Christian Rock

Christian Rock covers heavier, rougher territory than its sister subgenre Contemporary Christian Music (CCM), putting more focus on standard rock-guitar fare while maintaining a squarely sacred lyrical focus. Indiana's Petra championed the style in the early 1970s and Christian Rock has struggled for respect and credibility in the mainstream rock community ever since. In the '80s, some Christian rockers reached arena-scale popularity as their style hit its commercial zenith. Today, the style's broader visibility comes and goes, with artists like Jars of Clay and Sixpence None the Richer occasionally hitting the Top-40.