Casket Lottery

Just when I was starting to get more than a little sick and tired of the glut of start/stop, fast/slow, loud/quiet/loud emo rock bands, back comes the Casket Lottery to remind me of just how powerful and commanding this kind of music can be. On their sophomore release, the Midwestern trio takes the tried and true emo formula that bands like Elliott and Get Up Kids have popularised and introduce elements of DC-inspired minimalism and New York experimentation. In addition to being musically interesting, the lyrics reflect a level of intelligence and depth that more often than not comes across as forced and phony by many other bands in this genre.