Bazan Vs. Webb

There have been two albums dominating my iPod lately.  It’s the newest works from Derek Webb (Stockholm Syndrome) and David Bazan (Curse Your Branches).  Both are established artists that began with band in the Christian music industry (Bazan’s band being Pedro the Lion and Webb’s Caedmon’s Call).  Webb’s solo material has brought him recognition outside the Christian hype machine (most notably a big fan was television creator/comic book writer Allan Heinberg-who has since become close friends with Webb).  Bazan became an indie darling with Pedro the Lion.  Both have been known for thoughtful lyrics that challenged the faithful to examine their lives.  Both also have become more noticeably “liberal”.  But the two paths have become a bit divergent with their latest albums.

Both are courting controversy with their newest collections of songs.  In Bazan’s case, it cannot be helped, in Webb’s, I get the impression he is being more deliberately provocative.  I don’t say this as a criticism.  I think there is a time and place to be provocative.  And with Webb’s new work, it’s almost unheard of in Christian music.  It’s not the use of “shit” that is most likely to stir the pot, but rather the fact that the song What Matters More is a full blown challenge to the anti-gay attitudes in the modern Church.  The opening verse is:

You say always treat people like you’d like to be
i guess you love being hated for your sexuality

Derek is not being polite.  I am not sure what Derek’s take on homosexuality is, though I would love to converse with him on the topic.  I suspect it would make for an interesting conversation.  It is important to note that if you buy the Christian label release from INO Records, you won’t get this song.  The label balked at releasing the album, until Webb agreed to let them release it without the song.  You can get the un-edited album from Webb.

What really stands out about this album is how different it is sonically.  Webb’s early works were minimal folkie efforts.  His last release, the Ringing Bell was a Beatles influenced pop CD.  But this album is neither.  It is… well, a sort of techno CD.  Webb and producer Josh Moore have created a very experimental album.  I like it, though I am not sure that this sound could sustain multiple albums for Webb.

The lyrics are all very stream of consciousness, and I confess, I have not figured out what is being said in most of them.  It is like they are written in code.  In Spirit Vs. the Kickdrum Derek sings:

i don’t want the Son, i want a jury of peers
i don’t want the Son, i want a jury of peers
mascara’s gonna run when you see my tears
i don’t want the Son, i want a jury of peers

And while I get that the Spirit, the Father and Son that are referenced throughout the song are spiritual allusions, exactly what Webb might be stating is not currently something I am finding simple to parse.  The State is a little clearer-

my taxes paid, these roads were laid
to places of my choosing
there were no eyes up in the skies
looking down into my bed
there was no government without our consent
keys were made for anyone who just claimed it
glass was all of every wall that framed it
from sea to shining sea

It seems to be addressing letting the state run our lives and morality.  But I could be way off.  The track the Proverbial Gun is haunting and honestly beautiful.   Derek has a great love song on this disc called I Love/Hate You.  I think the best love songs are the ones that can combine the joys and frustrations of relationships, and this does it fantastically:

baby when i listen to your words
they whisper to me like the wind
but they’re strong enough to blow me down
and destroy my house

One of my favorite tracks is What You Give Up to Get It:

like style made by slaves
like bribes to throw the race
like women who know their place
like an indian casino or a tank of unleaded
it’s never quite worth what you give up to get it

It has a nice beat driving the track, which speaks to the challenges of his earlier songs like I Repent.  This is probably the most “rock” of any track. Another track that is easy to get is Becoming a Slave, in which Derek sings:

progress has more than one face
evil isn’t always itself
there’s nothing you can change without changing
everything else

it’s simple
it’s so simple
if they’re not like us

becoming a slave is easier than you think

The suggestions and multiple meanings abound in this track.  I find suggestions that we enslave those who are different, as well as admiring those who are different and giving into our own indifference towards ourselves.  American Flag Umbrella also seems to be challenging, among other things opponents of Gay Marriage:

oppression is always oppression
no matter the reasons or means
for skin or for sex,
by stares or by fists it’s the same
there are blinders on everyone

