Body Piercing Saved My Life: Inside the Phenomenon of Christian Rock

Beaujon is a senior contributing writer for Spin...and a PK (preacher's kid). He is not a believer and in "Body Piercing Saved My Life" (a reference to a popular t-shirt sold at Christian music festivals which shows the pierced hands of Jesus above the slogan) he presents a non-Christian perspective of a Christian industry. Seeking to answer, "Why do Christians need their own music?" He comes out of this quest not as a Christian but as one who is "a fan, not just of the music, but of Christians, and of Jesus himself." Beujon visits many key Christian festivals and events in search for an answer; he also travels off-the-beaten-path to visit a number of indie labels and in order to introduce readers to the likes of Pedro the Lion and The Psalters. There are a number of "Christian Rock Lifers" interviews which break up the book--and ultimately do just that--they break up the flow of the narrative. Not that the interviews are bad (he speaks with Doug Van Pelt, Steve Taylor, Jay Scwhartzendruber, Bill Hearn, Mark Salomen and others--it's just that they would serve better as appendices. Beaujon does a great job traveling not only geographically, but taking the reader back in time. In the second chapter, "No More LSD for ME (I met the Man from Galilee" he jumps back in time to the "early days of Christian rock music" notable for "the smell emanating from the musicians, reconstructed hippies crammed into a station wagon, lying on the top of amps as they traveled from church to church. They loved Jesus. They didn't shower much." As I mentioned early he visits a number of musicians and those who run independent Christian labels. His quest includes a stop at Calvin College's Festival of Faith and Music. Really, through the first half of the book he heaps praises on the indie spirit of early Christian musicians and highlights of the alt-Christian acts on labels like Tooth and Nail that are creating interesting music that appeals to non-Christians like himself. Then he heads to GMA Week. The chapters on his time in Nashville for the Gospel Music Associations main event are highly amusing. It is there that he gets baptized into the world of "worship music." "Worship music is Christian Music, and it's rock music, but, confusingly, it's not quite the same thing as Christian rock. Most good size evangelical churches have their own worship bands, which lead the congregation in a sort of amplified folk mass. Worship music has "hits," songs that appear on compilations like Worship Jamz and are licensed to individual churches through Christian Copyright Licensing International, a company that also keeps track of the most performed songs in churches and pays songwriter royalties, much like ASCAP and BMI. ... If you've seen that TV commercial for Time-Life's Worship Together Collection, you've heard worship music. Much--not all, but enough to tar the whole genre--of it sounds like Christian pop scrubbed of any remaining hint of menave. It's usual

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I am a Christ follower, and it was interesting reading about the history of Christian rock. Of greater interest to me was looking at things from Andrew's perspecitve on Christianity as a self-described non-Christian (not anti-Christian). Beyond his perspectve on Christianity and Christian music, my favorite thing was the occasional glimpse into his own personal journey and thoughts.

As a Christian who has refused to disengage my brain in order to embrace religion, I am encouraged that an agnostic writer would be willing to tackle the wooly subject of Christian rock and roll. Is such music the real deal? Is it all about money? Is it even necessary? Beaujon approaches his subject with honesty, insight, and not even a smidgen of mean-spiritedness. He admits that the secular media has some biases toward this sector of music, but he himself explores the fringes and the heart of the matter with eyes open and intellect intact. "Body Piercing Saved My Life" is an admirable job of reporting, on any level. Not only does the author take us through the history of modern Christian music, he explores the trends and theologies that infiltrate it. He pulls no punches, showing the frustrations of those within the industry--regarding lifestyles, business practices, and censorship--but he also demonstrates the rare willingness of an outsider to enjoy and even be moved by the music. Admittedly, these moments of enjoyment come infrequently for him (for understandable reasons). I was one of those church kids, back in the eighties, who loved rock music and wanted to be "with it." With parents who were pastors, this meant I had to rummage through the garbage pile of Christian music and hope to find gold flakes (no double meaning intended) in the stream of heavenly wannnabes. Of course, as the years passed, I realized that life could not be compartmentalized into simple boxes--despite the attempts of many preachers to do so. Although I've still managed to hold onto a belief in a relationship with Jesus, I've been discouraged by the industry's attempts to cover up scandals and to placate the masses with mediocre "worship" music. To hear Beaujon address these subjects is to be reminded that Christian rock and Christianity itself should be more than a phenomenon--they should be reflections of the love of Christ for those inside and out of the religious machine. Andrew, thank you for "risking" a year in the trenches of American Churchianity. I would've loved more focus on fringe bands (such as Underoath, As I Lay Dying, As Cities Burn, Project 86), but you did a remarkably comprehensive job. Your candid, yet mostly kind, words should be a challenge for thought and action on the part of all those involved.

I'll have to admit, as a disaffected fan of CCM I was more than eager to read this book. I have long been disenchanted with the music scene that Andrew Beaujon explores. In fact, I doubt that I would have been able to write such a book without a breakdown to subjectivity. Perhaps that is why Beaujon is able to write so fairly and honestly. Rather than having an axe to grind, the author writes mainly to answer his own questions. And the results make for an interesting commentary on a unique aspect of American culture. This book is not meant to be a history of Christian rock, nor is it exhaustive in detail. That allows Beaujon to do what he does so well: focus on personalities. If you are already an insider to this scene many of these names will be familiar to you. Steve Taylor, Doug Van Pelt, and Brandon Ebel are among a few of the subjects that the author explores. Beaujon doesn't dwell on the "who did what" of the story. Instead, he digs beneath the surface in order to figure out why these people have created an alternative universe for their art. When Beaujon trudges from festival to festival it is hard not to be somewhat amused as he sadistically forces himself to listen to mediocre rock bands in order to wait for interviews that never come. Indeed, his own frustrations often come out in the book as industry insiders are protective of their closed community. Considering the circumstances, I think he has done well. Personally I didn't care for how Beaujon interrupted the flow of his narrative by mixing transcribed interviews in with his more conventional chapters. And I must register a small complaint that, having little interest in the current crop of musicians, I had found myself nodding off during interviews with mewithyou, Mute Math, and a slew of other forgettable bands. My age probably has something to do with that. Still, after hearing of the frustrations of getting interviews I understand that the opportunities for other interviews may have been limited. Finally, I will admit I was rather turned off by his chapter devoted to Rock For Life. I can understand how this particular organization might fit into the book as a minor subpoint, but I don't think it is worth highlighting this organization in a book about Christian rock music. Save your research for the next book! Overall, I enjoyed this book. As hard as it is for me to stand outside what I see as part of my own religious upbringing, I am glad to finally hear a true outsider's perspective. I suppose in all fairness I should admit my bias in reviewing this book. I spent some time talking with Andrew early on in his research and you will find my name in the acknowledgements. However, that is only worth about one star in my review of this engaging book. This is as fair a treatment of this subject matter as you will find anywhere. I can say personally that this is truly a topic that was of great Mr. Beaujon and that he writes with an open mind. I think this b

i have to admit firstly that i wasn't sure i would like this book. i chose to read it for a look at a genre i was prejudiced against, hoping that it might change my mind one way or another. it turned out to be much better than i expected. the whole book is not just about christian rock, but about the people who make it, and what effect their christianity has on their lives. beaujon has a wonderful journalistic style, not one you would expect from the pages of spin magazine, but something you would expect to find hidden in the pages of rolling stone magazine or in the editorial section of the big takeover. amazingly, it made me want to go out and listen to some christian rock, a genre that i have tried to avoid like the plague for the last several years. a wonderful book.