CHRISTCORE TIER LIST

The christian hardcore/pop-punk/metal tier list is here! Where do The Devil Wears Prada, As I Lay Dying, For Today, Thousand Foot Krutch, Demon Hunter, August Burns Red, MXPX, Underoath, Hawk Nelson, and Deathstar belong??
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[@FinnMckentyPRMBA]

Come hang out on Twitch! www.twitch.tv/finnmckenty

[@ThomasVanHoesenDeadpooliscool]

Yo, wassup Finn, I just wanna tell you that your channel has helped me immensely in terms of being open to new music. I would credit you and Lost in Vegas almost entirely for helping me as a metal head become less of an elitist asshole despite the fact that I still don’t really like most of the music you talk about, but I can at least respect most of it. And your second channel has helped me so much in terms of how to market my band and just how to be a better person in general, you’re like Mr. Rogers for punks and it’s great, don’t ever stop bro.

[@southendbusker7534]

no pillar ?

[@7Sabrina7]

Finn I would argue That it's not the rest of the band's fault for what old boy did to his wife, Which is why you should put as I lay dying as B Tier.

[@jerrykid18]

Aint CIRCLE ONE catholic/ christian ?

[@aestheticbeatz5700]

August Burns Red got me into the scene. I loved them right from the start I was in therapy so Rescue and Restore resonated with me. I wouldn't even be into post-hardcore without that band. B tier is good though, because A means theyd havr to be better known than they are in my opinion. B is solid you're right. My favorite bands are usually B anyways

[@IvanZigamet]

My 5 cents on AILD. 1. Canceling people for past mistakes is a very controversial thing. If we treat all people who did time like that, we'll have a huge amount of people who lack the necessary socialization. If I'm wrong, what's the best way to treat those people? To turn our backs and let them know that they are eternally banned from "decent" society? I think it leads only to recidivism and alienation. 2. Afaik, Tim is doing his best to show that he's regretful and he's engaging in a few social projects and going to church. 3. It's also a subject of debate, but I think we should separate music (as a collective endeavor) and the deeds of people in the band. There are many examples of good (even legendary) musicians who did terrible stuff. If the music of those people can spark the best in the listeners, it's completely irrelevant if the author is scum. For me as a musician, AILD has played a crucial role in my music socialization, so I simply can't throw this band away. P.S it's completely fine if you disagree

[@abc4781]

Agreed

[@loganpriest6029]

Yea tbh it sounds like Finn doesn't know enough about the story to have such a strong opinion on. Can't discredit As I Lay Dying as a whole due to one person's actions either. The rest of the members still have to carry those actions with them for the rest of their life and it sounds like everyone is just trying to move on in their endeavours. So yea

[@Brendon2011009]

Red is 100% in the S tier. Grammy nominated, heavy and just overall soooo damn good

[@mmdpod]

💯🙌

[@JonathanGilmer]

YES. Michael is an incredibly solid vocalist, and I've always loved their incorporation of orchestral instruments into their songs.

[@smithbernard6276]

The red band became underated.

[@gigiizzy5651]

A lot of their songs are samey but they have a huge catalog and some very solid albums. I love them and hoping to see them this year.

[@jamesreza7939]

So, funny story- I went to a show last year that The Devil Wears Prada was playing at. I'd never been a huge fan before. Later, while walking to the car, I got hit by a truck and was out cold. Later, when I woke up and the paramedics were loading me into the ambulance, a couple of bystanders told me that one of the dudes from TDWP had seen it and come out of the bus to check and make sure I was okay. I have been a pretty die hard TDWP fan since. Next time they come through, I'm going to have them sign my hospital gown from that night.

[@stoopidhaters]

Dude, that's so awesome (not the truck hitting you)

[@Fenderprj182]

I want to grow up and start a band that ends up on Finn's D tier.

[@theSinisterBend]

Living Sacrifice demolishes every band on this list by a mile. They aren't S tier, they are GOD tier (pun intended).

[@moshpit0survivor]

I totally forgot about L.S.... way underated.

[@ryanruiz9958]

Came to post this. Reborn could've been up there with any Victory records albums in the 90s kzbin.info/www/bejne/qHKlpaiDa9p1odE

[@theSinisterBend]

@@moshpit0survivor I'd bet that every band Fin mentioned in this video would cite LS as an influence in regards to aggressive christian music. I'd put ZAO in the S tier as well.

[@theSinisterBend]

@@ryanruiz9958 Totally agree, Reborn is a classic. The hammering Process is my personal LS favorite, it's their first album I listened to.

[@Paleoprimal]

@@theSinisterBend Almost forgot about Zao. Very good as well.

[@cadillac2188]

I need more of this! Miss these bands: Embodyment, Zao, Living Sacrifice, Decyfer Down, Red, Dead Poetic, Haste The Day

[@ianisawesome778]

EMBODYMENT IS AMAZING

[@dead_beatbunny]

Love Dead Poetic.

