Heavy metal regularly mines Christian discourse for its often-otherworldly style of lyrical storytelling, and occasionally, buried deep in the mix and obscured by the roar of power cords, we find clever, witty and thoughtful dialogue with the Bible. This often involves rewriting and repackaging its terms and narratives in support of nonreligious subjects.
Consider, to illustrate, Iron Maiden's "Brighter than a Thousand Suns" from their album A Matter of Life and Death (2006; lyrics by Bruce Dickinson and Steve Harris). The song opens with a first person plural confession ("We are not the sons of God") and closes with the sinners' prayer ("Holy Father we have sinned"), and in between these striking admissions describes humanity's Nimrod-like ambition and lust for power: "the power of man, on its tower ready to fall" (cf. Genesis 11:1-9). This alludes to the biblical story of the Tower of Babel in which God confuses the builders' language and puts an end to their overreaching endeavors (v. 8).
Read Full Article »