U2’s Christian Identity
Although, U2’s music have Christian allegories in their music it does not necessarily mean they are trying to spreading Christian messages in an aggressively. In this post I will be looking into how U2’s music can be understood even without the Christian undertones allows listeners of non-Christian tradition to also connect and relate to their music.
U2 skillfully disguises Christian allusions in their lyrics for the Christians and non-Christian listeners, which allows it to be a signal to Christian fans but also make sense to the wider audience. (Galbraith, 187) However, from the onset U2 does not identify as a Christian Contemporary band, but as a mainstream rock band. (Galbraith, 188)
U2’s song Sunday Bloody Sunday is an example of a song that is considered one of its most political songs and incorporates explicit images that Christian listeners can easily identify. (Galbraith, 198) Such as the hope for political union in Ireland is implicit in the lyric: ‘how long?’ which can be “transformed into eschatological hope for the Second Coming of Christ and spiritual union with God.”(Galbraith, 198) This specific example is a close reading by Galbraith in identifying Christian connotations throughout this song. It’s important to note the political significance of this song, because it was written about the English army’s massacre of thirteen unarmed Irish civil rights marchers on 30 January 1972. (Galbraith, 196) The interpretation of song lyrics by the audience whether it be by Christian or non-Christian listeners, identifying and connecting to the song in their own individualistic way is what allows U2 to be a rock and roll band. For the non-Christian listener the lyrics in their songs are not Christian ideologies but morals and values that can be deduced.
Moreover, theatrical extravagance of U2’s concert is rooted in Bono’s understanding of rock and roll: “Rock’n’roll is always married into theater, poetry, lots of medium.” (Pinkston, 158) U2 tours are high spectacles of video imaging, elaborate staging, and many theatrical devices that incorporate advanced audio-visual technologies. (Pinkston, 158)
Having recently attended a U2 concert I found how they used the space and technologies for storytelling their experiences magnified the feelings songs evoke. These experiences were the context in which they had written their music that they successfully conveyed and performed.
One could say that the U2 songs like 40, Yahweh, and Wake Up Dead Man are prayers and complains similar to psalms. (Pinkston, 161) According to Pinkston U2 serve as archetype that imitates the Christian faith that impact non-Christian listeners. (Pinkston, 161) Even though three out of the four band members are genuine believers in the faith they don’t try to convert their listeners to Christianity, but rather express their own faith through their music and portray morals and values that they sought in their faith. U2 uses music as a means of personal expression, which entails who they are as people and their spiritual domain. (Pinkston, 162)
Thus through the use of Christian allusions in their music U2 express their personal faith which is identifiable with Christians, but does so in a way that allows non-Christians to enjoy and connect with the music similarly. The ways in which they perform is significant in understanding their storytelling aspect of their expression that allows their fans to truly understand the emotions behind their lyrics.
References:
Figure 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EM4vblG6BVQ
Figure 2: http://fallontonight.tumblr.com/post/118523181944/this-performance-is-about-to-rock-your-socks-off
Galbraith, Deane. “Drawing Our Fish in the Sand: Secret Biblical Allusions in the Music of U2.” Biblical Interpretation, volume 19, issue 2 (2011) pg 181–222. Web. November 20, 2015.
Pinkston, Dan. “U2 and Igor Stravinsky: Textures, Timbres, and the Devil.” Christian Scholar’s Review 41.2 (2012): 147–62.ProQuest. Web. 6 Dec. 2015.