[@thunderwatch8463]

The album Attack of the Wolf King by Haste the Day is probably my favorite album by a Christian band.

[@cadillac2188]

@@ianisawesome778 They had such a unique style. Way ahead of their time IMO

[@cadillac2188]

@@dead_beatbunny I'll still jam August Winterman

[@heccingcommie4942]

Fit For A King deserves a spot on the list, at least a solid A or B tier. They’re the only christian band I listen to as an atheist because they’re not preachy and don’t claim to have all the answers. They acknowledge that being a christian doesn’t fix all mental health issues and it’s natural to have doubt, and they perfectly mix melodic lyrics and riffs with heaviness.

[@treverpitts]

Have you ever heard of the group paramecium if you want Heavy bruel Music check them out

[@Джонатан-р8д]

Way back in the day I thought of FFAK as a band name and someone informed me it already existed. I was devastated.

[@carlosmembreno7831]

I mean that just sounds like a secular band in which that case, why even bother. But they're A tier for their music and I would still count them as sort of Christian

[@KalamariKing23]

I Kno how you feel man. An artist non judgemental but staying positive for a better tomorrow

[@breadstickguy]

I was going to say myself, fit for a king needs to be on this list. They hit really hard and have been solid for a lot of years

[@Bren]

I went to a christian high school and you are correct - MxPx was my entire introduction to punk.

[@danevertt3210]

But they really didn’t have a Christian lyrics though

[@charlesschwaboverhere5582]

@@danevertt3210 to their credit

[@ISwampSperm]

@@danevertt3210 eh you listen to songs like Do Your Feet Hurt and by the end you realize they’re talking about abstinence lol

[@danevertt3210]

@@ISwampSperm no way!

[@NightElveee]

@@danevertt3210 I discovered MxPx on a christian rock Tv show, JCTV i think they used to play hardcore punk and metalcore shows, discovered so many bands from that show.

[@Slaughter327]

ABR deserves A tier with that grammy nomination.

[@nic_4849]

And that they are still actively touring (2 tours since COVID really). That's impressive.

[@Greatzinger67]

S tier cuz

[@Mr.briteside]

Put some respect on the boys!

[@alejandroxan]

S Tier

[@AlkalineJake79]

I'm curious to see where Mewithoutyou, The Almost, Emery, and Further Seems Forever fit in. Also Norma Jean's, "Memphis will be laid to waste" is a dope song. The part at the end where Aaron comes in still slaps, as the kids say.

[@MrMegatron85]

Oh shit I completely forgot about Norma jean dude. I know what I'm listening to on my way to work today

[@dead_beatbunny]

Oh, yeah. Norma Jean is highly influential in the genre (and amazing live).

[@burninsherman1037]

Man, I'd still love to have a set of the monster masks from that the almost album cover.

[@geekwithabible4477]

Definitely love to see where mewithoutYou makes it on the list

[@ethancundiff6422]

MewithoutYou is S tier no doubt.

[@Dave.M.23]

I see I’m not alone since I have seen a bunch of other comments saying that Demon Hunter deserves to be up at least one slot. They, along with ABR, are probably the least cringe in this genre as far as lyrics go and the diversity in style and songwriting make them a solid band. Not just in this genre but just period. I used to listen to them when I was into going to church, which I don’t anymore, but I still have love for their sound.

[@davidallamericananarchist9220]

I love Demon Hunter, I grew up in a Christian family and grew up listening to most of these bands, but Demon Hunter was different and were always less cringey and more musically and lyrically solid, and were my introduction into "the heavy stuff" and even as I got older and more critical of the negative aspects of my religion, Demon Hunter still holds a place in my heart for both nostalgia, and the fact that their music aged better than most of the other bands on this list, IMO.

[@burninsherman1037]

I haven't listened to demon hunter in awhile now, but I definitely need to now that I'm remembering some of their shit, and how good it was. Plus, they always had sick album art.

[@skilldeadly8888]

For As I Lay Dying, there are rappers that killed people that still become famous. And August Burns Red deserve A tier at the least! They are Grammy nominated and continue to create amazing music and innovate.

[@jarontaliman1]

Agreed, Finn will give trap and gangsta rap a pass for all their crimes but harps on this

[@curranbrownlee9671]

Honestly. I don't see the point in Finn even including them if he doesn't even want to rate them based on their influence and pretty solid music in any way. I don't support Tim Lambesis by any means but I do appreciate their unique and aggressive sound.

[@NorthGeorgiaGhoul]

@@curranbrownlee9671 there is NOTHING unique about As I Lay Dying🤣

[@stonecoldsteverharvey7862]

@@curranbrownlee9671 he obv just wanted to slam Tim

[@iammrmanager]

Do you have certain fbi crime statistic you wanna throw at us too?

