I love The Ragbirds’ Yes Nearby more every time I listen to it… and I’m listening to it a lot these days.
Thus, I’m thrilled to see Josh Hurst has just published the first interview with Erin Zindle that I’ve come across, and it’s a keeper.
Here’s a snippet:
J: Let’s switch gears now and discuss your songwriting. Your songs have some pretty heavy explorations of faith-related issues, and it’s evident that you write from a Christian perspective, and yet, unlike a lot of the so-called Christian music out there, you avoid becoming preachy or clichéd. Is it hard for you to write and sing about your faith without compromising your art?
E: The question seems foreign to me – why would writing about my faith compromise my art in any way? Writing about life’s quirks or love or politics or faith – it all comes from the same pen out of the same heart and every word undergoes the same scrutiny. I try to stay detached from any cultural pressure to approach matters of faith with apologetics. In Native American cultures there is not a word for “religion” and “art” – these concepts are so intertwined into every part of everyday life that they don’t need a separate definition. When I write I draw from a well of all of my experience, all of who I am and what I think and feel, these things are not separate.