#dan vaughn

[earpeeler]

Neckbreaker – NB116: Ritual Fest / Wrestlemania 33

Neckbreaker – NB116: Ritual Fest / Wrestlemania 33

Brian briefly interviews Dan Vaughn, the promoter of the UK’s Ritual Festival to discuss the fest, booking advice, pay to play, and more. Later, the wrestling panel with Brian, Sir Kessaris, Chris from Vattnet, Ali formerly from Hivesmasher, and past cohost John Aubrey covers the Wrestlemania 33 card.

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[delinquentgentleman]

Dane Vaughn by Van Styles

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

Upton Sinclair and Dating

By Dan Vaughn

(Last week, I began a series writing about specific books and their significance in my memory. This is part 2. Part 1 is here.)

In the fall of 1999, I enrolled at the University of Texas Pan American. I had been kicked out of ministerial school the year before and was languishing in a janitorial job at a local factory. That first semester, More time was spent in Fatman & LittleBoy’s (a coffee shop) playing cards and listening to music than any amount of studying I should have been doing and when finals were done I was lucky to only have failed two classes (the other two grades were a C and a D, though I wonder how I could possibly have earned those). I wonder what my father and mother must have thought that December. They were aware of my intelligence and abilities and I can’t imagine how frustrated they must have been. If I ever have a son, I hope I have half my parent’s patience.

So with the Winter break done, I enrolled for another semester of punishment. After the embarrassment of the Fall, I decided I would do things differently. Several significant events helped my grades that second semester. 1. My brother died midway through the semester from complications of diabetes. He hadn’t held me back from studying, but the sudden loss of my 19-year old brother made me reassess my life and goals. Suddenly everything became more significant and time-sensitive. Who knew if I was next? 2. Fatman & Littleboy’s closed down due to mismanagement and drug abuse. I will always have fond memories of that shop in Edinburg, but it was, honestly, very poorly managed. Too many of the managers were snorting the profits and its eventual collapse was inevitable.

  So with a renewed sense of importance and a lack of distraction, I began to study instead of wasting time and added some friends who were focused on their studies. This group hung out at the “tables,” a set of picnic tables outside the SBSC building. I spent hours beneath the trees reading for classes, talking about philosophy, and mocking the hippies playing hacky sack (and yes, that is how you spell it).  I was becoming a different person, I wasn’t just attending college, I became a student. Then after all this change in my life, two things happened that semester that blended the worlds of literature and relationships.

  One day, mid-semester, I found a copy of The Jungle by Upton Sinclair at the tables. It was a paperback with the cover ripped off, a sure sign of being a giveaway from a bookstore. Most stores, when taking a paperback out of inventory, don’t want to ship the whole book back to the publisher because it isn’t worth the shipping. Instead, they remove only the front cover (and the barcode inside it) and return a box of covers for credit instead. The meat of the book is recycled, thrown away, or given to an employee. So this book looked like trash, missing its cover and part of the spine, but, in reality, everything written within the book was still there.

  I asked around for its owner, got no response, and decided to read it till someone asked for it. Within a week of my discovery, I met a young woman while reading my book one afternoon. Weighing over 300 pounds can make a man timid when it comes to women, and I was. So we talked each day for a week before I asked for her number. I didn’t have paper with me, so I scrawled her name and number across the cover page of the book. That phone number led to a relationship that lasted 5 years and spanned my entire college experience. The book, on the other hand, would stir a life-long respect for activist literature and the change that can be inspired by a great book.

  Maybe I don’t need to discuss the contents of the book because they are so well-known, but I will regardless. Sinclair’s novel describes the meat processing plants in Chicago, through the story of a close-knit family struggling to survive the squalor of a turn-of-the-century industrial city. While the shocking aspects of the book seemed farfetched to many (including Teddy Roosevelt), the conditions of the novel were based on Sinclair’s undercover research. The lack of sanitation, concern for workers, and quality control mentioned within the novel led to the founding of the USDA and a complete shakeup of the meat industry in the United States.