[@kage6613]

Rawkfist was an absolute staple at youth group growing up, everyone loved Fire It Up and The Flame in All of Us when it came out, and all the Hawk Nelson & FM Static as well. Same with EARTHQUAKE by FAMILY FORCE 5, the premier Christian crunkcore band. amazing video. Blessthefall are upper tier for sure. Training For Utopia, amazing band. Relient K are S tier. Blindside, amazing band unknown to anyone outside christcore scene. Obviously Norma Jean and The Chariot have been pretty influential if only for their stage presence (but also panic chord car alarm breakdown chug chug ree ree) Showbread, Dizmas, The Wedding, there was so much of this stuff. This is what bridged the gap for me between 90s/2000s mall punk and the hardcore scene, this is what got me into positive hardcore ethos and started my passion for music. I too wish I could go back to 2004. I still have a white belt so there's always that...oh and also, definitely constantly wore those arm bands, they were so cool and especially at Christian camps and shit they would give them out with the camp logo on them or whatever. Very christcore thing. Excellent stuff

[@jthrock45]

V ironic that AILD influenced almost every band on this list lol

[@Necrologymetal]

Zao influenced As I lay dying and Killswitch engaged. They are definitely S tier with many amazing albums

[@pumpkinspicetrashbag]

I remember when hawk nelson’s singer left the band and they went full CCM like 10 years ago, and then just last year, their long time guitarist/vocalist publicly announced he’s an atheist and the band has to disband

[@TrevorT6]

Lmao

[@matthewskipworth28]

So sad. Their early albums were great!

[@jasonwhite8102]

MUTEMATH deserves a spot on this list, somewhere. One of the biggest reasons they opted out of their Warner Bros. contract was because WB wanted to market them as a Christian Band. As far as influence, Paul Meany, the former lead singer, is a co-producer on Twenty One Pilots last 2 albums, and Tyler Joseph has sited MUTEMATH as one of their biggest musical influences, as have numerous other bands.

[@FeralRC]

Demon Hunter deserves more credit. They are not a one trick pony by any means. The first 5 albums were a great mix of heavy and melodic. The first album was so raw and dark. Check out Soldier's Song off The Triptych. Until lately I never skipped a track on any of their albums.

[@gghhyo5799]

THANK YOU. They're super underappreciated and their lyricism trumps most bands in this genre tbh. Science Of Lies for example

[@bloomingtonjoe]

Demon Hunter has been around for such a long time. A lot of the other bands were a flash in the pan.

[@Eichro]

+1 for Demon Hunter, I think they're one of these bands that you don't need to stick the "Christian" label for them to stand out. Shows you can be a legit Christian band without preachy lyrics, and their melodic sensibility is top notch, plus Ryan Clark is a hell of a singer (well i mean heaven of a singer am i right) IMO they're well past their prime but their legacy is hard to parallel.

[@FeralRC]

@@Eichro I can agree with them being past their prime. Their latest albums have been vanilla but still very good in the eyes of a fan from the start. Everything prior has so much replayability and cemented them as one of my all time favorite bands. They also stop in Cleveland on every single tour so I've been able to see them countless times.

[@Eichro]

yeah, not saying their latest albums are bad, but it's hard to deny they used to make slappier bangers

[@PigglyWigglyDeluxe]

Tim is doing his best to right his wrongs. Have you watched his post-release statement video? He gets a pass because he is a great case of incarceration rehabilitation. Don’t we WANT to live in a society where prison is an appropriate debt to society? Don’t we want convicted felons to be better people when they are released? Yes he did something disgusting and paid a price for it and served his time, don’t we WANT him to be a better person? That’s exactly what he is now, a better person, and yet people still hate him. It’s people like that who are the problem, you can’t hate on people like Tim, having become a better person after serving time for a heinous crime. He’s likely to never offend again, I think that’s a fucking WIN. Bless.

[@adammurray365]

Some people never will forgive. People can change. But you hit the nail on the head

[@PigglyWigglyDeluxe]

@@adammurray365 I would at least respect someone who admits they’ll never forgive. That’s fine. Either way, we need to enable him to be a better person. Punching down makes his life that much harder. Continuing to shit on this guy will make his life tough and make him more likely to reoffend. We don’t want that, right? We don’t want him to commit another crime. We want him to be better, don’t we? I’m glad you agree. Why should we enable him? Why should we do anything for him? Why should we kiss his ass? Maybe we should, maybe we shouldn’t. Who knows, who cares. All I care about is making sure Tim continues to be a better person. Unpopular opinion incoming: We owe it to all felons big or small to rehabilitate them. Our collective goal should be two things. Appropriate punishments for crimes, and rehabilitation. Rehabilitation is what people forget about. We owe it to felons to give them everything they need to live a better safer more productive life to keep them away from crime. Lord knows the prison system just dumps them when they serve their time.

[@CrookersCrunk661]

Well said bro 💯

[@Agostoic]

Great point although I couldn't care less for the band tho.

