Somebody’s messing with me—trying to get me to crack by sending me out to Coors Amphitheater to be immersed in a pit of inescapable electronically amplified noise on a day that will send a few hundred thousand pilgrims home from air conditioned theaters, wondering at inconvenient truths while an equal number rock their way through this, the hottest summer in recorded history. Back at headquarters they know my feelings about this overstuffed squirrel cage. They know my thoughts on the hoards that spend beach time and allowance money, losing mid-range tones and middle-class values in seconds, along with their voices by trying to get their heroes’ attention from a few football fields away. But there I was, just as ordered, at the Vans Warped Tour in San Diego, California, and with 57 laps around the sun, the oldest person in line to see what most would consider a contradiction in terms, a Christian hardcore band. You may know them as Underoath.
    Now, I’m not siding with those Christian conservatives who equate rock concerts with witch burning and pagan rituals, but I would be less surprised seeing a statue of Aphrodite than I would a right-side-up crucifix on stage. I reach for a water bottle and within minutes realize that my mounting paranoia is merely the result of heat and dehydration. Then, as my mind clears it occurs to me that not since the Apostle Paul approached Mars Hill, boldly proclaiming news of “The Unknown God” to a potentially hostile group of polytheists, has anyone but Underoath seemed so dangerously out of place. But we like musical acts that seem out of place, don’t we? Observe the woman who calls herself Madonna and judge for yourself.
    After being jerked from one gate to the next and eventually being denied entrance to the lion’s den for lack of proper credentials, I hit my cell phone and reschedule my time with the band. Eventually, I spoke with Spencer Chamberlain, Grant Brandell, and Aaron Gillespie of Underoath. Turns out, they’re not uncomfortable standing near the jaws of the hungry beasts at all. In fact, they rather seem to enjoy it.

RISEN Magazine:You guys are blatantly Christian. Are non-Christians respectful of your beliefs?
Spencer Chamberlain: We accept people and so they accept us. A lot of people will ask us to pray for them. The way we live our lives, we try to be good people. Everyone screws up, and of course we get a little…When you believe in something strongly, you live it to the best of your abilities. Obviously we’re not God, but we do try to set a good example.

RM: Do you feel pressure because you’re a Christian band?
Grant Brandell: There is some pressure, but we’re not perfect. We have struggles and we keep each other accountable. Sometimes people will put us under a microscope and with that comes more responsibility. So we try to be the best dudes we can be and keep each other accountable.
RM: Has there been any resistance to your music?
GB: Yes, like anything people try to do, there’s always that.

RM: Do your beliefs help or hinder you in being around people with contrary worldviews?
SC: I hope that our beliefs help us be nonjudgmental.

RM: Some people will come only for the music and not th