Actually this subject has already been addressed on another thread no too long ago.
This was written by Mike, and I thought it was very good.
[size=small]"Re: Soul - Music - posted by crsschk (), on: 2008/6/7 7:29
A very good article and was glad to see this component keyed in on;
If all music (regardless of the lyrics) has a message, then what is the message communicated by the music of CCM? If nearly all of the effects produced by contemporary music’s beat, repetition, and loudness are negative and is mildly hypnotic and can become addictive then the same is true to a degree with CCM. Such music produces chemical reactions in your body that encourage aggressive and emotional behavior. Those same physiological reactions prevent you from thinking and judging rationally. By the same token, contemporary music’s beat, repetition, and loudness unmistakably conveya mood of defiance, rebelliousness, aggressiveness, and self-assertiveness. Clearly these effects are neither “morally excellent” nor “noble” nor “praiseworthy.” Bad music, regardless of comparatively “good” lyrics,communicates a bad message.
How is it that music can affect me? The music itself, regardless of the words, affects your emotions. Even if there are no words to a song or a tune, it affects you. Everybody knows this. Lullabies put babies to sleep regardless of the words. National anthems can at times create feelings of pride or move listeners to tears. Some of the most powerful music ever written — like Beethoven and Wagner — contained no words. Ask any young person why they like rock music and they always say something about the beat or tempo. They are admitting that, regardless of the words, the music itself is quite powerful.
This is important. It means that “good” words does not make something good music. Regardless of the "good" lyrics, the musical score itself has an impact on the listener. Assessing music as good or bad or acceptable or unacceptable, is not simply a matter of evaluating the words. You must evaluate the tune also, because the sounds themselves affect you.
Have lost track of how many replies I have stored away whenever this subject is broached. It is very close to me in the sense that for years my whole life was geared around music and my goal in life was to become a musician professionally,a guitar players - guitar player and a 'rock star'. It is a somewhat difficult subject to express rightly from my perspective...
Probably one of the things that bothers the most to be frank about it is some of the religious outcry from a variety of even good preachers and most not so good pontificating upon the evils of rock music\\rap music what have you when they begin extrapolating over it without really having any knowledge of what they are taking about. It is a lot of speculation made fact, it is 'demonic' where it really is just soulish, it is too often exaggerated and made pragmatic to furnish or feed a point. It is the mix of dishonesty with right concern that doesn't need the embellishments. much more could be said.Recognize this is geared more towards CCM and to be again honest think I have less of a problem with the 'worlds' music in the sense that "they know not what they do" or they are more correctly doing what all of us ever did (1Co 6:11) Andsuch were some of you: before we were washed,... sanctified, ...justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit
of our God. Think there is often more sheer honesty in the secular than in the parroting or "Christianizing" that goes on in CCM.
During all those years spent involved and dedicated to this pursuit of grandeur I was also of the exacting emphasis on the opposite, that it wasn't the lyrics but the music, the notes and chords, the musicianship, that the lyrics were secondary though not without import. It puts me in a bit of a predicament now when I must confess that it was a lyric itself from the guitar player of the notorious 'devil' himself, Ozzy Osbourne that finally broke me into repentance, it's part and parcel of my testimony that can be found here ...
All this backdrop only to say this ... The out takes from the article above I think are a key understanding that is too often overlooked. In a word it is manipulation. Music is manipulative in a variety of ways. It is often quite abused especially in Christianity, I am just now thinking of Benny Hinn and his use of playing the "Hallelujah" chorus over and over again (if you have ever been in one of his meetings) it's a conditioning like it or not, a manipulation playing upon the emotions in it's endless repetition, hypnotic, trance like.Because of my entrenchment and constant piped in music ... I never went anywhere without a Walk-man, it was as much part of my dress as putting on your socks ... any car I ever owned always had a minimum of 6 speakers, amplifiers, equalizers ... I could go on and on with details. Always 'jamming' with our band, after school on weekends ... stereo on constantly, the collection of records had to be upwards of 750 and was constantly making and mixing new tapes ...
Then all of a sudden it just kind of stopped. Must put it that way because I don't know where that point really was. When the Lord arrested me for good things began to ... fall off by degree's. Some were instantaneous, cursing for instance, notby deliberate effort but by that backward notice later on down the line. The music I kept at in the same manner for a longtime, interspersing the various CCM products here and there, most of what I found pretty shallow and of poor musicality to be honest. Was already a big Styrper fan for years prior in my confused searching after God, they were an important part in leading me up to and into the Light at last, even if so many years later.I must stress that hardly a fraction of any of this ultimate leaving off of music was deliberate, I had heard and been bombarded with the Moral Majority, with a nagging brother who used to follow me around to 'witness' at and to me ... all the arguments, all the "devil's music", all the people telling me about bands that I knew so well, had read about and listened totheir interviews, everything I could get my hands on, it just fell on deaf ears, they didn't know the first thing they were talking about.
It was hindsight that I recognized that I just couldn't allow my spirit to be played around with like a rag doll any longer. I had already left off unaware before this recognition came about. I didn't like being manipulated emotionally and uncontrollably even if I had given myself to it. It was no different than the drugs that were all part and parcel and combined into it.
Could well go into all that as well, there is a demonic element to be sure that you open yourself up into by allowing something, someone else to conduct your thinking for you ... but that is another subject entirely.
This soulish aspect needs more scrutiny I believe. It is unfortunate that the argument almost always goes in a tit-for-tat momentum when discussing music, the lyrics or the music -ignore one or the other, defend one or the other, argue one or the other. Legalism comes into play as well as conscience and perhaps even development along the way, growth and
learning the knowledge of the Lord. "Others may but you cannot" the great article that has been posted here frequently ... I could no more press my experience or convictions upon another than anyone else, just the concern over this over looking of what we might allow ourselves to be manipulated by. The things we put into our ears and those that we allow our eyes to gaze upon, the tweaking of our spirits, the soulish appeal, that lower nature aspect ... It is often very subtle these things that condition and tweak with our minds, body, soul, spirit."
https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic_pdf.php?topic_id=23905&forum=35[/size]
If there are any problems with spacing ,format ect.. it's my fault I tried to copy it from a file. :-)
