-gospel. In fact, there seems to be some diversion of opinion in the fan base as to whether they're christian at all. That's not for me to decide. All I know is that the music is pretty danged exhilarating. Lots of hardcore music kind of grinds along in its own speedy way, but becomes mired in sameness after a while. Norma Jean brings a bunch of progressive elements to the table. Very interesting stuff. Heck, even if you don't like the music you can sit there and get a laugh from some of the song titles: "Pretty Soon, I Don't Know What, But Something Is Going To Happens", "Sometimes It's Our Mistakes That Make For The Greatest Ideas" and, my personal favorite: "I Used To Hate Cell Phones But Now I Hate Car Accidents".
(First posted on Mark Is Cranky)
Mark Saleski is a writer and music obsessive based out of the Monadnock region of New Hampshire. On his best day, he hopes to channel the ghosts of Lester Bangs and Jack Kerouac. He spends the hours of 9:32PM to 1:37AM carving out music reviews and essays for Jazz.com, Blogcritics.org and other publications.
- Mini-Listen #19
- Published: June 07, 2004
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- Section: Music
- Writer: Mark Saleski
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Comments on this articleComments
Mark,
Have you heard anything by Zao, or Living Sacrifice, or Nodes of Ranvier? If not, you should check them out. If you feel like it. If you don't feel like it, that's okay too. But I really think you should.
Damn, that's pretty cool stuff. Kinda-sorta like a slightly more laid-back Meshuggah. I guess I can't say all Christian rock is wimpy now, can I?
Dude,
There is alot of great stuff out there. You should check out some samplers from the Facedown Records and Solid State labels. I bet you will likey.
Tooth and Nail is largely (if not all) religious bands. The Militia Groups has a lot of Christian bands as well.
For a couple of the better heavier christian bands, check out The Beautiful Mistake who is a personal favorite of mine and Emery. I did an interview with Toby Morrell from Emery, here on blogcritics. We discussed their faith and how they use it in their music. It was interesting to hear it from the performer's perspective.
I am ashamed now. I have been thoroughly reprimanded for my humorous comment about Christian music. Will God love me again if I listen to His chosen metal? Can Norma Jean and Slayer peacefully coexist in a collection, or should I keep them separated by a healthy distance, lest the evil of Slayer seep into the goodness of Norma Jean's souls? These are important issues to consider.
you're 'safe' tom. i own both...though i'm an atheist so mebbe the point is moot.
;-)
Tom,
Do not try to place them next to each other. I have tried it, and both discs burst into flames. And yes, God will love you, not because you listen to his chosen metal, but because you listen to metal period. Especially Iron Maiden.
the dudes that think that the names of the songs are funny, it's a damn site better than any normal song name, and the songs have meaning, its not just people banging on stuff. I am a christian and i love norma jean, underoath, zao (good choice BRICKLAYER) nodes, evergreen terrace and symphony in peril so check em out. peace!
norma jean is christian. look up the lyrics. from memphis will be laid to waste "Christ is not a fashion, fleeting away."
from sometimes its our mistakes that make for the greatest ideas. "God has stolen my heart, so ill write it down."
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"I Used To Hate Cell Phones But Now I Hate Car Accidents"
This is hilarious. It sounds like these guys could do battle with Minus the Bear for funniest song titles.
My favorite Minus the Bear song title:
"Booyah Achieved"