  Sitting at the tables reading a book about such horrifying conditions and the suffering of a fictional family moved me emotionally and made me appreciate the talents of its author and the changes he spurred. Muckraking isn’t usually my cup of tea, but Sinclair’s style and focus caught me off-guard, in a good way.

  I never found the owner of the book, so I kept it.

  Oh, and that number I wrote across the cover.

This article, in a much shorter version, ran in the McAllen Monitor 4/26/11.

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

A Snob's Guide to MLS: Choosing Your Team (cont.)

By Dan Vaughn

The continuation of our MLS preview....

Western Conference

Chivas USA

Chivas is, of course, connected with its Mexican sister-club, Guadalajara. Their crests, kits, and nicknames are identical. Both clubs are owned by Jorge Vergara, the Mexican film producer and business owner. He is famous for producing the film everyone loves: Y tu mamá también (which I hate, personally). He also owns the Costa Rican club Saprissa, now in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League. The man has a touch with soccer clubs that, so far, Chivas USA hasn’t lived up to. Last year, Chivas lost their best player, Sacha Kljestan, to Belgian Pro League Champion Anderlecht. To make the situation even more complicated, the entire leadership of the club, including CEO, VP, and head coach, either stepped down or were released. 

Best Player: Jimmy Conrad

  Colorado Rapids

Before you tell me how good he is (and his stats indicate he really is good), my first impression of Conor Casey is that he looks fat and slow. Just saying. On the other hand, his teammate, Omar Cummings, is a burner. Ok, soapbox put away, Colorado won the MLS cup last year, thanks to an own goal by FC Dallas in the second overtime period (while I did not watch the Final last year, after reading this fact, I really regret missing it). Sadly, Colorado switched to a new kit this year, shedding the awesome sky blue away kit that I loved so much. Last year’s MLS Cup win was a bit of a surprise after years of apathetic mid-table finishes. If you are looking for a team to support on the rise, this is the one.

Best Player: Conor Casey

  FC Dallas

FC Dallas plays their home games in Pizza Hut Park, which amuses me quite a bit due to the way the name blends two place designators (Hut, Park). Previously known as the Dallas Burn (horrible name), the club switched to its current name in 2006 which follows in the pattern of many European soccer clubs (FC stands for Football Club). 2010 was a great year for FC Dallas, winning the Western Conference and only narrowly losing the final to the Colorado Rapids. The Polyphonic Spree’s “Hoops, Yes!” is the clubs anthem. I’ve listened to it, its horrible. Just saying.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AykY5eJFkO8

 Best Player: David Ferreira (2010 MLS MVP)

  Los Angeles Galaxy

Of all the clubs in the MLS, the Galaxy need the least description. This is due to the addition a couple years back of Mr. David Beckham. Along with his Spice Girl wife, Posh, Beckham made MLS important for about 30 seconds. But for the most part now, the honeymoon is over. Beckham is resented due to his apparent lack of focus on the team and MLS, making multiple attempts to permanently transfer to European clubs. Sadly eclipsed by the English star is one of the best players the United States has ever produced, Landon Donovan. The Galaxy are one of only two MLS clubs to win CONCACAF (2000).

Best Player: Landon Donovan

  Portland Timbers

Expansion teams always suck. And when I say expansion teams, I actually mean expansion teams versus teams that relocate and rename. Portland is brand new, this being their first year in the MLS (they played in the USL Division 1 last year). The major plus of choosing this team as your favorite is that you certainly aren’t being a bandwagoner. I watched their opening match vs. Colorado. They looked overmatched in their loss and I’m not too hopeful for their season. I guess they have nice colors? *shrug* 

Best Player: Brian Umony

 Real Salt Lake

The history of using “Real” in a team name comes primarily from the Spanish soccer leagues. In the 1920s, the Spanish king Alfonso XIII designated certain teams with the “Real” tag, meaning “royal” (in Spanish). Sort of like a big stamp of government approval for your soccer club. While several clubs in Spain retain the title, you probably have only heard of one of them, Real Madrid. When Salt Lake chose their club name there was some complaints against it, due to the historical inaccuracy it presents. However, it has gained acceptance and RSL has a standing 10-year partnership with Real Madrid to train players and develop a cooperative youth academy. Currently RSL is in the semifinals of the CONCACAF Champions League Tournament, the only remaining MLS club in the contest. MLS champions two years ago, quarterfinalist last year, this team is good and their future is bright.