[@carlosmembreno7831]

Yea it's about redemption. What he did will always make people uncomfortable unfortunately and there's nothing we can do about it

[@jpl1608]

TFKs first album was literally a Christian Limp Bizkit

[@calebd2105]

Find the old Supafly video. Some of the funniest crap ever

[@alejandroxan]

August Burns Red is S Tier absolutely. They have amazing music and lyrics, very high commercial success, they are one of the most consistent bands with the same members since 2006. They also just had Jake start his festival Heart Support Fest, are on their 4th 10 year reunion tour, they have close to 20 Christmas songs, and they are such nice people in person.

[@erickmazur807]

I seen mxpx live at warped 2002. Mike started " punk rawk show" threw his hand up and 1, 000 people sang it

[@kranberryjones1449]

I also saw them in 2002. In Dallas I think. So fun and awesome. They just came out with another single too!

[@startervisions]

Finn getting nostalgic and sentimental, over Hawk Nelson and Thousand Foot Krutch, is the kinda content we need and deserve in these tough times.

[@M1XEDBAG]

Amen… haha see what I did there?

[@startervisions]

@@M1XEDBAG lol hallelujah brethren

[@lilxlate]

Hawk Nelson was one of my favourites!!! And I have a TFK tattoo xD

[@BulletProofBacon]

Man those bands got me into music in general. So good.

[@Spacenugget9]

I wouldn't have got into heavy music if it wasn't for bands like RED, TFK, Wolves At The Gate, Demon Hunter, Disciple, or (slight cringe I guess) Skillet, so even though I don't really go for Christian music anymore I have enormous respect for how influential they were on my musical taste. Edit: you missed out Relient K, who are probably the most influential Christian pop-punk band of all time.

[@JonathanGilmer]

Ayyeee someone finally mentioned Wolves At the Gate!

[@FutureMemories1983]

The Clark brothers are the most underated influential people in alt music. Their design studio has done so much amazing work across all genres

[@nightshadekrow4712]

Finn didn't care for Demon Hunter so much, but i think they have a mostly great discography

[@dead_beatbunny]

Also very nice dudes.

[@jg7923]

Training For Utopia is my favorite.

[@centralia83]

@@nightshadekrow4712 I definitely agree, demon hunter is an amazing band

[@jakethemajikdog369]

MyChildrenMyBride, The Showdown, Showbread, Children 183, House of Heroes, Blindside, Texas in July, Haste The Day, The Almost, The Classic Crime, some of my favorites from this era. Growing up as an alternative kid that also went to youth group, I appreciate these videos more than you know, thanks Finn!

[@zsoltsandor3814]

Blindside especially, for not coming from the US.

[@jakethemajikdog369]

@@zsoltsandor3814 oh really? I had no idea!

[@zsoltsandor3814]

@@jakethemajikdog369 yep, they are Swedish.

[@jakethemajikdog369]

@@zsoltsandor3814 fun fact for the day!

[@AngusMokPhoto]

Haste the Day, my man

[@timoty1670]

Man, I remember when I first heard TFK and Nine Lashes, I could not believe that they are Christian groups, because they soo good and modern for Christian rock. PS thanks 4 this video and God bless ✝️

[@jasonlovesmusicreacting882]

I’m so tired that I read the title as “Christmascore” lmao.

[@danielclark-hughes692]

The genre I didn't know I needed lol

[@alexandersokolov4992]

Loved your point about Christian music! My dad's side of the family is very religious, sometimes to the uncomfortable extremes. And since I am an atheist this someone's drove a wedge between us, and made me regard other Christian content with some negativity! But when I listened to Hawk Nelson and FM Static again (when I was listening to them in early 00's I didn't have enough language skills to understand they were pretty religious) I felt much more comfortable about their music than I would have in my edgy early 20s. It is just so wholesome and genuinely kind!!!

[@CrookersCrunk661]

Sleeping Giant (which is basically xDeathstarx) brought a serious vibe to the underground hardcore scene and eventually led me to getting saved. Never cared about God until I started listening to that band. Crazy.

[@JmPie74]

Love this band

[@HomophobicHomie]

That’s awesome

[@scottbourret1190]

Happy Tommy is back with Holy Name.

[@fatassjay]

I feel like Zao should've been on here, atleast A tier

[@Necrologymetal]

S tier in my book. They influenced ton of metalcore bands and are just amazing

[@fatassjay]

@@Necrologymetal I would agree, I just didn't want to get too greedy putting them up top 😅 I do hear their influence in alot of bands though. And almost all their releases spanning over 25 years have been solid. Their newest is especially enjoyable.

[@TimBitten]

Dude, yeah, how do you even make this list without Zao??!

[@TaraKaos]

Funny story im an old christian punk, and my mom is the reson i got into punk. In the mid 90's she saw an MxPx album at a christian book store and bought it for me. For like 3 months that album played on repeat so much that my sisters still know the lyrics to half the album lol

[@matthewskipworth28]

Which album? I first heard Teenage Politics and loved it, but the first albums I ever had the opportunity to buy was Pokinatcha. A friend warned me about it (because it was quite different to TP), but I got it anyway. I love that album too!