The entire song is actually, well, quite timely.  Considering it was written before the healthcare reform debate blew up, it seems oddly precient:

but i’m beset on all sides
by extremists with eyes on my heart
so i lie to everyone

Jena and Jimmy is a track with a certain dark humor.  It tells the tell of a guy trying to seduce a woman, it’s a rather upbeat and almost radio friendly tune with a heavy dose of satire.  The same is true of Heaven:

i heard Jesus Christ was there
he had a car that’s bulletproof
that way everyone is safe
from the man who tells the truth

The gentleness of the ballad really sets the listener up for a rude shock as the song speaks of entering Heaven and finding it less than satisfying(Although, whether it is a literal heaven being addressed, or heaven as a metaphor, I am unsure).

But where Derek is seeming to find a new approach to Faith and Christianity, David Bazan has followed a different road.  The first single is Bless This Mess is almost deceptive.  It’s an upbeat song that calls out:

God bless the man who stumbles
God bless the man who falls
God bless the man who yields to temptation

God bless the woman who suffers
God bless the woman who weeps
God bless the children trying her patience

Many Christians would have no trouble reading this highly confessional song as some sort of hope filled prayer.  But the opening track, Hard to Be suggests Bless This Mess has a certain dark cynicism to it.  Hard to Be Says:

childbirth is painful
we toil to grow our food
ignorance made us hungry
information made us no good
every burden misunderstood
so i swung my tassle
to the left side of my cap
knowing after graduation
there would be no going back
and no congratulations
from my faithful family
some of whom are already fasting
to intercede for me

The title song is even a harder pill.  David sings:

and why are some hell bent upon there being an answer
while some are quite content to answer i don’t know
all fallen leaves should curse their branches
for not letting them decide where they should fall
and not letting them refuse to fall at all

The Branch in question is God, the Leaves fallen would be man.  The entire album carries on this honest and painfully heartfelt dialog.  But I certainly suspect it will be to much for some of David’s fans, that a lyric such as:

when job asked you the question
you responded “who are you
to challenge your creator?”
well if that one part is true
it makes you sound defensive
like you had not thought it through
enough to have an answer
like you might have bit off
more than you could chew

Will be far to insolent to be able to enjoy the album.  The rather sarcastic When We Fell states:

what am i afraid of
whom did i betray
in what medieval kingdom does justice work this way
if you knew what would happen and made us just the same
then you , my lord, can take the blame

The song continues the themes of wondering if God is real, and if He is…did he rig the game?

when you set the table
and when you chose the scale
did you write a riddle
that you knew they would fail
did you make them tremble
so they would tell the tale
did you push us when when we fell

Pretty much every track addresses this struggle, coming to terms with not merely doubting, but disbelief.  And he paints it as a real struggle.

i might as well admit it
like i even have a choice
the crew have killed the captain
but they still can hear his voice
a shadow on the water
a whisper in the wind

And to me, there is where this CD shines, lyrically.  I always feel a bit bad for public people who come to no longer not believe in Christianity as a truth.  The reason is that, for all the good intentions I see from Christians to attempt to come across as understanding, their spiritual confidence often becomes a judgmental arrogance-even though the did not mean for it to.  They think if you just read the right authors, or just keep reading the Bible, or keep showing up in church, just join a small group, etc, you will suddenly get it, and realize you were on the right path.  And there is a tendency to presume they know better than others as to why the person “lost” faith.  It makes things tough for someone to have a truly honest spiritual dialog when having serious doubts.

In this fashion, Bazan is incredibly brave to put these songs out, knowing his churched fan base might respond less than enthusiastically and less than supportive…

As far as the music goes, it’s simple, but often upbeat alternative folk pop.  I found myself enjoying the music on this disc, which is pretty optimistic.  Ironically, the music on this disc is far more… cheerful than the music he wrote under Pedro the Lion.  While I am enjoying both albums, I confess I am enjoying Bazan’s Curse Your Branches slightly more than Stockholm Syndrome.

However, I consider both albums quite good, both in the challenge of the lyrics and the musical beds they have ade for those lyrics.