Best Player: Álvaro Saborío

  San Jose Earthquakes

In 2006, the San Jose Earthquakes ceased to exist. The ownership group, fed up with a lack of a soccer-only stadium in San Jose, moved the team to Houston, eventually becoming the Dynamo. Then, a year later, MLS announced an expansion team, named the Earthquakes would be playing in San Jose. I would compare it to the NFL and the Browns/Ravens situation. In 2010, the Earthquakes made the playoffs and upset the #1 seed Red Bulls, prior to their own elimination. Whether or not a 6th place finish last year will translate into a better team this year remains to be seen.

Best Player: Chris Wondolowski

  Seattle Sounders FC

While the Sounders have only been in the league for 2 years, they have the largest fan base within their hometown. Every game has been sold out. Compared to the average attendance of MLS games (16,000), the Sounders averaged over 36,000 in 2010. With so much support in Seattle, the team will no doubt break through in the playoffs very soon. Last year they finished their season in the semifinals, losing to the Galaxy. Their sponsor is Microsoft (which is sort of like your dad’s company sponsoring your little league team) and their chest space is occupied by the Xbox logo. A word on my best player choice. While Keller is clearly at the end of his career, his consistent play has been world class for the last 20 years. 

Best Player: Kasey Keller

                             finally a club I can support

Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Another expansion team this year, the Whitecaps’ only advantage is their geographical setting (really, Vancouver is a pretty city). This team played in the USSF Division 2 last year under the same name and ownership. Support for the club is strong, much the same as the Toronto club. I think this is because, aside from the European influence towards the sport, there is little competition from other sports: no football (I mean, NFL teams), a bad basketball team, weakened hockey (after the lockout), and only one baseball team. Canada is a great place for major soccer inroads to be made. Hopefully one of the Canadian teams will have some success and cement the progress made. This year, however, it will not be Vancouver.

Best Player: Jay DeMerit

And there is it, the entire MLS laid out for you to decide which club to root for. Who will you support this year?

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

A Snob's Guide to MLS: Choosing Your Team

By Dan Vaughn

I love English Premier League football. I consider it the best soccer league in the world, each team filled with the best talent in the world. But, as an American, I feel some obligation to support the North American professional league, MLS. But choosing to delve into an unknown league, then picking a team (particularly if one lives far from a team’s location) and trying to follow their players, can be a daunting task. Why do I root for Manchester United in the EPL? Because they happened to be playing in the first soccer match I watched. Had I known more background on the club, there is a solid chance I would be a Villa or Blackburn supporter. Instead, now three years removed from my first exposure, I am a Red Devil fan through and through. So with my EPL experience in mind, I decided to delve into the teams that make up the MLS, sort out the Conferences, pinpoint the bright spots and write it up in an understandable way for you, the new MLS fan.

Consider the following article a primer for choosing your MLS club to root for: Basic background information on the club, a tidbit or two of trivia, maybe a hint of history, and the best player on the team. In no way should this article be considered the ultimate source of information concerning MLS.

MLS Eastern Conference

Chicago Fire

Obviously named after the Great Fire of 1871, the team was formally established on the infamous anniversary date in 1997. The Fire’s original coach was Bob Bradley, the current coach for the U.S. National Team. The Fire have always been a competitive team, only missing the playoffs twice in their 13 year history (2004, 2010). When theteam was in development, Nike, the club’s equipment company, wanted the team to be called the Rhythm (can’t imagine a more shitty name...Wait, the Utah Jazz). But, without Nike’s approval or knowledge, the team worked with other designers to create the current logo and concept. Taking on the establishment, what’s not to love about that?

