The new Lottery Winners album Koko manages to be fun and feisty whilst also deep and reflective. Several songs connect with Thom’s personal struggles with ADHD over the years.
Lottery Winners have made this an album of collaboration as they bring some of their long time friends such as Reverend and the Makers’ Jon McClure and Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger on board to feature on individual tracks. This does lead to the album feeling a little incohesive at times BUT (and it’s a big but) it’s an album where every song is enjoyable. The stylistic freedom means there’s nothing in here that serves as filler, or has been picked to “fit the journey”. You’re keen to know what the next song is going to sound like and there’s not one track on the record I didn’t love. It truly highlights the diversity of the band and is, what I hope, a deliberate stylistic choice.
I particular enjoyed the vampire weekend-esque UFO. It’s not the obvious stand out, but it IS a really enjoyable tune. I love the vulnerability of it, both musically and lyrically. it also highlights the beauty of Koko in that every track leaves its mark in some way.
A track that is an obvious stand out is Monaco. it’s catchy and it’s one you can imagine the lads chanting on a 5 am Ryan Air flight. Two points to note here:
- I highly doubt Ryanair actually fly to Monaco.
- This isn’t an insult to the song, it’s a complement – drunk northern English men usually have excellent taste in music.
I love the vocal variety on Koko, from the blending of Kate and Chad’s voices on Ragdoll, which sounds like nothing else on the album, to the almost spoken-word piece Superpower (Thom’s take on his ADHD – honestly one of the most relatable things I’ve ever listened to) to the melodic Struggling.
The best way I can describe Koko is that the mood of the album goes from Saturday night to Sunday morning. There’s high adrenaline indie tracks that give way to introspective, lighters-in-the-air tunes. It’s both complex and carefree at times, and it perfectly encapsulates what makes The Lottery Winners so likeable as a band.
About The Lottery Winners
The lottery winners are a northern English indie pop band consisting of Thom Rylance – Vocals/Guitar, Kate Lloyd – Vocals/Bass, Rob Lally – Vocals/Guitar and Joe Singleton – Drums. Formed in 2008 they honed their craft in the pubs of Leigh and toured the U.K. extensively before their first label release in 2020. Koko is their 4th studio album.