[@TaraKaos]

@@matthewskipworth28 ya it wasteenage politics 😂 I later bought pokinatcha on my own and loved it

[@Chopstick2U]

Blindside was one of my favorites in this scene. A Thought Crushed My Mind still holds up imo. But, years later I discovered that they were heavily borrowing from their fellow Swedes, Refused.

[@dead_beatbunny]

They're my favorite band in this genre.

[@tobiasash9281]

>people forgive him for this Bro, Christianity is all about forgiveness lol

[@Aleblood]

Demon Hunter was absolutely the band that got me into metal as a sheltered Christian kid

[@nathanthomson1931]

Omg sooooooooo many more bands to discuss!!! I expect to see Wolves at the Gate Blindside, Project 86, Sleeping Giant, Reliant K, Supertones, Insyderz Norma Jean, Skillet, Dead Poetic, Pillar, Kutless, POD, My Epic, 12 Stones, Evanescence, and more!!!

[@christopherbush5139]

How about Blindside? They were one of the more successful bands out there during like 2003. Their video was always on MTV2 and played on KROQ in Los Angeles (where I lived), probably the most famous rock radio stations in the US

[@daniel-rachelmartin3389]

Thanks for doing christian metal and the rest! There are so many good bands there.

[@daniel-rachelmartin3389]

Im so excited for part two!!!

[@markwrenn5965]

Part 2: Haste the Day, Lutikriss, Zao, Pillar, Skillet

[@seemann2401]

August burns red is as big as you get in metalcore. If that's a criteria and plus their influence they're definitely a top tier band.

[@ScovellsRock]

Invisible Enemy my be the most well written/constructed songs since Bloodwork by Living Sacrifice.

[@LRM5195]

So happy you mentioned Hawk Nelson. I love that band so much!

[@MaPleWoRlDOrder]

Growing up with religious parents pretty much all I would listen to as a kid was random praise and worship music. So when my Dad got a TFK album and put it on my child brain was mindblown at the sound (it was the Art of Breaking album right when it first came out and the song was Absolute. From then on I just kept progressing and expanding my taste in rock/metal/etc. I'll always have massive nostalgia for the band. Some of their songs still hold up pretty well but mostly the first 3 albums.

[@edlingja1]

Ohhhh hoho yesssss that song was absolutely mind blowing! Started a lifetime chasing real music, playing drums at youth sometimes and a generally radical departure from the norm. So important and definitely a B-class band or higher.

[@kolin572]

my dad was in active addiction / recovery my whole life and ill never forget going to the al rosa villa (place where dime was killed) to see project 86 with my pops. put me on to zao, demon hunter, norma jean, everything when i started to get into hardcore. i might not be christian but ill never forget these memories thanks for touching on it finn

[@ianisawesome778]

Project 86 is incredible

[@froshanddink]

I came to the comments looking for someone else to mention Project. They remain one of my all-time favorites.

[@themadthrasher5000]

I would recommend Mortification, Christian death metal from the early 90s, their self-titled album and Scrolls of the Megilloth are really solid!

[@ProgrammedForDamage]

They're top blokes too.

[@treverpitts]

Mortification what about paramecium and yes mortification if you like trash metal they go very hard👍

[@froshanddink]

Play Mortification for anyone who thinks Christian music can't be dark and aggressive.

[@boomertuxx]

Scrolls is mean. Paramecium has a solid debut album as well

[@KommanderHooyah]

I was homeschooled and played high school basketball for a Christian homeschool team called the Fire in the early 2010s. A few of us recommended Fire It Up by Thousand Foot Krutch as our warmup song, but the coach said it did not sound Christian. They ended up play that “you are beautiful, my sweet, sweet song” CCM song instead.

[@kohiek]

Thousand Foot Krutch is fun, and they are amazing live!

[@taurusgump]

How does Finn know them? I mean, sure I've seen them. But Finn?

[@fattymattychady]

Where can I watch part 2?

[@eberg7982]

MxPx holds up better than any other pop punk band that came out of late 90s / 2000s

[@easyhateoven]

Zao, Society's Finest, Overcome, Nodes of Ranvier, (old) Haste The Day, Sinai Beach, Symphony In Peril, Inked In Blood...

[@DJBree13]

Between like 2006 and 2012 there really was a christcore industrial complex in the Deep South lots of churches/ youth pastors were willing to spend real money on shows in the hopes of boosting youth engagement and basically every other week I would go see a Facedown Records band playing within like an hour of my house.

[@simonb8988]

You aren’t referring to the metro Atlanta area are you?

[@DJBree13]

@@simonb8988 Kind of I went to a lot of shows in Douglasville at the 7 Venue.

[@simonb8988]

@@DJBree13 That’s cool. Around 2003-2007 for me around the Roswell, Alpharetta, Cumming area. Can’t remember the name’s of the venues or many of the bands, but it was a good time.

