Emergence and Indie Rock

Listening to Sirius XMU at work provoked the following thoughts about about Indie Rock and Emergence:

Pre-mainstream.
Both have touched upon the edges of society who are looking for a different expression. I find it ironic that the old mainstream Mainline churches are far more open to emergence than Evangelicals at large who have become the new mainstream. The common way of doing faith or doing music doesn’t work for emergents or indie rockers. They’re looking for a more relevant form.

Self critical.
Emergence seeks to deconstruct as Bruce Epperly has amazingly communicated here earlier. It is willing to ask hard questions about Christ, Scripture and doctrine that I’ve found in few other communities. Likewise with indie rock the genre jockeys between a variety of styles. Indie rock is fluid because it is willing to expand or contract its current form into whatever is indie at the time.

Dynamic.
Both progress toward an uncertain future. We have yet to hear and to see what will be emergent and indie in 2020 and beyond. This unexpectedness makes many feel uncomfortable or hostile. How can God allow such change? How can a genre be all genres? This manifest time consciousness combined with a humble self-analysis leads to new and exciting expressions of faith and music. We are willing to explore the changes. And change with them.

Indefinite.
To simply explain emergence or indie rock is virtually impossible. Indefinite means “unable to be defined” in this sense. These conversations move with the ever increasing interplay of faith and life or music genres. Indie rock can be folkish, R&B, rap, rock, alternative, college music, electronic, etc. And, such is emergence. It is a fusion of wonderful lessons learned in the history of the church distilled into the present conversation.

Ecumenical.
Hence they are ecumenical. Both seek to build and grow from what has been created before. They incorporate beautiful dimensions of faith and music from past genius. Far from being threatened, emergents and indie rockers are inspired by their ancestors but unbound to innovate. They seek to expand with human consciousness into a better and more glorious form.