Seattle-based metal group Demon Hunter are releasing a concert album entitled Live in Nashville on Jan. 27. Recorded last year during the band's Storm the Gates of Hell tour, the band musters their best Pantera impersonation amidst a shitstorm of unrelenting hyper-melodrama—all of which begs the question: Why are so many Christian metal bands terrible? I refuse to believe that the faith of those involved is solely the reason these bands suck or is the primary source of the overblown melodrama that suffocates Christian metal. There are plenty of good metal bands writing stupid lyrics about their allegiance to the spirit of Odin, which isn't nearly as metal as a dude getting his hands nailed to a couple pieces of wood and left to die. And yet, listen to Demon Hunter and then listen to Slayer. No fucking contest. But I don't believe that Christian metal bands suck because of the influence religion has on their music. I'm also not comfortable making the generalization that indoctrinated Christian thought inhibits artistic daring (ever seen the Sistine Chapel?). Here are some sweeping generalizations I am willing to make.
