Screamo of the Spastic/Electronic Variety

Showbread is one of my new favorite bands. This is a really really crazy band. It's like if you took Family Force 5, gave them drugs, and made them better musicians. Plus, who doesn't love yet another band that uses a keytar.

Showbread's newest project is oddly enough named after an eating disorder. Anorexia/Nervosa is their incredible new two cd super project. The lead singer Josh Dies wrote a fiction story about two sisters. One who throws herself into the distractions and indulgences of the world (Nervosa) and another who tries to be so good that she ends up shutting herself away in her own temple thinking she is better than everyone else (Anorexia). In the story, Nervosa is digging a hole to the center of the earth and Anorexia is building a tower to the sky. The stories alone are extremely interesting and a great read, but they aren't just stories. Showbread made both cds like a musical soundtrack to the reading. Each passage of the story has a time marker to show you when you are supposed to reading. The whole thing is a very cool, emotional experience. I am yet to be able to experience the Anorexia side, as I just bought the cd on iTunes and that didn't include the story. But Nervosa was incredible, so I imagine Anorexia is the same.

This band is as talented as they are creative. The vocals are of the dueling variety. Lots of alternating between singing, screaming, and gang vocals. Sometimes this can just sound the same as every other cookie cutter screamo band, but Showbread does it very well. It's odd comparing them to Radiohead, but my feelings were very similar upon first listen. I didn't like either Radiohead or Showbread very much to start out with, but they both have grown on me as I realize the talent and good music that each band supplies. I really enjoy how Showbread does the electronic side of things so well. Never does the keyboard (or keytar, how awesome is that) sound thrown in or out of place. It fits in just as well as guitar or drums.

So, check out Showbread and their newest project. Unfortunately, Bestbuy ended their promotion they had. They were selling both cds for 7.99, but that ended just today. If you want just the music, buy it on iTunes for that price. But I don't recommend it, because you don't get the stories and that is the coolest part of the albums. Posted below is their video for The Pig (Nervosa).

Cory, Le Blog