Screamo by John Monday

Screamo is a genre of music that probably needs no description beyond its name. Whether or not you’ve heard of it, your initial impression, based only on the name, is most likely correct. Screamo bands feature loud, driving drums, lots of guitar, and very little melody. While many bands have vocalists, the vocalist is not the front person. The vocalist, like the instruments, is there primarily to back up the Screamer. The Screamer is the focal point of the band and he . . . well, he screams. It’s a very taxing job. In fact, I’m told a screamer that can do the job for more than a few months is a much sought-after commodity. Many begin to suffer bleeding vocal chords or some other physical limitation. I’m not a fan, either of Screamo or its redeemed counter part, “Christian Screamo”, but my nephew is. Not only is he a fan, he’s an artist, a performer, and a young man with a ton of integrity and influence.

One day as I was writing checks (an activity I don’t relish) I decided to turn off the music I usually listen to and turn on some Christian Screamo. The reasons were really pretty simple:

1) I don’t want to be a crotchety old man who complains about young people these days, and

2) I really like my nephew and want to connect with him at the place where he connects with God.

So I listened to Christian Screamo for two hours. Yep, you read right – two hours. When I was finished writing checks, I was aware of two things. One was no surprise – I had a headache. The other caught me completely off guard – I was in a state of worship.

The lyrics were almost completely a mystery to me. I’d occasionally hear a “Jesus” or a “Holy, Holy”, but I didn’t begin to understand 90% of the words. So what happened? Is Screamo going to be the music of heaven? Did the experience blow some sort of blood vessel in my brain that caused a euphoric feeling? Did God actually smile?

I have a hard time explaining worship or even fully understanding it, so I’m not sure exactly what happened. What I know is that, after two hours, I felt closer to my nephew, and connected to and lifted by God. Worship does that.

John Monday