» NYT: Plugging In to Make a Joyful Noise Unto the Lord (Ben Ratliff)

... showmanship has its limits in praise-rock music. The musicians don't want to distract themselves, or their audiences, from the higher purpose of serving God; in interviews they talked about not exuding rock-star charisma but instead remaining humble. "We're not up there to have people say, 'Wow, what an amazing band,'" Mr. Day said. His goal, he explained, was to play with excellence but to remain "transparent."

"There's a constant tension," he continued, "between the audience and the people on the stage, all thinking, 'O.K., music is a great tool, but the ultimate purpose is worship.' And riding that tension is tough."

The congregants also tend to respond fairly chastely. A performance at a Seven service may look like a rock show, with the audience dressed as fashionably as the band, but in some ways it represents an inversion of one.

The tall, solemn bassist Zac Foster, 15, played twice over the weekend: with the in-house high school praise band Fuel on Saturday, and with the Sunday morning junior high group as well. He has a six-string bass and a guitar strap with a large white cross on the front. And he is adamant about the idea of music as merely a means to an end.

"It's structured, and we play well, but we're still allowed to worship," he said with a serious face. "Worship comes first. Music just falls into place."

Bobby Stolp, 39, a drummer in several different bands here, agreed. "It's all about the heart of worship," he said. "God can enjoy a distorted guitar as well as a clean guitar. Especially when you're playing it for him."

You can check in on the Times' take on the other side of the musical world as well. It's a little encouraging to see the reporter dig a little deeper than the top of the charts and locate Lincoln Brewster.

UPDATE: One point overlooked in my morning haze ...

For another, in 1993 the church hired Jeff Crandall, the drummer for a Christian punk band called the Altar Boys, as its music director.

Mr. Crandall, 46, spent more than a decade crossing the country in vans, playing in churches, nightclubs and high school gyms, fighting the battle for a more progressive and aggressive worship music. "I knew that the future, even in the early '80s, was with bands in churches," he said. "I liked hymns as a kid, but I just didn't see myself waving my arms and directing them. I've always been one of those guys who tries to figure his own way.

There's even some vintage Altar Boys footage in the must-see video on this article. And I offer that it's "Must See" not solely because of that footage. Besides, it's essentially just a snippet of the video posted earlier from "I'm Into God" ... which you could review in it's entirety if you so choose to ... and I strongly recommend.

Great band, those Altar Boys!