ALBUM REVIEW – These Ghosts – Still The Waves

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These Ghosts – Still The Waves
NX Records
3.5 out of 5

It’s quite impressive that These Ghosts are a trio. The sound of their sophomore album Still The Waves is consistently full, yet also fragile. The rhythm section, comprising Nick Yager on bass and Harry Hall on drums, forms the life blood of the album, driving forwards with unusual progressions and quirky drumbeats which engross the listener with an appeal lacking in many young bands. This foundation is embossed throughout with the vulnerability offered by Calum Duncan’s voice, sounding at times like Dave Bayley of Glass Animals (as on Gold Heart Green Skin), at others like a Wintery English incarnation of Fleet Foxes (as on album opener Young Blood).

Select moments on the record are further embellished with the addition of the occasional Radiohead-esque glitch, pulse, or drum quirk. In fact, the whole album seems to pay homage to Yorke and co., particularly to Hail To The Thief. It’s not a criticism exactly, but it’s unavoidably there in Still The Waves’ sound – the rhythm and melancholy combo will always bring to mind Radiohead. Perversely, it is when These Ghosts are most at risk of being considered derivative that I find their music the most captivating. The opening of Where Two lines Meet is comparable to first few seconds of Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors from Amnesiac, but the early introduction vocals on the track leads it in a different and perhaps even more impressive direction. The track is one of the album’s highlights, showing intriguing depth while maintaining a driving momentum.

The album is balanced well, with further stand out moments dotted throughout. The opening track Young Blood is immediately appealing, with Duncan’s sonorous, lamenting vocals soaring above an infectious, jittering drumbeat. Single ‘Coat of Feathers’ is understated and honest, a lyrical highpoint of the album with lines reflecting on self-confidence and loneliness: “No one will tell you when the coast is clear,/ No coat of feathers and no crowds that cheer./ Look upon yourself with such disdain,/ Your children will be picking through your sad remains.” Another delight is the penultimate track Safe, where the winding bassline creates an emotionally charged atmosphere as vocals become ever more urgent and drums build into a crashing crescendo.

Despite these moments, there is something about Still The Waves which fails to captivate as a whole. The album title is strangely apt, for with all the waves of rhythm on the record, it still sounds still, or cold, failing to make emotional impact with the consistency it promises with Young Blood. Nonetheless, the album has left me excited for what is to come from These Ghosts, and the progression in sound from their 2010 debut You Are Not Lost, You Are Here is promising, showing three creative minds keen to try new ideas and keep evolving.

Will Godfrey