ApologetiX puts religious spin on popular lyrics
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
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| The Christian parody band ApologetiX, from left, Keith Haynie, J. Jackson, Karl Messner and Bill Rieger, is heading for the Hawai'i Theatre for a pair of concerts this weekend. |
Take his band ApologetiX's Christian workover of the chorus of an Eminem masterwork otherwise known as "The Real Slim Shady."
I've sinned greatly, but Christ's for real, baby
It's a wonder He saved me and just didn't hate me
So won't you tell Him "Save me" and please stand up, please stand up, please stand up.
And The Boss? Even Springsteen gets demoted to mere line employee when Jackson and Co. imbue a higher power into "Born To Run."
In the day he went about on the streets
Doing run-of-the-mill Pharisee things
At night he met with his master, the Lord, he said
Show us what You mean.
Nobody said song parodies had to sound like Dylan. And Christian parody band ApologetiX's seven albums' worth of twisted takes on hits from The Who and Led Zeppelin to Limp Bizkit and Papa Roach certainly don't. But at least ApologetiX can count parody master Weird Al Yankovic as a fan. And, of course, a whole lot of religious music fans as well.
Having notched its first Top 15 CD on the Christian music best-seller list last year with "Keep The Change" (you didn't miss the band's blink-182-meets-Noah's-ark single "All The Stalls Stink," did you?), ApologetiX is touring behind its August release, "Grace Period."
The band performs two shows with popular national Christian harmonists FFH and Honolulu acts Reign and Tiffany this weekend at Hawai'i Theatre.
A graduate of too many garage and bar bands knocking off Zeppelin, Stones and Ozzy covers to count, Jackson formed the four-member ApologetiX in 1992 a few years after becoming a Christian. Still enamored of the music (if not the lyrics) of the rock classics he'd performed B.C., Jackson saw in Bible parodies a means of satiating his appetite for doing mainstream music, and educating an audience.
"The name ApologetiX is a word from the early days of the church meaning 'the defense of the faith,'" said Jackson. "Loosely translated, it means being able to explain why you believe what you believe.
"We want to give people songs that get them interested enough in reading the Bible ... to check it out themselves. That's the main goal with these songs. The rest of it is just fun."
Since its debut performance in a Christian coffee house in its native Pittsburgh, ApologetiX has moved from the realm of free gigs for church and Christian youth camps to more than 100 concerts a year in the United States and Canada.
Apologetix's supportive fan base has become so large, the band has mostly put off listening to mainstream radio when looking for current hits ripe for some good old-fashioned salvation.
"We get hundreds and hundreds of e-mails every week from around the world," Jackson said. "And if 500 fans e-mail you and say, 'You guys should do Linkin Park,' you're going to go and look for it."
