Produced by local arts community member Justin Ludwig, who is one of the founders of the local punk/hard rock label Harvest King Records along with being a member of Kleins96 and Amour Fou, this documentary explores what the promotional blurb describes as “the explosive subculture of Christian hardcore music”.
Christian and broader spiritual values have been, and continue to be, present in the work of many different musical artists from Elvis Presley to U2. But in the last 20 years or so there’s been a rise in acts with an explicit Christian/evangelical focus where the creation and performance of music becomes an act of worship and a way to spread the word.
Self-identified Christian groups span a range of genres from country and pop to hip hop and metal. In this documentary, Ludwig (who describes himself as an atheist punk rocker) goes on tour with two evangelical hardcore bands (Messengers and Sleeping Giant) and attends the Cornerstone Christian Music Festival in Illinois.
Christcore screens tonight at 7 p.m. at the RPL Theatre. Ludwig will be in attendance for the screening. Here’s the trailer:
