Welcome to a new series presented by [nxtlvl]mag.com, “Crossing Over”. It chronicles the advancement of various Christian Musical acts and their mainstream commercial success. First up in the series:

 By Andrew Conant 

Ever since David danced through the streets of Jerusalem with the Ark of the Covenant, musicians have been “making a joyful noise unto the Lord.”  The earliest recorded examples, of course, were traditional hymns and deep-fried Southern gospel, created for and bought almost exclusively by believers.  The recordings were seen as a niche market, not for profit but for worship. 

But something interesting has happened over the years.  The mainstream record-buying public has become receptive to their favorite artists singing about God.  Dylan boldly proclaimed he was born again in the late 70s.  U2’s Bono sang that he believed that Jesus died for him.  Kiss even covered a song by a Christian rock band in 1992.   

These music giants allowed the developing Christian music industry to step beyond their limited market and expand the audience.  Suddenly, Stryper is playing in front of thousands and opening up for Bon Jovi and Ratt.  Jars of Clay are all over Top 40 radio.  dc Talk’s Jesus Freak goes double platinum. Doors are wide open for a slew of artists willing to call themselves Christian, and mainstream audiences are perfectly willing to listen. 

As long they are interesting. 

As long as they are different. 

As long as they are current. 

The band Relient K meets all three criteria, and has consistently maintained its relevance and freshness.  They have encountered a good deal of success (over 2 million CDs sold), played all over the place (including Leno, Conan, and Kimmel), and still remain unapologetically Christian.  Their fans don’t seem to care, so long as they keep churning out the hits and entertain them. Relient K are only too happy to oblige, and don’t mind throwing a little spiritual food in for good measure.

Where did they come from? Toby McKeehan of dc Talk was able to use his experience as a producer and artist to cofound a record label called Gotee Records in 1994.  One of its primary goals was to find and produce acts that would appeal to the mainstream.  The label’s first find was Out of Eden, an R&B sister trio out of Virginia.  They eventually cracked Billboard’s Top 200 and were nominated for a Grammy, but broke up a few years ago.  Relient K, named after the guitarist’s Plymouth, was discovered in 1998.  They were quirky, accessible, and sounded as fresh as anything out there. 

They have managed to get better, more original, more polished, and more mature over time.  Two of the original band members are still around – Matt Thiessen (guitar/vocals), and Matt Hoopes (guitar).  True to rock and roll form, the drummers and bassists have rotated like a rotisserie chicken.  Nevertheless, the two Matts have been able to craft positive, thoughful, and meaningful pop-punk anthems that speak to the listener in various ways.  The videos are fun, energetic, and yet every one of them can be seen as parables.  There are many layers and many interpretations. 

The video for the song “Be My Escape” (Mmhmm, 2004) shows the band playing in a room that is closing around them while Thiessen calls for help.  While the song itself never mentions God as the savior it is understood in lyrics like “I know to live you must give your life away” and “I can’t ask you to give what you already gave.”  At the end of the video the walls fall down and the band is playing in a deeply rich and somewhat mysterious grassy field at the edge of a cliff.  It’s a beautiful picture of what God can do for each of us. 

The video for the song “Pressing On” (Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek, 2001) has the band stepping out of a tour van to a crowd of adoring fans trying to get their attention.  A beautiful girl steps right in front of them waving a sign, but they keep walking right by her.  A screaming shirtless fellow is caught by security before he can reach them.  The B roll footage of the band playing in front of the audience has them facing the other way.  The connotation is that they are not going to be swayed by distraction. Thiessen sings “Somewhere back there I left my worries all behind / My problems fell out of the back of my mind,” and the viewer can’t help but believe him. 

A lot of Relient K’s appeal is their humor.  In “Pressing On” all four band members are inexplicably wearing fanny packs.  At one point Thiessen pulls out a cell phone that was obsolete in the mid 80’s.  The bassist whips out a chapstick.  Past album titles include Two Lefts Don’t Make a Right – But Three Do and Deck The Halls, Bruise Your Hand.  More than a third of their song titles are plays on words, like many pop-punk acts.  In concert they have covered, among others,  Paula Abdul, Gnarls Barkley, Kenny Loggins, and the theme from the TV show Full House. 

The key to the band’s success, much like any Christian band that reaches the mainstream, is that the lyrics are more about faith and a deeper sense of spirituality than simply proclaiming Jesus is the Christ.  It’s as though Thiessen could be talking about his relationship with God or his relationship with another human.  For example, there are pictures of a girl on the walls in the video “Be My Escape.” Is she his escape – his desire? Or is it that the singer is asking God to help with an unhealthy or immoral relationship?   

Ultimately it’s left up to the listener, and most listeners are just digging the drum beat and power chords too much to care.  The message is clear, however.  Relient K is seeking God in their lives, and they seem to be having a lot of fun in the process.

About the Author, Andrew Conant:

After graduating with a degree in Music Business Marketing (yeah, I know – it’s useless outside of Nashville, LA, or NY…), I worked in the Christian music business for a number of years.  You can thank me for such WELL-KNOWN bands as Broomtree, Polarboy, Jesse’s Vineyard, Common Children, Christine Glass, etc, etc, etc.  All incredible artists and dear friends.  I had the…ummm…honor of marketing Katy Hudson in 2000, when she was a fresh faced teen out of CA and hadn’t kissed a girl yet.  We had a great sister group on there too called Aurora, and I jet-setted around with them on a big ole tour with someone that I can’t remember now.  Anyway, the list goes on and on, but no one’s ever heard of any of these bands, so now I write about bands people have heard of.  That’s for reading!