Best player: Marco Pappa

Columbus Crew

While I dislike their club name due to how entirely nondescript it is (really? Why not the Cohort? or Clan? or Company?), the people of Columbus are the ones to blame. The name of the team was selected as a result of a fan poll. An interesting fact: Columbus’ biggest rival is Toronto FC. Annually, they compete for the Trillium Cup, named after the official flower of Ontario and the Ohio state wild flower. I can’t think of anything more odd than a yearly soccer competition named after a flower. After several years of non-competitive seasons, the Crew have made the playoffs the last three years, winning the division once and claiming the Cup in 2008.

Best Player: Robbie Rogers

pictured: a soccer rivalry

D.C. United

Probably the most successful club in MLS history, having won 4 MLS Cups and a CONCACAF Champions Cup (that fact shocked the hell out of me). However, the last couple of years have been disappointing ones for this franchise. Some hope is invested in 2010‘s Rookie of the Year, midfielder Andy Najar, a product of United’s youth development program. The club are currently sponsored by Volkswagen, who paid 14 million dollars for 5 years of chest rights. Because of this sponsorship, the first 50 Volkswagens at each home game get free parking. My favorite fact in writing this entire article.

Best Player: Charlie Davies (on loan with the club currently)

Houston Dynamo

Dynamo were originally the San Jose Earthquakes, relocating to Houston in 2005. Apparently, the change of hometowns was an instant success, as the team won the MLS Cup in 2006 and 2007. Since then, the Dynamo have shown permanent success, consistently qualifying for the playoffs, Open Cup and CONCACAF tournaments. When the team was originally established, it was named Houston 1836, a reference to the founding of the city. However, the year also marks Texas’ Independence from Mexico, which was not as well received by the city’s large Hispanic population. Of course, the name Dynamo is a reference to the power companies based in Houston, but it is also tied to several traditional soccer clubs in the Russian leagues. The Dynamo have two supporting groups: El Batallón and Texian Army.

Best Player: Geoff Cameron (supplied by Sam Cooke, the biggest fan of Houston I know)

pictured: Big-time fútbol fan

New England Revolution

Ok. I have written about every team in MLS and none of them have a story like the Revolution. In 2008, while flying across the country, a man on their flight got up, began undressing and headed to the emergency exit to apparently go for a naked swan dive. The team subdued him while the flight was diverted. Patriots all of them (they are owned by NFL Patriots’ owner, Robert Craft)! While they may be great at stopping lunatics on planes, the Revolution have yet to win a Cup, though they are one of the original ten teams. They, much like the Buffalo Bills, have reached 4 Finals, only to fall short. Their last appearance was in 2007 and since then, the team has sunk lower each year. In 2010, the club finished 6th in the conference, their lowest finish since 1998.

Best Player: Shalarie Joseph

New York Red Bulls

One of the first ten MLS teams, The Red Bulls were originally the MetroStars. In 2006, they were purchased the drink maker, Red Bull, leading to the name and badge change. The Red Bulls have showcased world soccer stars both on the rise and on the decline including, most recently, Thierry Henry. Henry is the current captain and almost certainly the best player on the squad. However, Juan Angudelo, an up-and-coming striker from the U-20 U.S. team, is the one to watch for fans of the USMNT. The Red Bulls play their home matches in a completely privately funded stadium, built in 2007, Red Bull Arena. Things are looking up for the club, having won the division last year, after many years of middle-of-the-pack finishes.

Best Player: Thierry Henry

not pictured: the entire nation of Ireland crying

Philadelphia Union

One of the youngest of the MLS teams, the Union have a horrible name. Horrible. It’s sad, because everything else about the team is awesome. A group of soccer fans, The Sons of Ben (a reference to Ben Franklin), began petitioning MLS for a franchise in 2007. The next year, MLS awarded the city a franchise. The team is entirely themed around the role of Philadelphia in the American Revolution. The badge features a snake coiled around a soccer ball, a reference to Ben Franklin’s famous political cartoon.The colors chosen for their kit are the colors of the Continental Army. The name “Union” was chosen to represent the “union” of 13 states into a nation. Are you a red-blooded American? What’s not to love about this club? This is my new favorite team!

