Where our intrepid editorial team take an askance look at the weird and wonderful world of music and media.

Only an American Christian bookshop trade paper could have a news story headed 'Wars Spur Religious Interest' but there you are and if you're strong stomached enough to read on you'll learn that there's been a sharp increase in US bookstores in sales of books on Revelation and videos on end-times prophecy. But Lee Stepleton of Sunshine Book & Gifts in Baton Rouge, Louisiana does have one concern. He told 'CCM Update' "my only worry is that Louisiana has supplied more reservists to the war than any other state, which may hurt my business since my customer base may be reduced." Gulp.

The same issue of that magazine reported that Amy Grant has reached an out of court settlement with Marvel Entertainment Group Inc and Jackson Guice, illustrator, after a lawsuit filed in the Federal District Court in Nashville. The gospel superstar sued Marvel and Guice for the alleged misappropriation and wrongful use of her likeness and photograph in a 'Dr Strange Sorcerer Supreme' comic book published in March 1990.

Continuing our sidelong glance through the peculiarities of American Christian music, I see that thrash team Tournequet have just finished a video for the song "Ark Of Suffering" which features a minute and a half of hardcore animal abuse footage. The band will probably continue to get written up in a lot more animal-rights magazines and newsletters as a result.

Couldn't help but smile at the news that Steve Fairnie is trying to pitch for a record deal once more. The ex-Techno Twin has now leapt, rather belatedly it seems, onto the house bandwagon and is attempting to 'place a master' (jargon for get a release) on a dance item which has a bit of an old Deep Purple riff (did I say house?) and some Billy Graham samples.

I hear the originators of Billy Graham samples on house records, House Of God, have reformed. Now fronted by two Leeds rappers Nick Mawby and Justin Thomas and a scratch-deejay Lee Jackson, British gospel's most radical funksters are doing gigs and have several Christian fests lined up. They also have a 12-inch, released shortly by a secular dance independent. Not bad for a project which started as an aberration of two fat 'n' forty journos Alpha's Dave Roberts and Cross Rhythms' Tony Cummings.

Finally, still on the subject of our esteemed editor, he reports that someone has finally claimed that Salvation Army album 'Hymns And Songs For Sunday' which has been on free offer in his perverse effort to find Cross Rhythms' sole brass band enthusiast. It seems that at the 'Impact' festival in Scotland he was approached by a keen Salvationist who claimed the album. Only one thing...the young man said he'd write in. He hasn't.