as an evangelical, i ask the congregation don't applaud me but give glory to God
Much of the contemporary music is great, but a lot of it is sentimental slop. I became a Christian in college, and attended a Baptist church where the worship music was from the hymnal, and I was exposed to the compositions of Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, and Francis Ridley Havergal. A lot of the music in the hymnal was sentimental slop too, but much of the contemporary music amounts to "Jesus is my boyfriend, I love him so...", and this makes me cringe. A worship service shouldn't make people cringe.
That's easy -- when they start up with it, turn your back to them, look up toward the cross, and start clapping too.