Atheist Music

Hivemind187

There is an old joke about a conductor listening to a rendition of the 1812 and saying "Listening to this, how can you not believe in God?" to which he is replied "I have no need for god when I can believe in Beethoven".

Or something to that effect.

... oh, and Marylon Manson. "I'm not a slave, to a god, that doesnt exist".

Excelsior

Tim Robbins wrote:

If theists can have hymns and uplifting numbers about their theistic connection with the universe, why can't we have our songs about our atheistic connection with the universe?

Not all theists have hymns. I sing hymns cos the imaginary friend I claim to be God sings one at the beginning and then asks his people to keep singing. You don't have any imaginary friend to tell you what to do so why don't you just stick with normal music? Like Sufjan?

Scofflaw

Honourable mention to "It Ain't Necessarily So".

cordially,
Scofflaw

Sulla Felix

Was listening to a bit of Flaming Lips and Do you realize? could pretty much be my atheist anthem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zYOKFjpm9s

Doctor DooM

Never saw this thread. Lol.

Here's the theme tune to the Atheist Experience- perhaps this could actually be called a piece of Atheist music?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mB2udWnYHpk

Gotta get away from this illusion
For the sake of the world, this delusion
It's gotta go
Yeah

Doctor DooM

Actually- I know LOADS of music that could be called explicitly atheist...

Back before atheist youtubers decided their time would be best spent sniping at each other over feminism, they used to be much more light hearted.

Stuff like this, mocking that "Christian Side Hug" rap, was common (slightly NSFW at the end).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70WJemBVLHQ

Here's the genuinely funny follow up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auS0rOnunzg

Here's another one about a weird, repressed, yet weirdly popular creationist on the net, Nephilimfree (again slightly NSFW).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mqN6D5o7rw4

Whether you like any of these or not the interesting thing to take from this, I think, is in the modern day a community is able to grow and create media with no resources or platform to speak from. All you need is a tiny spark of talent.

timbyr

Honourable mention for Tim Minchin.

Sonics2k

Tim Robbins wrote: »

HI,
Can people post up any links they have to some good
atheist / humanist / agnostic / skeptic / free thinker Music.
Here's a few for you:
Demon-Haunted-World
http://www.freethoughtmusic.com/files/Sample_Demon-Haunted-World.mp3

It's only natural
http://www.freethoughtmusic.com/files/It_s_Only_Natural.mp3

(sorry for this mods).

What a load of absolute feckin donkey ****e.

Genevaman

Well, atheism is lack of belief in a god, ergo wouldn't any song without religious connotations be considered an 'atheist' song.

Unless you're specifically looking for a song that celebrates atheism. If that's the case then I'm afraid you're stuck with a narrow scope. You can sing plenty of songs about religion because of its mythos and scope. Atheism, by definition refuses such mythos which leaves it pretty stuck for subject matter music wise. I'm sure there must be some out there, but I can't say I'm familiar with any. Bar maybe 'Imagine' by John Lennon.

Unless, again, you want songs that aren't really about atheism so much but rather about religion and making it look bad. Then you have your Tim Minchins, your Roy Zimmermans, etc... I generally see these songs as stand up rather than actual music to get caught up in though. They're funny but your hardly going to be swept up by Minchin in the same way you can get swept up by Chopin or Miles Davis. Plus some of them just come across as pretentious and a bit circle-jerky if I'm to be totally frank.

Obliq

Oh yay! a place to push your own music taste on people, in the name of whateveryerhavinyerself. In this case devolution. Yes folks, this is/was a thing. I'll leave you to research it yourselves, but if you haven't heard DEVO (too young or mainstream) well you should listen. That is all.

Actually, may I recommend their version of "I can't get no (satisfaction)"? Seriously. It is better. Cannot link on android thingy.....look after yourselves

Sarky

Don't care if it's not atheist, it's f*ckin' awesome:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaIZWjItReI

nagirrac

Obliq wrote: »

Actually, may I recommend their version of "I can't get no (satisfaction)"? Seriously. It is better. Cannot link on android thingy.....look after yourselves

No offense obliq, but Devo might be the worst thing I can imagine when it comes to music, positively headache inducing .

Run, don't walk, up a few posts and listen to the Flaming Lips track that Sulla Felix posted, then hop onto youtube and listen to the entire Yoshimi album, then the Soft Bulletin album and then the Cloud Taste Metallic album (yes, I said album). They are a national treasure, unlike Devo who give Chrissie Hynde's hometown a bad name.

Obliq

nagirrac wrote: »

No offense obliq, but Devo might be the worst thing I can imagine when it comes to music, positively headache inducing .

Run, don't walk, up a few posts and listen to the Flaming Lips track that Sulla Felix posted.......

No offence to you lads but I'd be more of a ZZtop fan and will give sarky's link a listen there. I shall have to go listen to some Butthole Surfers now, just to get over that dreadful slur on the mighty Devo

Beruthiel

I always think of this song first when it comes to atheist music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La2qkUTTwWw

.

desertcircus

The closest thing to "atheist music" in my collection is probably At The Drive-In's occasional lyrics that hint at a lack of belief. There's no afterlife tempering the grief on Napoleon Solo, for example (which admittedly makes it a supremely depressing track).