[@DJBree13]

@@simonb8988 Nice! yeah that was an awesome time for smaller shows.

[@bartoszkuzminski3709]

I'd love to hear your thoughts on The Chariot, Every Time I Die and Norma Jean. Looking forward to part 2.

[@crazymad159]

Where is the p2

[@adekunlefajana2037]

I like the way Finn is not condescending with his content. You're my favourite KZbinr, cheers mehn!! 🍻

[@FinnMckentyPRMBA]

Thank you!

[@MrTbot]

Part 2? Your thoughts on Five Iron Frenzy?

[@xgetfightedxxx]

The chariot wins everything

[@carltonbauheimer]

The comment I was looking for.

[@Ozymandiaz1260]

Absolutely.

[@karlkavanagh5840]

As I lay dyings music is amazing that's my objective opinion Don't judge people for separating the art from the artist.

[@HessianHunter]

You mean subjective, right?

[@hos316]

With the main members of TFK and FM Static being the same guys, my favorite thing they did was doing Heat Miser and Snow Miser on Happy Christmas Vol 5

[@gghhyo5799]

Aw come on Demon Hunter in C tier? They were pretty huge in the christcore scene. Plus, Ryan as a lyricist is god tier in that scene.

[@jasonlovesmusicreacting882]

I’m more mad that For Today got E tier lol

[@ScovellsRock]

Plus Demon Hunter's unity of design and theme puts them on a level no band can claim.

[@benroxknox]

I grew up in this scene and used to drive hours to Nashville to see them. This was a fun look back even though I rarely listen to these tracks anymore, I'll always have a soft spot for this group. The fact that you're talking about them in an honest, but positive fashion is refreshing.

[@danielclark-hughes692]

I think its important to make a good faith attempt to separate the art from the artist but in the case of bands like Lostprophets that's kinda fucking hard.

[@pumpkinspicetrashbag]

If you wanna support the good lads from lostprophets, check out No Devotion (all of the non-pedos of LP on instrumentals and Geoff Rickly on vocals). Really good stuff!

[@dead_beatbunny]

@@pumpkinspicetrashbag I wonder though how in the dark they really were honestly. Bands travelling together, being that close, they were bound to notice something. He was also quite vocal about his "tastes."

[@terminaldeity]

Spitfire was a really slept on Christian metalcore band back in the day. Their album The Dead Next Door still holds up as some interesting late-90s sludgy mathcore. Produced by Steve Evetts at Trax East, too.

[@jg7923]

I liked The Dead Next Door and the Self Help EP but I wasn't a fan of Cult Fiction.

[@davidherzing1496]

VB!

[@lightfusegetaway]

Still listen to that album in '22.

[@boomertuxx]

LOVE the dead next door.

[@probablylarsulrich5654]

Rob O'Neill the Navy Seal killed Bin Laden while wearing the demon hunter patch on his uniform, so automatic S tier imo. Also, I'd love to hear a podcast with you and Ryan Clark.

[@elon_bust]

Was he wearing it when they “threw Bin Laden’s body in the ocean”?

[@ireactionl]

Expect he didn’t kill him… He put rounds in him afterwards.

[@lazylegolars]

That's so American.

[@standardbrah]

ready for part 2, should include Norma Jean, mewithoutYou and Relient K

[@drewwray5150]

Living Sacrifice needs to be part of this conversation. Is there a part 2?

[@scottbourret1190]

Gotta see Tommy Green on the list some where; Sleeping Giant & Holy Name.

[@timoratus_music]

The greatest and most influential band that combines metal and Christianity will always be EXTOL. To me at least.

[@HessianHunter]

Extol rules. Undeniable band.

[@xslthrdx]

That band is insane 🙏💰

[@lilnaptime6091]

If Underoath isn’t on the top tier of this list then the whole thing is invalid.

[@jacobjburton11]

Personally UØ, flyleaf, and POD are the S tiers. Prada I think is High A, but can't quite reach S

[@rossmusic25]

@Teej Underoath over them ANY day

[@jasonlovesmusicreacting882]

@@jacobjburton11 Nah, TDWP is B tier. They’ve had a few flops in their career.

[@angwishedmedia3972]

I wish I made it to the stream. I’d have mentioned A Plea For Purging, In The Midst Of Lions, and Sleeping Giant.

[@angwishedmedia3972]

Ooh I also forgot one that I feel bad for because I always forget but they’re pretty solid The Crimson Armada.

[@brasschuckles3138]

Blindside was a band that I really liked, what’s your thoughts on them? I’m not into Christian based music, but I thought they had some solid shit!

[@imperialwolf7872]

Even as a devout Christian myself, I honestly never even paid attention to whether some of these guys were Christian bands or not. I just listened to them because I loved their music, which I think is important because it shows that good music is good music, regardless of what beliefs they have.

