When David Bazan chose to name his band Pedro the Lion, the name of a character in a children's story he hoped to write, he chose wisely--their newest album, Winners Never Quit, has much in common with a story. Encompassing eight tracks the album is a tightly woven prodigal son parable with a twist. In the liner notes, Bazan quotes, "The only good person is someone who hasn't been caught," before beginning his tale of two brothers. As for the twist, the final song--and title track--offers these hopeful words, "Count it a blessing that you're such a failure, your second chance might never have come."

A tightly woven, lyrical plot follows the doings of two brothers, one a conservative politician and the other a hopeless drunk. Through out the CD, Bazan carefully avoids the easy moralizing that often comes with "Christian" music and instead depicts the complexities of true righteousness and outward appearance.

For those familiar with Pedro the Lion's music, this album continues away from the earlier stripped down emo to fuller, more up-tempo sound, while still retaining the slower pacing and simplicity of their early releases. For those unfamiliar with Pedro, the music forms around the percussion for a very simple rhythmic sound which is blended carefully with the slowly sung lyrics. On the whole, the disk is enjoyable for fans of Pedro, but while more accessible than some early disks, is still something of an acquired taste. (Jeremy K.)