PopePalpatine

Off the top of my head I can think of "East Jesus Nowhere" by Green Day.

Obliq

Have some buttholes. You all deserve it :pac:

pauldla

Super Furry Animals, The Man Don't Give a ****. Not explicitly atheist, but close enough, IMO.

Soul Winner

Atheist music/songs? Hhhmm??? What's there to sing about??? Oh I know, to realise that one lives in a hostile universe of pointless, meaningless, purposeless, nothingness, where the earth, sun, solar system and the whole universe are destined to become a graveyard of corpse stars, strewn galaxies and super massive black holes ever expanding into the darkest nothingness that even after a period of 100 billion years there will still be an eternity of periods of 100 billion years to go, where every evidence that anything like the human race ever existed will have vanished long ago with all other life and matter. Yeah I can see how someone might get excited and sing about that. :pac:

If atheism is true i.e. there is no God then this is the ultimate destiny of our universe.

However: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." Revelation 21:1-5

Happy days. No wonder Christians are always singing

Sarky

Not a fan of interesting things, are you?

Mousewar

robindch

Soul Winner wrote: »

Yeah I can see how someone might get excited and sing about that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIy76M-4txo

Pherekydes

Soul Winner wrote: »

Atheist music/songs? Hhhmm??? What's there to sing about??? Oh I know, to realise that one lives in a hostile universe of pointless, meaningless, purposeless, nothingness, where the earth, sun, solar system and the whole universe are destined to become a graveyard of corpse stars, strewn galaxies and super massive black holes ever expanding into the darkest nothingness that even after a period of 100 billion years there will still be an eternity of periods of 100 billion years to go, where every evidence that anything like the human race ever existed will have vanished long ago with all other life and matter.

When all the laughter dies in sorrow
And the tears have risen to a flood
When all the wars have found a cause
In human wisdom and in blood
Do you think they'll cry in sadness
Do you think the eye will blink
Do you think they'll curse the madness
Do you even think they'll think
When all the great galactic systems
Sigh to a frozen halt in space
Do you think there will be some remnant
Of beauty of the human race
Do you think there will be a vestige
Or a sniffle or a cosmic tear
Do you think a greater thinking thing
Will give a damn that man was here

Kendrew Lascelles
On the Album Chicago III

Soul Winner

Pherekydes wrote: »

When all the laughter dies in sorrow
And the tears have risen to a flood
When all the wars have found a cause
In human wisdom and in blood
Do you think they'll cry in sadness
Do you think the eye will blink
Do you think they'll curse the madness
Do you even think they'll think
When all the great galactic systems
Sigh to a frozen halt in space
Do you think there will be some remnant
Of beauty of the human race
Do you think there will be a vestige
Or a sniffle or a cosmic tear
Do you think a greater thinking thing
Will give a damn that man was here

Kendrew Lascelles
On the Album Chicago III

Yes!

Sarky

So did you have any particular reason for ignoring all the music posted thus far in favour of telling us all we've nothing to sing about because the guy who wrote Revelations went on a serious bender a few centuries ago?

Soul Winner

Sarky wrote: »

So did you have any particular reason for ignoring all the music posted thus far in favour of telling us all we've nothing to sing about because the guy who wrote Revelations went on a serious bender a few centuries ago?

I didn't ignore the music. Some good stuff there I must say. I did notice a this atheist anthem missing though.

Jambo221

http://youtu.be/W9mhsW5aWJM

Sarky

I have a soft spot for Iced Earth. I find them hit and miss, but when they hit, they hit hard.

Here's a little ditty written about how f*cking disgusting paedophile priests and their protection by a flock who really should know better are to anyone with a shred of sense.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEcssL5Lf8g

Michael Nugent

I published video links to 90+ songs relevant to atheism, gods or religions a while ago. You can watch/listen to them here:

Videos of Atheist and Secular Songs

They include songs from A Camp, Abba, Admiral Fallow, The Almighty, Tori Amos, Atheist Cartoons, Austin Lounge Lizards, Heywood Banks, Dan Barker, Amanda Bloom, Bad Religion, Boomtown Rats, Gogol Bordello, John R Butler, Cynthia Carle, Chumbawumba, Andy Corwin, The Cure, Dandy Warhols, Depeche Mode, Ani DiFranco, Dixie Chicks, Dusty Residents, Eve’s Plum, Fad Gadget, First Aid Kit, Garfunkel and Oates, Holly Golightly, Greydon Square, Half Man Half Biscuit, Markella Hatziano, Susan Hofer, George Hrab, Jerry Springer the Opera, Tom Lehrer, John Lennon, Jenny Lewis, Casey McKinnon, Steve Martin, Theatre of Hate, Tim Minchin, Monty Python, Motorhead, Alanis Morissette, Holly Near, Needy Heathens, Randy Newman, Rabbie1121, Sandy Riccardi, Rush, Dan Sartain, Eric Schwartz, Shelley Segal, Patti Smith, Chris Smither, Jill Sobule, The Sundays, Vienna Teng, Tom Waits, Cheryl Wheeler, XTC, Frank Zappa, Zero Days and Roy Zimmerman; plus a bonus song from Sonseed.

Michael Nugent

This is one of my favourites - Your God by Cheryl Wheeler.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6K3PmJ9zb8