Back in May, I interviewed the hilarious and talented singer-songwriter Ryley Walker about his very good recent album, Deafman Glance. But one of the most memorable parts of the conversation was a tangent about Christian rock, which had been a part of both of our lives as teenagers growing up in the midwest. Ryley mentioned an album I hadn't thought about in years but had heard a lot in high school, dc Talk's 1995 double-platinum smash Jesus Freak. Clearly, this was a topic worth exploring in greater detail, so I called Ryley up and did a deep dive into an album that doesn't get mentioned much in official histories of '90s alt-rock, even though it was a touchstone for millions of semi-rebellious, church-going kids.

Back in May,&nbsp;<a href="https://linkprotect.cudasvc.com/url?a=https%3a%2f%2fuproxx.com%2fmusic%2fryley-waker-deafman-glance-interview%2f&amp;c=E,1,4CC3DPwLAYvdiesrT-0NKfz_GDcGY5fS_HL0_YaRfuL5qTh-XbjGq2LnoLtp4PCgR_IxbeSX700B-VNLC4rJtzx23TyHGkd1T9Iiafb_&amp;typo=1">I interviewed the hilarious and talented singer-songwriter Ryley Walker</a>&nbsp;about his very good recent album,&nbsp;Deafman Glance.&nbsp;But one of the most memorable parts of the conversation was a tangent about Christian rock, which had been a part of both of our lives as teenagers growing up in the midwest.&nbsp;Ryley mentioned an album I hadn't thought about in years but had heard a lot in high school, dc Talk's 1995 double-platinum smash&nbsp;Jesus Freak.&nbsp;Clearly, this was a topic worth exploring in greater detail, so I called Ryley up and did a deep dive into an album that doesn't get mentioned much in official histories of '90s alt-rock, even though it was a touchstone for millions of semi-rebellious, church-going kids.

Rock Critic Steven Hyden ("Your Favorite Band Is Killing Me", "Twilight Of The Gods") talks with rock stars and the country’s biggest music writers about what’s happening in rock. Presented by 93X (www.93X.com) and Uproxx.com (http://uproxx.com/music/)

Advertisement