Old Ghosts – Still Sinking
Veteran Buffalo hardcore haunts Old Ghosts are back from the dead with Still Sinking, their latest EP that’s loaded with heart and louder than hell.
Old Ghosts have been kicking around the scene for over a decade, dating back to the release of their 2011 debut, Caskets. Over the years, the band has seen members come and go, but has since settled into a lineup featuring vocalist Derek Dole, guitarists Tom Mayer and Nick Racino, bassist Brian Kaczamarczyk and drummer Josh Heatley. Most of the members share a history having collaborated on projects including Dead Hearts, Rust Belt Lights, and Wreckage. On Still Sinking, the five-piece compile a mix of previously-released singles and new material into a melodic 13-minute hardcore punk rollercoaster.
“False North” opens the pit, and the EP, with a pile-on of cymbal crashes, guitar spikes and drum rolls. From there, Old Ghosts remind you what they’re all about: gruff vocals, hardened guitar melodies, blazing-fast punk beats and good ol’ fashioned singalongs. The song is an unrelenting musical onslaught that boils over with substance and raw emotion. Dole’s harsh, yet earnest lyrics such as “Don’t ask me how I’m doin’ / I’m still stuck in the dark,” reflect heavy topics including uncertainty and depression; themes that are revisited throughout the record. No punches are pulled and the singer will have you screaming “We’ve lost our way” cathartically alongside him.
The title track, “Still Sinking,” packs an even bigger punch and showcases one of Old Ghosts best qualities: their songwriting. Coming in at a brawny two minutes, the band manages to pack so many textured layers and changes into the song that the runtime feels doubled. It’s as robust and dynamic as it is in-your-face and pissed off. Each section swings wildly yet effortlessly into the other without sounding like a garbled mess, even in the midst of dizzying tempo changes. Like a sonic motion blur, it’s a power track that will knock you down and extend a hand to pick you up.
The band takes their foot off the gas with the introspective cooldown, “Risk.” Catch your breath with this gritty, mid-tempo groove as it peaks and valleys through harmonized guitar riffs, methodical drums and hoarse howling. This is another example of the band’s stellar songwriting and maximizing their creativity – Heatley, in particular, is working overtime behind the drum kit to keep things spicy and interesting. He busts out impressive and tasteful varieties of accents and orchestrations that keep the track exciting and your head nodding.
Old Ghosts go out with a bang on the EP closing, “Square One.” A galloping punk beat and unrelenting snare cracks command the track’s volatile mixture of hot-tempered vocals and bouncy, melodic guitar riffs. The mayhem breaks halfway through for a more grounded, introspective section that builds to a bruising and gratifying conclusion. Backing up the stellar instrumentals, Dole carries the song’s heavy emotional weight and delivers his most unflinching and personal lyrics on the record. “I’m thinkin’ about the time I’ve wasted / I’m thinkin’ about the years I’ve wasted / I’m thinkin’ about the life I’ve wasted / Wasted away” hits so hard you can feel it in your core. It does what the best hardcore songs do and that’s form an emotional connection between the artist and audience, before one spin-kicks the other in the face.
Still Sinking is a livewire listen your ears will thank you for. Captured by frequent collaborator Jay Zubricky of GCR, the record is tried and true hardcore from a proven band that continues to break the mold and push its own musical boundaries through intricate songwriting and painful, connective themes. If you’re looking for something fast and heavy with heart and substance similar to Bane and Have Heart, you have to give this EP a spin.
Still Sinking is out now and available for streaming on major platforms including Bandcamp, Apple Music and Spotify.
Categorised in: Album of the Week
This post was written by Matt Burgerhoff