Skillet, courtesy.

This story originally appeared in the Oakland Tribune.

Growing up in a traditional Southern Christian home, John Cooper was raised on church hymns. He wasn’t allowed to listen to rock’n’ roll — even Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith. Anything with a drumbeat was forbidden. 

But when Cooper was with his friends, he soaked up everything from Metallica, Iron Maiden and Motley Crue to Christian rockers such as Petra and Guardian. 

Cooper, 31, combined his faith and tastes in music when he and two friends started Skillet. Over the last decade, the lead vocalist and bassist guided the band to its position as one of the most successful Christian hard rock bands. Skillet is now on the cusp of the mainstream success enjoyed by Christian crossovers P.O.D., Switchfoot and Chevelle. 

“They’ve made Christian music not seem so wimpy and so dated,” Cooper said in reference to the aforementioned bands. “You’ll get dismissed when people find out you’re a Christian band. Luckily, things have been changing.” 

Indeed, they have. To experience the latest sounds in Christian rock, all one needs to do is head to AT&T Park in San Francisco on March 10 for the Battle Cry festival. This all-day music event features P.O.D., Unhindered, Casting Crowns and other popular Christian acts. Skillet, one of the genre’s hottest bands, will also be on the bill. 

Skillet got its start in Memphis, Tenn., in 1996, when Cooper’s pastor suggested that he and two members from competing bands join up for a side project and see where it took them. The pastor even suggested they call themselves Skillet — to suggest different musical ingredients fried together. 

“Two months into our side project, not even a very serious side project, we got signed on to an independent label,” Cooper said. 

They released a grunge-influenced self-titled album the same year and an electronica and industrial-rock follow-up, “Hey You, I Love Your Soul,” two years later. The album, influenced by Nine Inch Nails-style rock, cemented their place in popular Christian rock. They even had their own fan base, called Panheads. 

Between Skillet’s second and third album, 2000’s “Invincible,” Cooper’s wife, Korey, 34, joined the band on keyboards and the group twice exchanged guitar players. Soon after the album’s release, the drummer left as well to start a Christian music school, and Cooper brought in Lori Peters, 33, to replace him. In 2001, the band again switched guitarists, with Ben Kasica, 22, being brought in. 

Skillet then released two more albums, a live worship record and “Alien Youth,” in which the band displayed a harder and louder side. 

While the group’s sound evolved as new members were brought in, there was a specific point when Cooper’s lyrics shifted from more traditional Christian messages to real-world issues. 

“Our first four records were written for young Christian people,” Cooper said. “‘Invincible’ is about the church and revival. ‘Alien Youth’ was even more like that.” 

Then at one Christian youth event where the band was playing, Cooper noticed a sketch performed by a drama group. 

“These things are usually done to a Christian song,” he said. “They did it to a Linkin Park song. It was then I realized that bands like Linkin Park were being more relatable to young people than my music was.” 

On 2003’s “Collide,” Cooper’s lyrics dealt with abuse, depression, anger and healing. Finally, after years of trying to get mainstream distribution, the band signed with Atlantic Records. 

“It’s what I’ve always wanted to do from the beginning,” Cooper said. 

Previously, the band heard from label execs that Cooper’s lyrics were too Christian. Five years earlier, Cooper remembers an Atlantic rep telling them — “and this is word-for-word, ‘People don’t want to hear that.’” 

Atlantic re-released “Collide” the next year, and it went on to become the band’s best seller to date. Lead single “Saviour” climbed to the 26th spot on Billboard’s mainstream rock chart. “Collide” was also nominated for the Grammy for best rock gospel album that year. 

Skillet’s current album, “Comatose,” was released in October. Cooper calls it the band’s most accessible for non-Christians. The new songs touch on subjects such as making things right with your parents (“The Older I Get”), suicide (“The Last Night”) and love (“Yours to Hold”). 

“Love songs typically would not be on a Christian album, but why not?” Cooper said. “It’s something we all go through.” 

At the band’s shows, Cooper said at least a handful of teens come up to him and tell him his lyrics have stopped them from hurting themselves. That’s how he knows the band is still making a difference. 

Skillet has to walk a fine line between not scaring off new fans and still showing its faith, Cooper said. Public image is very important. 

“One little thing you say, people can just read it like, ‘He’s not a Christian — he’s a bad influence,’” he said. At the same time, they can’t surprise the label with too much Jesus talk in the lyrics. 

“If I came to them with a song like ‘Alien Youth,’ which started with ‘Worldwide Jesus domination,’ I have a feeling they would not be happy about that,” he said. “But the truth is, that really does not fit our mission anymore. I was realizing that those lyrics are only affecting Christian people. Non-Christian people, they don’t know what that means. 

“We’re just trying to reach a different audience (now).” 

Follow editor Roman Gokhman at Twitter.com/RomiTheWriter.