How do you select your music?

[Nocturnal_Principal_X]

For you Christians (I say this because not everyone on this board is Christian) on the board how do you go about selecting “appropriate” music? I am one of those rare Christians who really only likes secular music, I do not really like contemporary Christian music, so naturally I have to be very mindful of what I listen to since there is some bad stuff out there.



So please tell me how do you select the music you listen to?

 

[Western Deity]

You're not rare .

 

[cygnusx1]

For you Christians (I say this because not everyone on this board is Christian) on the board how do you go about selecting “appropriate” music? I am one of those rare Christians who really only likes secular music, I do not really like contemporary Christian music, so naturally I have to be very mindful of what I listen to since there is some bad stuff out there.



So please tell me how do you select the music you listen to?

don't take this the wrong way , but image does have something to do with it ....... I can sometimes tell which grouups I will like just by looking at how they project themselves .... I mean those bands that are aggresive and Dark usually let you know straight away.

 

[ps139]

I agree with cygnus...also, if I like something, I listen to it... unless I hear some terrible lyrics, then that song or band is out of the rotation. There is a lot of "neutral" music out there which does not praise Jesus and does not worship satan, you know what I mean?

 

[Everglaze]

I just pick among my favourite Christian artists.

I'm not really a fan of the worship songs but the ordinary God praising songs written by artists is fine with me.

I used to love secular rock and rap music but now I'm trashing them/giving them away to someone. All I find in the CDs that I purchased were antichrist lyrics and God-bashing themes which are definitely some of the things I want to stay away from, especially as a form of entertainment.

 

[ps139]

Yeah, for about 2 years all I listened to was rap, now I can't stand a lot of it just because the lyrical content throws me off. I heard the new Eminem cd it was like grating on my ears.
Go for some nice classical, elctronica, or instrumental rock - I enjoy those 3 the most, and there are no ungodly lyrics to worry about.

 

[Qyöt27]

I hear a song, like the song, check out the lyrics from that song or the other lyrics from that artist, and make an informed decision.

I tend to be a little more lax than some people, though. Not saying that I would listen to purposefully hateful or anti-Christian lyrics, but that many things that some would take offense to I see as metaphorical or in a different light where I focus on something else the song may be trying to get across (sort of like asking 'Why are they saying this?', and infer something about what the song could possibly truly mean, since that can be quite different when taken in context, rather than just simply say 'I didn't like this line because it's bad', reject the rest of the song's context and throw the song out). It's simply the way I've grown in my ability to analyze music (or various other mediums).

For instance, there's a line in the MDFMK song "Rabblerouser" that goes something like, "Life is short and God is Man." Now, when I first heard it, I felt a little uncomfortable with that assertion, even though I knew that was taken directly from Nietzchean philosophy. Of course, in the context of the song, I can see it's talking more about the thought pattern of this person or personage (since it seems to be somewhat abstract), rather than making a clear exertion. I'm not saying that Nietzchean philosophy is A.O.K., but in the context of the song that line makes perfect sense (not to mention it was in an anime music video set to the series Neon Genesis Evangelion, which seems even more like a perfect fit considering the events in the series). KMFDM/MDFMK does play around a lot with nihilistic and Nietzchean themes, so it doesn't surprise me that this song was recorded, but I've never really found issue with their music as a whole. It seems to be more political and social commentary than philosophical rambling. That's just one example.

 

[nadroj1985]

I tend to be a little more lax than some people, though. Not saying that I would listen to purposefully hateful or anti-Christian lyrics, but that many things that some would take offense to I see as metaphorical or in a different light where I focus on something else the song may be trying to get across (sort of like asking 'Why are they saying this?', and infer something about what the song could possibly truly mean, since that can be quite different when taken in context, rather than just simply say 'I didn't like this line because it's bad', reject the rest of the song's context and throw the song out). It's simply the way I've grown in my ability to analyze music (or various other mediums).

You sell yourself short by calling that "being lax." You're actually taking a much more of an active role in understanding the music than someone who hears something like "Jesus won't you ****ing whistle/something but the past and done" and writes it off on general principle, IMO.

Bravo.

 

[Qyöt27]

You sell yourself short by calling that "being lax." You're actually taking a much more of an active role in understanding the music than someone who hears something like "Jesus won't you ****ing whistle/something but the past and done" and writes it off on general principle, IMO.

Bravo.

Well, I guess I called it being lax because of the way others would probably look at it (even though the thought process I actually described kind of nullifies it). Although there are some songs (can't remember for the life of me which ones) that have religious symbolism that I can't figure out but I don't write the song off just because it could be offensive. I just may not listen to it that much and come back to it later. Most of that thought process is subconscious anyway. I sometimes have to strain myself to remember the conclusions I've made about certain material because most people make an effort to 'justify' the music somehow, I guess, and once the thought process is over (unless the song is very meaningful), the justification is over and I know the song's ok. I don't really like the idea of having to 'justify' yourself listening to a song, but due to lack of my thoughts forming clearly at the moment that was the best word I could come up with. Most of the time I probably don't hear the lyrics after a while; maybe not, but I'm just rambling incoherently now. I tend to do that a lot.

 

[Cobra]

i just listen to what i like. most of the time its rock music, but i listen to everything from blues and jazz to goth rock and industrial stuff. the stuff i don't listen to is stuff that i think sounds like ****, has crappy lyrics, or offends me by any way.

 

[lonelypilgrim]

I enjoy an entire array of music across the entire spectrum. I enjoy everything from classical, opera, bluegrass, country, jazz, blues, rock, ect...like I said some of everything. Once I hear a song I go online to the bands website or a lyric search to see what the band says about itself and what the lyrics say. I then make a judgment call. I also find myself asking if I would be embarrassed if someone heard me listening to this and keep in mind that I belong to Jesus and ask if He would approve.
Music is a wonderful gift. Enjoy.