Parkway Drive is one of the top Australian music bands. The band came to light in 2003 and has been functional to date. Parkway Drive is based in Bryon Bay, New South Wales, and currently has five active members.
For the past 18 years, Parkway Drive band has released quality songs with a unique style of music “metalcore”. These songs are capable of commanding massive listeners from diverse backgrounds.
Some listeners and fans have wondered if Parkway Drive is a Christian band, especially with the presence of religious elements in some of their songs. If you are one of such, you are on the right page.
An analysis of the lyrics and theme, religious background, and statements from the members of Parkway Drive band amongst other factors in this article will provide insights into the religious status of the band.
Is ParkWay Drive a Religious Band?
Although there are religious elements in some songs released by Parkway Drive band, we can’t say the band is religious because of contradictory statements from some members of the band.
For instance, in an interview by Stephen Hill of Metal Hammer Group with Winston McCall, the songwriter and main vocalist of the band, McCall stated that he is not a member of any organized religion.
In his words “I’m not a part of any organized religion. In Australia, there is a rogue mission into the Roman Catholic church and the abuse of children in their care and it’s fucked. The tax haven, under the guise of religion, has protected people responsible for all manner of awful things”.
McCall however acknowledged the existence of religious entities in this interview: ” I am open-minded to things, if there is anybody that says definitely that there is no God, they’re pretty stupid as well”. No other member of the band has openly associated with any religion and there is no public information about it.
In “wishing wells” from the “Reverence” album released in 2018 by the band, there are some elements of religion and spirituality in the lyrics of the song. The lyrics portray that the band acknowledges the existence of some religious beings and spirituality. However, this does not make the band religious because of the context in which these elements were used.
Below are the lyrics:
“Burn your heaven, flood your hell
Drown you in your wishing wells
Burn your heaven, flood your hell
Damn you all, cause tonight I’m killing gods”
The religious themes in songs by Parkway Drive band are most times very complex and controversial, leaving listeners with questions about the religious status of the band. The lyrics above contain “heaven” and “hell” as seen in the Bible and portray a desperate man on a journey to kill God and the Devil. This somehow proves the band’s disassociation from any form of organized religion; Christianity or Satanic.
What kind of Music Band is Parkway Drive?
Parkway Drive band has been described as a metalcore band. The metalcore music genre is a combination of elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. They make use of guitar breakdowns and riffs, death growls, screaming vocals, and heavy metal sounds.
The music band has been able to effectively infuse the aforementioned elements of metalcore into their songs. These songs provide a perfect blend of music to listeners to lift their moods, encourage individuality and promote self-love. Their songs are inspiring, brutal, sometimes heavy and aggressive but very melodic and captivating.
The band has 7 studio albums and a good deal of songs, each with unique and aesthetically produced sounds that appeal to listeners with diverse views, beliefs, and backgrounds. Their choice of “metalcore” makes them unique and one of the renowned music bands in Australia.
Is Parkway Drive a Christian Band?
Over the years, Christian music has become a relevant genre of music that has caught the attention of music lovers around the globe. Many Christian artists and bands have employed contemporary styles to make their songs appealing to diverse listeners.
As compared to conventional praise and worship styles that were frequently used, some Christian band groups have now infused other styles like pop, blues, metalcore, hip-hop, rap, etc into their songs. These diverse music styles have raised debates on if their songs are truly Christian or not, especially when the listener is yet to pay proper attention to the lyrics of such songs.
Christian songs express beliefs about the Christian faith. They are centered on the pillars, teachings, structures, and beliefs of Christianity, and any music devoid of these cannot be classified into this category. Such songs must reference God as the father, Jesus his son, and the holy spirit. It can also contain other themes and messages related to Christianity.
Before addressing a music band as a Christian band, such a band must have publicly identified as a Christian band, have members who are all Christians and have openly admitted it and have biblical or Christian themes and messages embedded in all or almost all of their songs. Against this backdrop, we can say that Parkway Drive is not a Christian band.
With a close look at the lyrics of some songs by Parkway Drive band, one can notice some biblical terms and themes peculiar to Christianity. In “I hope you Rot” from the album “Reverence” by Parkway Drive band, the lyrics go:
“Nothing here is sacred, nothing is divine
If heaven’s gate is open, then I think I’ll wait in
line. Nothing here is holy when every faith is
blind. So save your breath, I don’t need more
excuses.
The extract above from “I hope you rot” shows that the band shares in the Christian belief of the existence of heaven and hell as written in the Holy Bible.
In “land of the lost” from the most recent album by Parkway Drive “Darker Still” these lyrics have drawn the attention of listeners and raised controversies when the album was first uploaded on YouTube some months ago.
Here’s the song below:
“Are you a righteous boy?
Are you a penitent girl?
We’ve been down so long
We forgot we were searching…..there’s a
presence of omnipotence reaching down to
guide us all”.
The Christian faith holds that God is omnipotent, sitting high above in heaven, watching and guiding his children. These lines from “Land of the lost” can be interpreted as a message of faith in God and hope for those who know him.
It shows that there’s an omnipotent who loves and guides righteous people, the sinners and those that have repented from their sins equally. These lines sparked mixed reactions from fans on if the band is a Christian band, has changed its music style, or wants to give its listeners something very different from the regular.
“I spoke a vow today and asked if God will come and play, I’ve dug a home for him to sleep, but I swear, he won’t just answer me”
The lines above from “Wishing wells” in the “Reverence” album pass a complex message but also acknowledged that the God Christians believe in exists and can hear when people call on him.
“Heavy as heaven, cold as the night
Pain is the price of denial
The promise of hell in the Devil’s design” are lines from “Land of the lost” that also have some Christian and biblical terms.
Heaven and hell are commonly used in Christian narratives to make Christians sober, rekindle their faith in God, and stay righteous in preparation for judgment day. Despite all the elements of Christian religion discovered in some of their songs, we still opine that Parkway Drive is not a Christian band because of the context in which these themes and messages have been used. Also, a member had publicly declared that he is not a part of any organized religion while others have remained mute on their religious stance and beliefs.
Parkway Drive Christian Songs
As mentioned earlier, Parkway Drive is not a Christian band as such they do not have Christian songs. However, a song from their most recent album “Darker still” with the title “land of the lost” stands out amongst other songs released by the band and has stirred controversies among fans.
The song is spiritual, has some Bible themes, and tries to give hope and comfort to Christians seeking the face of God as seen in these lyrics:
“Are you a righteous boy?
are you a penitent girl?
We’ve been down so long
We forgot we were searching
but there’s the body in the basement and
there’s dirt on the soul, there’s a presence of
omnipotence
reaching down to guide us all”.
Is Parkway Drive a Satanic Band?
A satanic band can be identified from their songs, beliefs, practices, anti-christian themes, and acknowledgment of satan as the central figure. Satanism is usually characterized by demon worship, evil, and darkness.
Though some songs by Parkway Drive band have dark and terrifying themes, we haven’t seen any of them glorifying satan, members have not identified with Satanism and some have revealed that they do not believe in any organized religion, and satanism is one such.
Conclusion
A member of the Parkway Drive band had revealed that he does not conform to religious beliefs or belong to any organized religious group. The band is neither a Christian nor satanic band as some of their song lyrics openly criticize both religions. The band claims to be a group of open-minded and objective individuals with the sole aim of blessing their listeners with good music that suits diverse moods, backgrounds, views, and beliefs.
Think we were wrong? Write your reasoning in the comments and prove us wrong!