American Noise

My apologies for making those of you who read my blog (thanks, by the way!) wait almost an entire month for another post.  I hate to make excuses, but with the second half of April turning into crunch time for my classes, I needed to set some priorities.  But, now that I'm practically done with finals (I only have one left), I can begin to write again.  And it's definitely good to be back.

About a month ago, Skillet released another single, entitled American Noise, from its upcoming album, Rise, set to be released on June 25th. I had purchased Sick Of It, the first single from the album that was released the week before American Noise, in a heartbeat. When I saw (to my surprise) that a second single was released, I could not help myself: I bought it without question. Skillet is such a great band; definitely check them out if you have never heard any of their music. And, of course, I was not disappointed with both of these singles.

Compared to the driving rock of Sick Of It, American Noise has more of a ballad-esque type of feel (well, kind of... feel free to disagree or perhaps offer a better description). However, Skillet has done some songs like this before (e.g. Yours to Hold, Lucy, etc.) and has always done them well in my humble opinion. After listening to the song for the first time (in which I generally am listening for overall musicality), I caught just enough of the words to say, "hey, wait a second, I need to listen to that again." After listening to it that second time, I discovered that which caused me to immediately play it again: the message of the song more than adequately describes our lives as Americans.

There is so much noise that goes on in and around our lives. Sometimes, it overpowers that which matters most. I am sure that if you are reading this, the “normal” everyday hustle and bustle of life is more than enough to distract us from more important things. Whether we find ourselves in busy hallways or on gridlocked highways, talking to clients on the phone all day, fighting a disease, writing multiple papers with little time to spare, trying to stay on top of the bills, or buying into the many advertisements around us that say we need this or that, we are constantly surrounded by noise that can keep us from spending extremely valuable time with those we love. Obviously this list is not exhaustive, but let’s face it: our American culture is full of a myriad of distractions that can cause us to forget what really matters and become lost in an ocean of all kinds of noise.

In the busyness of everyday life, it is absolutely necessary to sometimes just take a step back and breathe.  Rather than just living in the noise and attempting to barely survive, we need to refuse to be caught up in the craziness.  In the midst of all the noise, there is a desperate need for love.  We need to be the people that lift up our voices, radiate love, and cut through the American noise.  We cannot afford to simply exist in the cacophonous hurricane of life.  It's time to step out of the confusion and make a difference.  Just think: what can you do to show love to those around you in the chaos of everyday life?  It does not have to be radical.  It can be as simple as having a conversation with someone and genuinely listening to them.  Just be there for someone.  Do not let the American noise shut you up; there is more to this life than simply living hidden in the shadow of everyday life.