[@XxMATTxXist]

Zao. Misery signals. Maylene and the sons of disaster. Emery.Haste the day. Norma jean. Fit for a king. Texas in july. A plea for purging. 12 stones. With blood comes cleansing. Beloved. Blindside. dead poetic. oh sleeper and hopesfall were christian bands idk about now though

[@chesterclamhouse5092]

Was Misery Signals christian?

[@efrahernandez281]

Keep forgetting about the early hxc punk and metalcore bands like, The Crucified, Living Sacrifice, Strongarm, NIV, xDsiciple adx etc… talk about Living Sacrifice for example, when they came out with Reborn, it was a total game changer. Previously a thrash/death metal band, The album reborn was probably the most influential metal, death and hardcore crossover album at the time.

[@GnarStark]

I’ve listened to underoath since 6th grade and I’ve never had any friends that liked them too so it was nice to see them put into S tier lol

[@savesnine]

Thrice is S-tier. Just like Underoath: charted on Billboard w/ major record label support, had a certified gold album, over 1M spotify listens/mo, basically put post-hardcore on the map w/ Thursday in 2003, have an extremely devoted fanbase

[@Yourmomgoestocollege87]

Facts

[@PhoenixRiseinFlame]

In part 2 Finn should look at Becoming the Archetype. They’re a really decent Christian technical death metal band.

[@HessianHunter]

I still revisit them. Super creative band with tons of melody and no weedlydeedlys

[@nickgreen2394]

@@HessianHunter weedlydeedlys being crazy lead guitar riffs like sweeps etc.?

[@HessianHunter]

@@nickgreen2394 Weedlydeedlys are tough to define but I don't mean sweeps. They're kinda aimless single note flourishes. What I'm trying to say is that Becoming the Archetype are a melodeath band with sturdy riffs and everything they do feels purposeful w/ no superfluous notes for the sake of filling up space.

[@Джонатан-р8д]

I used to love those dudes.

[@jaimesantiagolonga]

Good call, Becoming the Archetype are a phenomenal band. I do hope they can settle down with a steady line up

[@nathanpyle8399]

You gotta include the band RED in the next tier list! Great video!

[@Mr.briteside]

August Burns Red was the most talented group of musicians in that lane at that time. They didn’t necessarily bring anything new to the table but they played cleaner than everyone else. Absolutely A-Tier.

[@indiopeltier9758]

What about the JCHC scene?Officer Negative,Headnoise,The Havoc ,World Against World,Ballydowse,Crashdog.Ooooh yeah ,Training for Utopia is Awesome.

[@CastleChris92]

I was worried we would get a Tier List video without talking about the drip, then Hawk Nelson swooped in to save the day

[@nightshadekrow4712]

Thanks for doing this. Im ex-christian, but i do still appreciate christ core bands, aka - impending doom, demon hunter, POD, ETC

[@zakk219]

As someone who got into heavier music and stuff through the Christian hardcore and metalcore stuff, this hits hard for me. I would like to see what Finn thinks of older Facedown Records bands like early Comeback Kid, xLooking Forwardx and No Innocent Victim. Also wonder what he thinks of the 90s JCHC movement with bands like Officer Negative. (I personally have a huge Officer Negative JCHC tattoo on my arm that I've wanted to cover for a long time. Think a bit harder before getting a cheap tattoo on your 18th birthday, folks.)

[@budgetseagull]

Oh wow I forgot about Facedown Records. Time to blast Bloody Sunday for a few days.

[@alextaylor417]

before watching this, im just gonna put Underoath in S tier. no question

[@lucaslogg1024]

Training For Utopia were great! They are a bit forgotten in the solid state discography now days. I still want to hear the project "The American Spectator" with members from coalesce and TFU, it never became anything though.

[@noodraider]

They were AMAZING!!!!!!!!! for like 10 days.

[@Ozymandiaz1260]

I loved TFU back in the late 90s/early 2000s. The split ep with Zao is fucking amazing. I don’t know what the hell they were on about with that throwing a wrench album, though.

[@lucaslogg1024]

@@Ozymandiaz1260I were such a fan of TFU, had four different versions of plastic soul. Listened to wrench until liked it with an attitude of “If I don’t understand it they are beyond me”.

[@GKNW]

Now this is the video 14 year old super Christian Nick is super excited about. I lived and died for MXPX. Oh boy those years were so long ago.

[@jasonwhite8102]

Like MUTEMATH’s previous band, Earthsuit, Chevelle also started out on a Christian Label. Earthsuit was on a label called Sparrow and Chevelle was on a label called Squint before moving to Epic. Chevelle’ she first album, “Point #1” was actually produced by Steve Albini.

[@trevorwooten2910]

DUDE! I was compelled to watch this video. This whole music scene was a defining part of my high school days (I'm 23). Red, Skillet, TFK, Demon Hunter, For Today, & ABR were some of our favorites in my youth group. Especially TFK & For Today! Very bummed that you ranked them so low! This video made me smile tho. Much love!

