The embryonic emo band Cross My Heart has been well touted in the press for their creatively wounded lyrics, and frontman Ryan Shelkett doesn't refrain from hitting upon despair, remorse, and revival. The Baltimore four-piece (rounded out by drummer Evan Tanner, bassist Christopher Camden, and guitarist/vocalist Dwayne Bruner) released its self-titled EP in 1999. Their full-length Temporary Contemporary, a strong showcase of Cross My Heart's restless power of heart-wrenching musical complexity, came the following year. The EP The Reason I Failed History appeared in 2003. ~ MacKenzie Wilson