Best Player: Sébastien Le Toux (funny, their best player is French)

Sporting Kansas City

Few teams have had a name go from liability to respectability as quick as the soccer club from KC. Founded in 1995, the team was originally known as...wait for it... the...Wiz. Their team name was a word my brothers and I used to describe piss until we were teenagers. From the Wiz, they became the Wizards, and, finally (and respectably), in 2010, they became Sporting KC. Naming a club Sporting is a European tradition that signifies that the soccer club is part of a wider collection of clubs form other sports. Kansas City plans on adding rugby and lacrosse in the future. Sporting KC has some tradition of success in the past, including a Cup win in 2000; however, the last couple of years have ended in bottom-of-the-standings records.

Best Player: Omar Bravo

Toronto FC

Toronto may be a wreck of a franchise, but the club has one of the best followings of all the MLS clubs. The club has completely sold its 16,000 season tickets, with over 10,000 people on the waiting list. Dwayne De Rosario, who helped lead the Houston Dynamo to their first two Cups, now plays for TFC. Sadly, at the rate Toronto is losing games, he may never see another Cup. De Rosario is probably the best current Canadian footballer and has attracted some attention from European clubs, including Celtic. I have mocked several of the “anthems” for other clubs, but Toronto’s, written by the Barenaked Ladies, is actually really great. I could see myself screaming this at a match without reservations.

Best Player: Dwayne De Rosario

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysYZfmFYAQg&feature=related

In Two Days: The Western Conference

Thanks for Randall Monty and Sam Cooke with some help on a couple clubs.

Thanks to an Anonymous reader for pointing out an error in this piece. It has been corrected.

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

Modern Renaissance Person

By Dan Vaughn

Paul David Hewson: Modern Renaissance Man

There is a running joke within this blog’s staff, it gets used every time we have one of our staff meetings. Someone posits an idea for a list either negative or positive. The other writers take some shots at it, seeing which ideas stick, and then, without fail, someone brings up Bono, always in a negative light. I’m not using always there the way I use always when telling my wife I “always pick up my dirty clothes.” No, among the staff of this blog there is not an ounce of respect, not a shred of appreciation, not a hint of tolerance for the world-icon and modern renaissance man, Bono. This is the article that changes their minds.

Bono’s Mono Lisa is U2. He’s been the frontman for the band for the last 30 years, its his calling card. Without U2, you wouldn’t have heard of him. The band emerged during the early 80s as a semi-Christian band from Ireland. Their peak musically was Joshua Tree (1987), but that hasn’t stopped them from piling up platinum records and radio hits. They could be considered the most consistently successful band of this era, a less talented, less influential Rolling Stones. U2 is a force to be reckoned with.

So proof #1: U2.

Bono took all his musical success and used to advocate for the poor and sick of the world. He is often maligned for his public appearances, accused of overstepping his bounds. Public appearances have been made with almost every important figure in the world from the Pope to George W. Bush. Bono gets around. People question his goodwilled intentions, claiming its nothing more than grabbing the spotlight. But why would Bono do it for that reason. Fame is something he has no lack of, why advocate for the AIDS-infected Africans? I would argue Bono was the first significant public figure of our generation to roll his fame and fortune into helping better the lives of the poor, for good will’s sake. The man cofounded a personal favorite charity of mine, product (red).

Proof #2: Third-World Advocate

Few people know this, but the most popular hotel in Ireland is co-owned by Bono and The Edge: The Clarence Hotel. Located in Dublin, it was built in 1852 and had fallen into disrepair. Bono had many fond memories of it from his youth and organized a group to purchase and remodel it. Recently, the hotel was voted 9th of the top 25 hotels in all of Europe. The man is a real estate genius.

