Christian Bands, Artists and Rappers
This page will be dedicated to highlighting Christian bands and artists of all genres, although obviously a bigger focus will be placed on the bands and artists that I listen to or discover (myspace is a great place to discover new bands) and will include Rap and Hip-Hop, which I personally enjoy. I will try and point out the name of the band, their web-site, their myspace, and where you can download some videos, as well as some brief personal opinions on the band. Hopefully this will be a nice place for fellow believers to come and discover new music, whether it’s hard or soft, rap or pop. I’ll try and cover as much as I can and include my personal opinions. Check back often as new bands are posted in the genre that I think fits best.
TOTAL # of Artists: 11
METAL
Demon Hunter (label: Solid State) Myspace Purevolume Band Site
Demon Hunter is personally hands-down my favorite metal band, and probably my favorite Christian band as well. They have a very clean but heavy sound that follows a basic song structure and includes singing with great harmonizing from brutal metal to singing vocals. Best of all though, once you know the lyrics to the song, they are easy to understand and the lyrics are full of meaning and intelligently written. These guys have a real passion for the Lord as well as for metal, and it shows. On a side note, check out Ryan Clark’s [lead singer] art production company. He’s done art work for many bands (including a grammy nomination for Norma Jean’s album O’God the Aftermath), record labels and even Nintendo!
Additionals: Demon Hunter Videos (d/l & stream official videos and more)
Becoming the Archetype (label: Solid State) Myspace Purevolume Band-Site
Becoming the Archetype was discovered by Ryan Clark of Demon Hunter fame when he saw them play a show. He was so impressed that he immediatly got them signed to his band’s label, Solid State. BtA is awesome, they don’t follow typical song-structure, some of their songs go very long and they spend lots of time simply rocking out. BtA also includes lots of beautiful instrumentation in their songs in addition to the heavy sound and the lead singers awesome, deep, punishing growls.
Additionals: Stream the entire album “Terminate Damnation” (via their e-card) and view two live videos of Ex Nihilo and No Fall Too Far.
Mortal Treason (label: Flicker) Myspace Purevolume
Mortal Treason is a very cool, very brutal black metal band. They are one of the few I’ve heard however that doesn’t have a . . . shall we say “weak” screaming voice. It can grate on the nerves though due to the a higher pitched main screamer, as well as a deeper supporting screamer. Sadly the band pulled the plug recently after releasing only their second album, Sunrise Over A Sea of Blood, which features lots of instrumentation and the use of keyboards (via the lead singer’s wife) to assist in the punishing brutality. My problem with MT is that even when you know the words or are reading along to the lyrics, the screamers are STILL hard to understand. None the less, these guys (and gal) are sold out for the Lord and it shines through in their lyrics and songs. Although they aren’t around anymore, their myspace is still managed and they are trying to put together a DVD for fans.
Kronicles (label: Independant) Myspace Purevolume Band Site
Tourniquet (label: Metal Blade)
Tourniquet is an old-school metal band (though still relevant!) that’s been around since the early 90’s! A power-house in the Christian metal scene, they are veterans at what they do and have released almost one album a year since their inception! It’s a lot of good music and they have a huge and dedicated fan base. Over a decade later, almost all their original albums have gotten re-releases and a new one is on the way. With lots of instrumentals and incredible skill on the instruments, these guys have defied conventions and will definitely be around for a long time to come!
MySpace Purevolume Band Site
East West (label: Floodgate Records)
East West is a hard rock band who IMO, edges more towards metal than they do hardcore. Though they run the gamut and can do soft and light or melodic tunes as well, such as the slower songs She Cries, Hey June, For Every Wish and Superstar. East West has gotten some nationalwide interest due to them opening before bands ranging from P.O.D. and Blindside to Papa Roach and Alien Ant Farm. The band has been quiet as of late though they are reportedly still working on a new album. They are most famous for their songs like Wake, Ded, Vacant, Envy and other heavy tunes.
Myspace Purevolume Band Site
ROCK
Spoken (label: Tooth & Nail)
Spoken is a band that has such a wide range of sounds that they really avoid classification. Whether it’s the emo/screamo sound, the hardcore/post hardcore sound, the metal/light metal or simply rock or a beautiful ballad (as in the song “Mary Did You Know?”), Spoken stands true to their name, their songs speak to the heart and the lyrics are written with passion. A band you definitely should check out. I saw them in concert and they were great!
MySpace Purevolume Band Site
Skillet (label: Atlantic/Lava Records)
Skillet has been around for ages (as an almost completely different band, only one of the current members was in the original band) yet they only recently took off (beyond the Christian scene) with their most recent album, Collide. With hits like Savior, Obsession, Fingernails, A Little More and Forsaken, the album’s popularity exploded and rocked the world. Unusually for a rock band, Skillet is made up off two guys and two girls, with a female drummer as well as guitarist/keyboard. But best of all, these guys (and gals) are great musicians as well. They currently have a new album in the making. Can’t wait for it! They update their myspace often so check there for lots of news!
Myspace Purevolume Band Site
HARDCORE and EMO
UnderOath (label: Solid State/Tooth & Nail)
UnderOath has gotten huge recently as the buzz for their newest, just released album, called “Define the Great Line”, released on June 20th, got closer and closer. Now UnderOath has found themselves among Christian super bands, getting lots of airplay on MTV and cutting deals, including one with metal/gothic superchain Hot Topic, where you could come to hear the entirety of the CD played over the speakers. This is a band to watch, but you won’t like it if you aren’t into lots of screamo-style screaming.
MySpace Purevolume Band Site
RAP AND HIP-HOP
For just about all of your Christian rap needs, stop by Holy Culture Radio and Christ-In-A-Hip-Hopper.
Manafest (label: BEC/Tooth & Nail)
Manafest is rather new on the rap scene but he’s pretty good on the mic with a unique style. Although he’ll recall other white Christian rappers like KJ-52 at first, you’ll quickly realize that his rhymes are better even though he doesn’t have mad skillz or anything, though he backs it up with his lyrics and passion (and I mean no disrespect to KJ who I have immense respect for). Check him out.
Myspace Purevolume Band Site
Mars iLL (label: Gotee EMI Records/Deepspace 5 Recordings)
Highly respected in the Christian hip-hop underground Mars iLL is composed of DJ Dust and MC Manchild and their like-minded crew of DeepSpace 5. Released albums include: Raw Material, Blue Collar Sessions, Backbreakanomics, and their latest album Pro Pain (and many more albums and EP’s, including a Christmas album created for the fans due to the ProPaine wait released last year).
MySpace Purevolume Band Site