“What Matters More” by Derek Webb

Here’s the controversial song and video by Derek Webb from his new album Stockholm Syndrome. This version was released on his website, not the CD, due to the strong language.

Provocative would be an understatement.  Any thoughts?

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Update:

Here are two excerpts from reivews of Webb’s album:

“Unfortunately, the message seems hidden in negative lyrics that often say the opposite of what you would want to get stuck in your head. Lyrics such as “Oh I have been to Heaven and I found no relief” just don’t do much for me. The album is purely negative and I doubt that much of the Christian music world (including myself) will accept Stockholm Syndrome as playable — and that’s before they get to hear the profanity” (Kevin Hoskins, JesusFreakHideout.com).

“Where this album will stand in the history of Christian music remains to be decided by the retrospective analysis of the next few years, and a number of other factors — the future of the church’s overall political lean and how it will consider its current heavyweights in hindsight, the acceptance (however reluctant) of Webb’s daring, and the industry’s artistic response to this experience: its advertising campaign, controversial content, and sonic textures. Even so, a few things can be said outright: Webb has crafted a near-perfect album that rivals anything avid listeners have ever come across, one that deserves comparisons to Ok Computer and Kid A and challenges preconceptions about the depth of art reflecting the Christian experience.  Stockholm Syndrome is a dangerous, volatile, stunning masterwork of prophetic brilliance and insight — one of the most important albums of the last 10 years” (John Wofford, The Christian Manifesto).