Art and rebellion go together like cigarettes and black leather, pessimism and sleeping in, anger and fear. And it sort of makes sense, because every new thing is, in a way a reaction against the past, an unwillingness to go along with the popular current. Even when this begins without a trace of angst, and everything is as sunny as the seventh of May, good natured change is soon challenged by the status quo – questions are raised, motives are examined with suspicion and resentment hardens resolve like soil baked in summer’s sun without one drop of relief.
Cigarettes and Black Leather
There is no question this cycle exists. There is no question it is anti-kingdom-of-God.
“Honor your father and mother…”
As artists, writers, and musicians we would do well to examine our selves and see if there be any trace of rebellion, any seed of contention tucked inside our creative impulses. The tendency to create from a place of reaction runs deep and only leads to the dissolving of community and the destruction of the very expression that we have invested all our efforts.
When we compete with the previous generation, we are unwittingly sowing those very same seeds into our own sons and daughters – developing a culture where advancement, breakthrough, and progress all come with the steep price of discord – one that we are all to ready to pay, because we know nothing else.
