Ií’m graduating from graduate school in a month. Ií’ve always been a bit of a scribbler and thought some schooling might contribute to my scribbles becoming printable material for a wider array of publications.

In the past Ií’ve written for local and nationwide arts and culture magazines as well as various radio and online outlets (like the one youí’re reading). I write for Capital Media not only because ití’s a worthwhile pursuit, but also because Ií’m involved with creating it.

Creating something from idea to completion is an exciting yet stressful experience, but ití’s an experience that many freelance writers must embrace and live by if theyí’re to make a living. This approach to original journalism is one we do on a regular basis for Capital and one Ií’ve brought to my final thesis project for the School of Journalism at the University of British Columbia.

I always looked to tell the untold story, stories that bring attention to subjects not covered by the general media. This is what brought me to the subject of Christian alternative rock for my final thesis. Like many people in North America, Ií’ve always been aware of the sub-genre of Christian alternative rock but never really knew why the genre existed in the first place. Why do Christians need their own version of an already diverse genre of music expression? What exactly makes their brand of rock í¢â‚¬Å“Christianí¢â‚¬ ? And is it any good? I set out to answer these questions and others.

The answer to the question, í¢â‚¬Å“Is it any good?í¢â‚¬  is the one I found most surprising. Being a lover of music who writes about it regularly, I pride myself on being open to some pretty diverse styles of it. However, going into the project, I found I still attacheda high level of music snobbery to the genre of Christian alternative rock. It doesní’t help that music labeled í¢â‚¬Å“Christianí¢â‚¬  to those not in the know, like myself, has limited exposure to secular music fans. Artists that I did know about: Jars of Clay, Amy Grant, DC Talk, etc., have always been regarded as artless renderings of popular music, but with the word í¢â‚¬Å“God: or í¢â‚¬Å“Jesusí¢â‚¬  thrown in for good measure íƒ   la the South Park episode where Eric Cartmaní’s Christian rock boy group, Faith + 1, become Christian demigods.

But as I began to read a couple of texts on the subject and meet members of the local Christian community with a love for rock music, I found myself surprisingly liking some of the music. Bands like the Danielson Family started showing up on my MP3 player, which is usually reserved for artists I feel stand out in the grand sea of audio so readily available to us.

Having your mind changed about music is one of the reasons I spend time writing about it. With so many musical options and scenes being unearthed by the interconnectivity of the internet, ití’s nice to discover a genre thatí’s always been there for the listening. Yet because of self-imposed constraints, Ií’d never dared venture to investigate.

Sometimes it takes a diversion to find what youí’re looking for. Looking for a thesis topic some eight months ago, I found myself, like many who spend more time on the internet than they anticipate, looking up random topics on Wikipedia. Somehow I stumbled on Christian rock, and it ignited my curiosity and led me to a sweaty gig space in the basement of a Langley church, drinking with Christian rockers in Seattle and numerous interviews and encounters with Christians whose musical tastes and worldview werení’t that dramatically different than this non-Christian.

As summer approaches, I hope to have more time to embark on diversions into the sonic geography of the world. Now that the summer festival season has started, we hope to be covering more music from parts of the world you doní’t usually hear from. If youí’re interested in music and think we should be covering your cousiní’s Bangra/Celtic rock hybrid band, then let me know, because something that bad sounding has to be good. Somehow.

But for now, make a diversion into the Capital music section. Over the course of the month weí’ll be posting new interviews, reviews, and any other music matters we think you should know about. If you happen to want to know more of the world of North American Christian alternative rock scene, then divert your attentions to my micro-site <http://typo3.arts.ubc.ca/v4site/index.php?id=747>. But do return soon. I think youí’ll like what you see and hear.

Robert Robot