The Casket Lottery

This band saved my life...no really i love this band to death. I mean read these lyrics,

Turn the radio off. It's just commercials made by stars.
Turn down the auto-tune and reveal those wounds
and scars. It's all middle fingers and sex, and who's
ego can hold the most. We just hop in a broken van and
we head out to the coast.

Wide-eyed and wondering how we ever got here.
Now I'm praying for a revolution on the air.

Am I wasting all my time? Or am I proving them all wrong? Am
I wasting all my energy on these old songs? These people aren't
even real. They need choreigraphers just to breathe. These people
aren't even real, they were raised by wolves, they think of us as sheep.

Wide-eyed, it's about time I got the hell out of here.
But still I'm praying for a revolution on the air.

Don't you care? There are people choking out here...it's got to stop.
We all need fresh air. We all need fresh air. Don't you care? There
are people being force fed bullshit out here. Out here we all need
fresh air. We all need fresh air.

I think that this speaks right to the heart of the problem that i have found in today's music. DIY baby DIY! A few years ago when i was making podcast, i had an idea (that i still may do) to create a family tree for different bands. One of the family trees would have been from a favorite hardcore band in the 90's (and i'm sorry to say this to all my straightedge friends but) Coalesce. Now, out of this band has come many notable bands, Reggie and the full effect, and The Esoteric, with many other notable related bands from the Kansas city scene. I truly love that scene in the mid to late nineties. Recently, while i moved across the country (only to return a few short months later) i had to stop in Lawrence, Kansas just to pay my respects to the musical gods that have come out of that general area.
The Casket Lottery is of the same bloodline as all the above mentioned bands and features members/former members of Coalesce. I personally enjoy Stacy's bass playing. On the song dead dear on the Moving Mountains album, Coalsece vocalist Sean Ingram makes a guest appearence. Check it out and support their great music by buying their albums from Sean's blue collar distro.

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the exploder

I have not heard much about these guys in a long long time. I remember drawing the skull on all of my books for years. I was obsessed with them. They are from Richmond Va. When they were looking for a drummer in 1999 my good friend Zach Nelson ( i will post a link for him and his music in the near future) tried out to be their drummer. Having settled with another drummer they went out and toured and then came back and called it quits. These albums have gotten me through a lot of hard times. They are well worth the listen. As, for their sound I would call them real melodic hardcore, or maybe even emotive hardcore. Call it what you will, it is very good sound and that is hard to find nowadays in a band. As for their shows they put on a magnificent show. I remember seeing them at a house show in Richmond as well as at a venue that was called Twisters. They were a very energetic band that keep you going. There was never a dull moment, then again most house shows are like that. Ok well check them out...

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Chris Wollard and the Ship Thieves

Chris has done it again. I love it there is not one bad song on this album. I really have not found a bad album/ track that has come out of any of the boys that are related to Hot Water Music. I have a feeling that this link will be asked to be taken down before long so get it while it is hot. Have fun kids it is a solid album.

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