Style Vs. Substance: The Trap

Classy Style:

Sometime during my college career, I discovered the band Arctic Monkeys (I believe it was due to playing Guitar Hero 5). They are a British rock band that once I heard, I sought out their whole discography and even those almost secret B-side songs not found on their studio albums. In an early post I mentioned that I saw them live in concert with my friend Lucas. It was about this time, 2012, that Alex Turner, the front man of Arctic Monkeys, transformed and adapted a strong rock star attitude and style.

Alex Turner, 2009

Alex Turner, 2012

Alex Turner, 2013

There's no doubt this man has style and is no longer a shy teen from a British suburb. I liked his long hair indie look, and his leather jacket rocker look, and his current lounge singer rock star look. I wish I had the resources and ability to pull off any of these looks. Alex's style has affected his stage presence and even his band members now wear nice suits and slick back their hair.

Also during my college career, I began to check out the band The Hives (again thanks to a music video game, Rock Band, as well as a movie trailer). The Hives are an English-speaking rock band from Sweden who are known for an incredibly energetic live performance. Their aesthetic look for the band has always consisted of a nice black and white suit of some sort, though the style has changed over the years.

The Hives, 2004-2007

The Hives, 2007-2011

The Hives, 2012-present

Again, I really really like the style of this band. Their look reflects a bit of the attitude about the band where they feel like rock stars because they look like rock stars (in a very classic sense at least). If I could get away with wearing suits like this for a whole week, I would do so. 

There's something about dressing up and looking classy that I get excited about. Those rare occasions that we had an excuse to dress up in high school were exciting days for me because I enjoyed putting on a button down shirt, dress pants, and nice shoes and hanging out with my friends who also took extra time to look extra special that day. Today I like times when I get to wear bow ties and suit jackets.

Ordinary Clothes

Now, compare the style and aesthetics of bands like Arctic Monkeys and The Hives to the men pictured below.

Andy Mineo

Lecrae

David Crowder

The style of these men does not appeal to me as much. I'm not the biggest fan of caps (especially the flat brimmed hats with stickers). I particularly don't enjoy the 'gangsta' look, but that's probably because I grew up in the suburbs. The point is that these men look ordinary, ordinary in the sense that anyone could wear these clothes in public and look normal.Compare the looks of these men with the style of Alex Turner and The Hives. In today's society, the clothes of Lecrae or David Crowder are normal clothes while even Alex Turner's leather jacket had a sense of extraordinary to it (i.e. one group looks classier than the other group).

But What About Substance?

What I didn't tell you about Andy Mineo, Lecrae, and David Crowder is that they are all Christian musicians. Their songs give praise to Jesus Christ and incorporate their relationship with God. Andy Mineo and Lecrae are rappers that challenge people to rise above the spiritual struggles in society while David Crowder's singer-songwriter style is beautifully uplifting and is often used during Praise & Worship prayer sessions.

Compare that to songs by Arctic Monkeys and The Hives. The titles will give you an idea about the focus of their music. 'I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor', 'Still Take You Home', 'The Bad Thing', 'Pretty Visitors', 'Suck It and See', 'One For the Road', 'Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?' are some of the titles of Arctic Monkeys songs. 'Hate to Say I Told You So', 'Come On!', 'Walk Idiot Walk', 'Main Offender', 'Die All Right', 'Tick Tick Boom' are titles from The Hives catalog.

Keep in mind that I'm being really picky about which song titles I am choosing from. I am trying to reflect what the music of these rock bands are about.

So, you can imagine that the substance of the music that Alex Turner writes is different than David Crowder. You can imagine that a performance by The Hives has a different feel and aim than a performance by Andy Mineo. When Lecrae is interviewed and gives a performance, he preaches the good news about Jesus while Arctic Monkeys interviews and performances are more focused on the party scene and the struggle to rise to fame and fortune.

Preaching about Jesus

Preaching about Fame & Fortune

The Trap:

Sometimes I critique things I like or dislike based on the surface value. If there is a beat that I can't dig or if a musician has a street-wise gangsta appearance, then I have a tendency to tune it out. If the tone of the guitar is energetic or if a musician looks like he has an element of class, then I try to pay deeper attention to what is going on with the music and the live performance.

I can tell that the suits that are worn by Arctic Monkeys and The Hives give them confidence in their music. Their style of rock music is appealing to my ears because of the effects on the guitars, the intensity of the drumming, or the energy presented by the vocalists. Does that mean I don't enjoy songs by Lecrae, Andy Mineo, or David Crowder? No. I enjoy some of their music, even though their style isn't my favorite.

The trap comes when the style of the bands overshadows the content. I have to be careful and listen to what the lyrics are saying. I have to ask myself 'What message is being presented in this song?'.

Part of the trap is the way the singer stares into your soul

If all I cared about was the sound of the instruments and the confidence of the band, I would be trapped by the style of Arctic Monkeys, The Hives, and others. I would not give guys like Lecrae or Andy Mineo a chance because I would say 'I don't like their sound' or 'I can't dig their style'.

It's like they don't care about impressing people by the clothes they wear

The Truth: 

Lyrics are more important to a song and to a band's style than the clothes they wear. Should I condemn all of Arctic Monkeys and The Hives music just because a few of their songs have a bad message? No, I can still listen to some of their songs and enjoy their music, so long as I am aware of the content in each song and steer clear of the songs with a poor message. Should I condemn all the songs by Andy Mineo, Lecrae, and David Crowder because I don't like rap or I don't like the clothes they wear? No, because then I would be missing out on their beautiful message about God.

Not to mention David Crowder's sweet beard.

I cannot judge a band or a musician according to the clothes that the band is wearing. Nor can I judge a band by whether this one particular song appeals to my ears. I would not be a kind Christian man if all I cared about was the surface value and I would be trapped because I did not pay enough attention to the content of the band and its music.

One last thought. While I can appreciate the suits and the style of people like Alex Turner and The Hives, it would be selfish of me to want to wear clothes like that all the time. Clothing like that is expensive and even if it were financially possible for me to have a different suit like that for every day of the week, I couldn't in good conscience buy that. There are too many people in this world that cannot afford decent clothing or food or decent housing. Instead of spending all that money on clothing for myself, I can put that money towards charitable acts and share what I have with those less fortunate. Sure, I could buy one nice suit if I really needed it or if I planned on wearing it a lot, but I should be willing to stop there and figure out where that money would better serve those in need.