Got this from Tucson Weekly because it was the closest thing to a source that wasn't complaining that they were suing. Thought some of you would be interested to read this:
*sorry if someone posted about this already*
WHAT WOULD JESUS LISTEN TO?
Not long ago in these pages, we published an article by Annie Holub, about the band Mute Math. In the article, the group's singer, Paul Meany, complained about how Warner Bros., the band's current label, was attempting to market Mute Math as a Christian band, after someone at the label learned that Meany's former band was a Christian band.
In the article, Meany said, "I used to be in a very overt Christian band, and I think once we started Mute Math, and there were spiritual undertones in the music--and we'll openly state, yeah, we're Christian--we watched how the Christian division of Warner Bros. just ran with it. And they ran with it faster than Warner Bros. ran with it in the general market."
Since we published that article, Mute Math has filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros., claiming breach of contract and negligent representation, because Warner intended to release the band's latest album on Word, its Christian imprint, which had previously released an EP by the band. Never mind the fact that Mute Math built their fan base by touring with Christian band Mae, and by playing in Christian music festivals. "We're a normal band here; we're not trying to be the Christian version of a real band," Meany said in the Weekly article. (Meanwhile, the band has managed to alienate mainstream music buyers who flee at the mention of the term "Christian rock," while also pissing off Christian music fans who feel betrayed. "It's not Christian to file a lawsuit," one poster on a Christian music Web site wrote.)
Which raises the question: What exactly is a Christian band? Is a band a Christian band if its members are Christian, or must the music itself address Christian issues--or contain, in Meany's words, "spiritual undertones"? And how much of what determines whether or not a band is a Christian band depends on the way it's marketed? The Christian music market is a large one, but it's certainly no match for the kinds of sales a band can have if it reaches mainstream success. Are the labels trying to have it both ways, marketing these bands to the Christian market while attempting to downplay the religious aspect to mainstream music buyers, in order to maximize a band's sales?
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