The Showdown - Blood in the Gears (Album Review)

The Showdown - Blood in the Gears
Release date: August 24, 2010 (Solid State Records)

My biggest beef with mainstream Christian music - be it rock, pop, rap or metal - is that all too often, it just feels like a blatant cash-in attempt. Pick a flavor-of-the-day style of music that's popular with "kids these days," write some vaguely uplifting lyrics (you don't want to come off as too Christian, lest you lose that coveted crossover appeal with the heathens), and voila, the shit flies off the shelves at Christian bookstores and Wal-Marts across the country. South Park creators (and fellow CU alums) Trey Parker and Matt Stone already skewered this phenomenon better than I ever could, so I'll keep it succinct. The majority of Christian musicians just seem fake to me. It's not so much that I doubt the sincerity of their faith as much as their passion for the music they play.

Thank God, then, that none of this applies to the Showdown. On their fourth album, Blood in the Gears, the Nashville-based Christian metal band proves to be the exception to the rule, cranking out 10 metal anthems that vary wildly in style but share a common sincerity that only a true, lifelong love of heavy metal could produce.

3?aK Episode 6: David Bunton (The Showdown)

Back in 2007, when I was the music writer for College Times, Kip Winger blew me off for an interview because he was on “vocal lockdown.” I didn’t want to see the questions I’d prepared go to waste, so for the next year, I asked everyone I interviewed if they’d be willing to get into character and answer the following “Three Questions as Kip.”

If you're new to 3?aK and want a more detailed history of how this project came to be, click here.

OK, now that you're up to speed, let's get on with the show. Playing the role of Kip Winger for this installment of 3?aK will be David Bunton of Christian rockers The Showdown.