Thinkers Incorporated

Music connects with us in a way that no other form of art can. It has the ability to change our hearts, to feed our spirits, and to challenge our minds to think. Here are ten songs that can do just that:

Pompeii – Bastille

In the opening lines, we learn that this song is about what takes place when we are left to our own devices. It is about the consequences of allowing vice to run unhampered, and according to it, the consequences are pretty ugly. To convey this point, Bastille paints a picture of a city crumbling with dark clouds rolling in overhead.

However, the song does not end there. It goes on to ask, “Oh where do we begin?/The rubble or our sins?” When sin occurs, people are hurt, so should we begin by helping them, or by looking inward, a little closer to home? I don’t know about you, but I find this very thought-provoking.

 

Islands – The xx

This song tells a story. It tells the story of someone who has looked for something underneath and in islands and cities that have been unexplored but finds that she has been “Searching the world for what’s right here.” Furthermore, going back to searching the world is out of the question because “That bridge is on fire.”

Is this not similar to the story of so many believers? They search the world, only to find that what they have been looking for is right there in front of them, and when they do realize this, they they no longer need to leave. When we find Christ, we have neither need nor desire to go back to our previous life.

 

Awake My Soul – Mumford & Sons

Personally, I find this song more worshipful than most contemporary worship songs. When Marcus Mumford cries out for his soul to awaken so that it can meet its maker, I cry out in unison. My soul was made to be with God, and when my soul has fallen into a spiritual sleep, this song reminds me to wake it up, to actively search for God.

 

Grow Old With Me – Tom Odell

A lot of modern love songs reflect a type of love that is all passion and no substance. It burns furiously, but it quickly runs out of fuel. Not so with this song.

Tom Odell, with this song, has written one of the best love songs in recent history. It isn’t about a temporal love, but a love that endures for a lifetime. It is about loving someone so much that you want to grow old with them, raise a family with them, and die with them.

 

Rebellion (Lies) – Arcade Fire

The song begins by making the statement that, “Sleeping is giving in.” With physical sleep, this is obviously untrue, but what about rational or spiritual sleep? It then goes on to talk about how people try to hide the night, the light, and their lovers under covers. Essentially, people would rather sleep than face their problems. They would rather live in their dreams than in the real world. Escapism isn’t healthy, nor is living in a mental or spiritual stupor. Consequently, we should not allow ourselves to fall asleep.

 

Roll Away Your Stone – Mumford & Sons

Mumford & Sons again deliver with a song which, in the very first lines, begins addressing the void which exists in every man’s soul, which we fill with things unreal. These things with which we uselessly attempt to fill the void only steal our character, and create darkness.

Also, the story of the song’s protagonist appears to closely resemble the story of the prodigal son. “It seems that all my bridges have been burnt/But you say that’s exactly how this grace thing works./It’s not the long walk home that will change this heart/But the welcome I receive with every start.”

 

Unbelievers – Vampire Weekend

How many of us can say that we have never doubted, that we have never struggled to walk in faith? Well, that is what this song is all about. Ezra Koenig, who wrote the song and all the others on the band’s new album, was raised in a Jewish family, and the album reflects his religious upbringing. It is fraught with religious themes. Koenig seems to know that fire await the unbelievers, but he still asks, “what holy water contains a little drop, little drop for me?”

Even though Koenig does not find God by the end of the song, I really appreciate this song because I can relate to it. And whenever I see someone sincerely wrestling with their faith in pop culture, I perk my ears up. It will be interesting to see if this struggle is ever resolved. Koenig is definitely asking the questions, so hopefully he will find the answer and accept it.

I would suggest reading this if you are interested in learning more about the album.

 

I am Mountain – Gungor

Do you find it fascinating that each of our bodies is made of dirt, ash, wind, sand, and stardust? I do, and so does Michael Gungor, apparently. That so much could compound to bring about life is incredible. We are, as the song puts it, “From the ashes, filled with Holy Ghost.” This thought should put you in a reflective state, no matter who you are.

 

Same Love – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Although I do not agree with everything in this song, there is a lot that we can take away from it. Christians do tend to hate homosexuals, even though the scriptures tell us that we are to love all. We may believe that homosexuality is immoral, but homosexuals are created and loved by God, so we can neither be silent when they are mistreated, nor about the salvation which is available in Christ.

 

Sigh No More – Mumford & Sons

I apologize for including so many Mumford & Sons songs, but their songs are filled with truth, so it was hard for me not to. For example, this song proclaims that, “Love; it will not betray you/Dismay or enslave you, it will set you free/Be more like the man you were made to be.” True love edifies, and that makes it worthy of celebration. This song is nothing more than a celebration of true love and an admission incompetency in loving purely.