Proof #3: Real Estate Mogul

As much as the man is hated, the man is certainly loved. Few people could claim all of the following accolades: Nominated for the Nobel Prize, Time’s Person of the Year, Knighted by the Queen. Bono is a world-wide brand, a mega-star that supersedes his own art. He has one name.

Proof #4: International Branding

So haters piss off, Bono is a modern renaissance man, as much as someone can be. He succeeded at his art, built another career, dabbled successfully side projects, and is now recognized anywhere, by everyone. He is Bono.

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

By Dan Vaughn

Albums rejected in the process of selecting my target:

  Bloc Party’s Silent Alarm - “Compliments” (not drastically different)

Weezer’s Pinkerton - “Butterfly” (too obvious)

Willie Nelson’s Read Headed Stranger - “Down Yonder” (too obscure, might fit in)

  So let me set this my article up. Dan comes up with this idea, best album with a track you always skip. My first thought was “Down Yonder,” stupid tinny piano getting banged on by a drunken lunatic, and I may have even vocalized that idea. The other musical (non-vocal) tracks on that album fit into the rest of the album’s feel, consistently of Willie slowly picking his guitar over piano. But as the time got closer for me to write this piece, I realized that the album, a Western concept piece, might need that album to communicate the feeling of the bar within the story. So though it annoys me, for ambience reasons, it dodges the bullet.

  So now I am in a huge quandary, deadline looming, I think of “Butterfly,” but almost immediately shrug it off. For two reasons, 1. It will probably get picked off by one of the other guys 2. Pinkerton is my second favorite Weezer album and I’m not sure I consider it “great,” particularly in comparison to Blue.

  So I cruised though my iTunes, searching for my victim. Silent Alarm, one of my favorite albums of all-time (probably top 40, if I had to guess) features “Compliments” as its last track. Compared to the rest of the album, it drags, is boring, and doesn’t measure up to the rest of the incredible songs from this album. BUT, I also wanted to choose a song that didn’t fit in with the rest of its album, and, though it is a weak song, I can’t say that that it doesn’t have some aspects that disqualify it. It feels futuristic, features a lot of effects, and has a beat that sounds drum-machine-esque. It is close enough to be in the same city, just not the same neighborhood.

  As I approached the latter part of the alphabetic listing of my albums, I was getting worried. Which album would offer up the perfect target or would I have to reassess the tracks I had already disqualified? And then, there it was.

  Spoon’s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga - “The Ghost of You Lingers”

  If you asked me in 2011 (which you did, by the way), I would say that The National’s Boxer was the best album of 2007. However, in January of 2008, when asked to make a yearly top 10, I choose this album by Spoon. At the time (and to this day), I would argue that though Spoon had shown considerable talent throughout their previous albums, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga was the one that brought it all together into perfection. The best track of the album, without a doubt, is “The Underdog.” Lively use of horns set over a fun guitar track and catchy lyrics deliver a single that could stand up to any other track from that year. And the rest of the album offers little to disappoint the listener. I can’t state this more bluntly, I LOVE this album...except this one track.

  So why does this track suck so much? First of all, its overproduced in the same way the rest of the album is. The entire album is crisp and clean throughout thanks to careful attention to production detail. This is a good result, but, in the case of TGOYL, it becomes a muddy mess of audio and effects. Secondly, what stands out from in every track but this one? The guitarwork. A consistent use of acoustic guitar, combined with great bass, gives this album a signature feel. What does TGOYL give you? Not one strum of guitar, not a single string is struck, just effect after effect, echoing noise and ignoring the feel of the rest of the album. Finally, its position within the album. Second track, really? Kill the Moonlight (Spoon’s second-best album) gave us “The Way We Get By” at that point. Had this track ended up as a fading out for the album (much the same way the previously mentioned “Compliments” was used on Silent Alarm) maybe it is forgiven. Instead, the song breaks the flow and build-up between two great tracks, “Don’t Make Me a Target” and “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb.”

