Do you ever listen to a CD and just cannot seem to decide what you really feel about it? In the example of CLASSIC CASE (who feature former members of GLASSJAW and BELOVED), these guys play a style influenced by what seems to be everything popular in melodic, heavy music right now, including similarities to GLASSJAW, THE USED and an peculiar reminiscence to FAITH NO MORE. The lead vocals are extremely similar Daryl Palumbo’s style of twisting sounds, but without an akin degree of intensity or emotion. Fortunately for the band a catchy chorus is never too far from reach. Dress to Depress opens with a basket of overly polished songs that sound eerily similar to a John Feldman produced band. At track four, “Elegy” the album begins to step it up a level with mellower tracks that contain more complex songwriting arrangements, but nothing that’s terribly grabbing. As the album closes, it becomes difficult to remain interested, as there is too much fat to chew. With all that being said, CLASSIC CASE manage to earn themselves a middling fan here, as I try to comprehend which parts of the band’s music that draw me back. At the very least, this is a band with huge potential to reach a great sound once they cut through the strings that are holding them down. Given time, this reviewer hopes it will happen.

Fiddler Records

www.classiccase.net