August 14th, 2009 
James Shotwell 
Artist: Showbread
Album: The Fear of God
Genre: Hard Rock
Label: Tooth and Nail
There are few bands that I’ve been a longer supporter of than Showbread. They have continuously been a source of musical enjoyment and inspiration for quite a few years and their stylistic changes and artistic endeavors only serve to beg the quesiton ,”Why aren’t these guys huge?” Perhaps it’s the constant changing of their sound since their “debut,” No Sir, Nihilism Is Not Practical, or the group’s relentless and endearing openness about their Faith in both their actions and music. Whatever the case, if you don’t know Showbread, you’re missing out and their latest release, The Fear of God is a near perfect example of just why you should care about this amazing act.
Beginning with an amusing vocal introduction and a lot of distortion, The Fear of God let’s us know from the get go that this album is taking us back to a earlier period of Showbread. In fact, much of the album dances between the No Sir, and Age of Reptiles era of the band by blending heavy hardcore meets punk music with intricate vocal lines on a variety of topics that are each discussed with a fury on Josh Dies can deliver.
There is a great amount of deep chugging to be found on “Lost Connection With The Head” the sounds straight out of Nihilism era Showbread, but with a new found admiration for understandable vocals. Dies sounds like the ring leader for what’s become a dark circus of rock and roll mayhem that few will be able to top. This point is only proven further with “Regret Consumes Me” and “The Great Emasculation” as they showcase nearly every facet of music that Showbread fans have come to love, except of course the lighter side of the group, but don’t worry, it’s here as well.
Those looking for something on the more simplistic side of Showbread will be equally pleased as they cross the straight rock sounds of tracks like “Shepherd, No Sheep” and “I Think I’m Going to See You.” Much like “Sing Me To Sleep,” from Age of Reptiles these tracks bring a sense of early rock and roll to the new style sounds Showbread has built a career atop of. Also, the album closes with two extremely quiet tracks of simplicity and depth. “The Fear of God,” which nearly crosses the 7 minute mark and “Until We Meet Again” are almost nothing short of full blown metaphorical testimonies from the band to the listener. There’s something extremely haunting and piercing in Dies’ vocals on these tracks that lingers in your mind long after the record spins that one can’t help but to fall in love with again and again.
Though, it should be said that the real selling point of any Showbread album for me has always been the lyrical content. From talk of zombies, to animals, to the passionate, yet cryptic storytelling of Anorexia/Nervosa, Josh Dies has always captivated me and this album is no different. Stories are woven in and out of the realm of reality without ever seeming out of place. The discussion however, generally falls on the desire for and importance of God in their lives and how he/she/this being is a bigger deal than anything else in life, even the band. It may seem preachy, but Showbread never said they weren’t trying to change you. They have a message and that is that raw rock kills and Christ loves you. Simple and heavy. I love it.
The Fear of God is the album Showbread needed at this point in their career. Having spanned spaz-core to epic concept album throughout their music, the band found themselves at a point where they could go anywhere and they chose to do just that. This is an album with no boundaries and it simply destroys the listener on nearly every level. With that, allow me to leave you with this: May raw rock kill you, forever and ever, Amen.
Score: 8/10
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this album just gets better and better over time