It was cringe-worthy at times with the production and staging and hosting.... I'm used to watching American Idol and this was just not as well done at all.... and American Idol has their own regular goofs. It just felt...awkward.
I was also struck by how little has changed in the Christian music scene. Is it just the Dove Awards, or is it really true that half of the big shots are the exact same big shots that came out when I was in high school or before? I mean, Steven Curtis Chapman
Michael W. Smith
Third Day
Lisa Kimmey from Out of Eden
Rebecca St. James
Kirk Franklin (who I remember singing to on a beach trip my sophomore year of HS)
Natalie Grant (and to her left... Brian from the Backstreet Boys... hilarious)
Toby Mac from DC Talk
... and worst of all... Sandi Patti??
And the irony is that I checked flikr for photos and most of these are from '06, but they were the same people on stage in '09. Yeah, it was kind of shocking - why are the same people big that were big 15 years ago? Some of them I do still enjoy listening to (ie Third Day) and SCC and Michael W. have both aged very well.... but surely there's some fresh blood in the CCM scene that deserve to win a few awards? Actually, I know there is - I have some indie Christian stuff that I love, and they were totally not represented at all.
That's sort of what bothers me - the fact that it's such an industry, so marketed.... it feels fake. And it feels like the people that are outside of the industry, they're just ignored.
There were a few people up there that I have been impressed by, and a handful that I've never heard of. Brandon Heath, for instance. Isaac commented that that was the first song that was played that Isaac liked and didn't even know what Christian. I like his style...
It was just interesting to see the difference between some of the people that stepped on stage. There were some that just struck me as being distinctly different - there was an air of gentleness and humility, and they had a different sort of way of reacting to the award and a different way of talking about their faith. Those people were encouraging.
I do listen to Chris Tomlin, who looks like he fake tans, he's really... orange hued.
Then... you gotta love this David Crowder. I don't listen to his music, but I just love that he perpetually looks like he's got his finger stuck in a light socket.
What do ya'll think? Have you found any new Christian stuff that you liked? I know people are talking about Phil Wickham, who I've never listened to. I've discovered Over the Rhine and Derek Webb recently... and Sara Groves is an acquired taste that I am acquiring. Andrew Peterson .... I didn't see any of those people at the awards, and they went totally unmentioned.
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have you heard of Cool Hand Luke? I like their Fires of Life CD a lot, most of it. I think their style would be considered indie.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Lifehouse.
Hey, I have some Brandon Heath CD's and they are awesome! A friend of mine from A&M knows him, he started as a singer at a Young Life camp where she worked. Anyway, I'll see if I can find anything to give you Sunday!
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