  The album would not only have a better rhythm without “The Ghost of You Lingers,” it would be a perfect album without a single weak track. Instead, you are forced to skip this track or break the mood of the album, a choice a great band shouldn’t toss into the laps of their listeners. 

[contemporarysnobbery-blog]

Christian Rock: Starflyer 59

By Dan Vaughn

When I write about any subject, I always inject my personal narrative into it, trying to give context for both the story itself and the ideas that form my opinions. This is no exception.

I was living in Cincinnati, Ohio. Growing up in an entirely Christian home (church 3 times a week, Christian private school, prayer before meals, etc.), I was entirely barred from listening to “secular” music. Only Christian music was allowed. Through 1994 that meant primarily Petra, the epitome of Christian rock during the 80s and early 90s, and a mix of lesser known bands that over time have faded to rushed google searches during this article’s writing. That was it until this:

Ugly, isn’t it? Maybe they should have invested in a graphic design team or, at least, a graphic design team with taste.

Steve Taylor will be the subject of a future article, but suffice to say, he is very important in the chronology of Christian music. He was very cutting-edge in his time, almost shocking in his approach to complex issues like abortion, church hypocrisy, and theological debate. His musical style was new wave, post-punk, certainly more advanced than the average Christian rock musician of his time (mid 80s).

I Predict a Clone was a coming together of multiple up-and-coming artists in the Christian rock scene, though in retrospect, most of the acts are long gone. One notable appearance was Sixpence None the Richer (though rock is hardly their m.o.). So imagine young, impressional, (aged 16 years) Dan Vaughn, never listened to anything progressive or interesting, getting to track 3, Starflyer 59’s version of “Sin for a Season”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pByJ6FkX4ns

I was blown away. And went and bought Starflyer 59’s debut album, Silver.

It isn’t so much that Starflyer 59 doesn’t sound like anyone else before or after them. In fact, while discussing this article, Randall Monty played a track from My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless and the influence was obvious. What does set them apart is their sound being so different from anything else in Christian music. The style of Silver, probably most closely associated with shoegazer, is an excellent blend of crunchy, guitar-driven music and muted, soft-sung vocals. The lyrics, for the most part, are difficult to hear, let alone understand. 

This lack of focus on lyrics was a radical departure from the most important constant of Christian music, throughout the 80s, 90s, and even now. The lyrics are what matter, not the music. In most Christian bands, music was only a communication tool that got the audience to understand the Gospel. Much the same way a mother might sneak a children’s aspirin into a peanut butter sandwich, music was a sweet that brought the crowds, the secret would be the story they would hear throughout the show. I won’t fault the most sincere of people on this. I understand (first hand) how Christians seek to spread the religion, and using music is a very effective mod of communication.

The problem with this focus on music only as a tool to pass the Word is music critics can, will, and SHOULD rip your music apart as derivative, uncreative crap with overly-religious lyrics. For the most part, this particular criticism of Christian music is fair and warranted. From the “artists” perspective, however, this criticism fell on deaf ears. They were messengers primarily, musicians only out of necessity. The most important part of their performance was the message and that, if attacked, would speak for itself.

Starflyer 59 was part of a generation of Christian musicians that began focusing on the music. Listening to Silver, one would be unable to determine the eternal destination of the band members. Music is primary, the message indeterminable. And for most musicians (Christian or secular), shouldn’t this be the approach?

How does the music stand up, now, almost 15 years later? Pretty well, actually. I don’t find myself wincing listening to the album, particularly in comparison to the self-mockery brought on by my other “favorite” musicians from that era. The album has been rereleased in an extended format, which sandwiches Silver and the EP that followed it, She’s the Queen, together into one album. It gives a great snapshot of the beginning of a band that continues to produce albums now, 15 years later.  Instead of being the perfect communication tool for some religious message, Silver is an excellent example of drone-style shoegazer from the mid-90s and that, I think, was the band’s goal.

No fancy banner for this piece, but there will be soon!