[@jasonlovesmusicreacting882]

FT deserves at least C, and they were pretty popular at one point during Immortal/Fight The Silence when I discovered them.

[@liaho78]

A Christcore tier list without Strongarm on it is meaningless in my opinion!

[@sauerkrautjr]

Met the guys from TFK and Red once. TFK guys were EXTREMELY chill, wholesome dudes. Red--less chill, but kinda fits the music. Red was my gateway to metal and I still love em.

[@LordFlashheart]

Throw Sleeping Giant in the mix. Song with Frankie was great.

[@jameydunne3920]

I know Finn's opinion of 3rd gen ska punk, but I love Five Iron Frenzy. In the early 2000's Christian music slog, I always felt they rose above the Christian and ska music of the era. Also, what do you think of/ have you ever heard of a 90's punk band called Crashdog? I feel like they are the "punkiest" Christian group I've ever heard.

[@teddyberserker]

I feel seen by this list. This was my culture growing up. Hawk Nelson, Relient k, FM Static, and more. These were essentially what defined my music taste. I'll definitely be tuning in for part 2!

[@TheeBizzyB]

Yes! Same!

[@frostbound]

Same! I always said if I could be in a band it would've been those three. Hawk Nelson (Letters to the President-HNIMF, so the Jason Pop-punk days) to this day I use as my example for my music tastes. Letters to the President is a no-skip album for me. And of course Relient K. Mmhmm and Anatomy of Tongue in Cheek started my music journey. And FM Static was the perfect graduating high school band for me.

[@S_CampbellFOC]

Stretch Arm Strong. Living Sacrifice. Norma Jean

[@know_hope]

I think people aren’t necessarily giving Tim a pass, but they’re moving on from it. His ex-wife has forgiven him, he seems to be extremely healthy right now, and he’s got some sort of charity I believe now? What he did was super messed up, yes indeed, but like I said, I think people are more or less happy to move on because of those reasons. But AILD definitely should be a A-B tier aside from that. But I respect ur decision for putting them there. Also…ABR will always be S tier for me. Two Grammy nominations, a band that a lot of people are influenced by and they’re the most consistent band in metal - in my opinion - in the last 15 years.

[@thebiolithic]

I'm on a Finn binge! Keep cranking out the videos and love some Christcore from Punk Rawk Show to August Burns Red to Impending Doom!

[@endconnr]

Man- I feel like Finn could use work on the power of Forgiveness. Tim's ex- wife gave forgave him, but Finn can't? Not forgiving is like carrying a back-pack of weight around with you all of the time. It's only weighing you down and it is better to just let it go if what is in the bag doesn't serve you. I'll also add that he adds ABR to the B tier, and Heart Support (Jake from ABR's company) put out an entire documentary on forgiveness and growth, surrounding Tim's story and the band's relationship to him. I was a big AILD fan when I was a kid, and it took that documentary, and forgiveness from his wife and band mates to realize it wasn't my place to hold contempt for Tim- all that and I still just don't really listen to them much these days. They just made all the songs they needed to by 2010, imo.

[@jarredd7830]

Well said my friend 👏. Totally agree. His constant hate for that band makes him seem super childish.

[@endconnr]

@@jarredd7830 I mean I wouldn't go that far personally, Finn is an awesome guy with a lot of great insights. We are all human. I am certainly no better than anyone, I just know what makes sense to me and what doesn't!

[@PeteCore75]

Zao was a legitimate great christian core band

[@springer90]

Do a video on Nintendocore!

[@keithwaynejones]

BLEACH was my favorite christian band back when my parents didn’t let me listen to secular music. sort of pop punkish band from nashville

[@emmaseckso1870]

Not kidding at all… I found out about thousand foot krutch from a teen Christian magazine who said “if you like Limb Bizkit, you’ll love TFK” That being said.. that first album is amazing. If you do a part two we REALLY need some Blindside and Emery (s tier in their early period)

[@connorpeppermint8635]

TFK imo is the most consistently solid of all the Christian rock bands that got big. Every album they made was good or special in its own way (excluding anything after 2013 as I haven't listened to it)

[@Texaskilljoy]

I love blindside, but honestly they're a b tier band. One of my all time favorite bands though

[@jesseaugustine8539]

Yeah Tim was a asshole for trying to kill his wife, but I can’t deny how good As I Lay Dying’s music is. Definitely deserves A tier, and in my opinion S tier.

[@LRM5195]

I agree. Sucks what Tim did but their first 3 albums were huge and they were kind of leading the pack along with Killswitch. They were highly influential and Finn saying their music isn’t even good like cmon man?

[@joshraymond1065]

Haste the Day was my favorite band back then. I am surprised Finn never mentions them.

[@RS-qy5hn]

And mortal treason

[@LRM5195]

HTD was solid album after solid album. Maybe except COWARD, which is still a decent album but sounds messy imo.