As Ghosts – For The Dead (Self Released)
Release Date: 7th January 2024
FFO: Flyleaf / Gouge Away / Pryma
For those waiting for the opportunity to dust off their red ties and heavy eye shadow, Texan quintet As Ghosts answer such a call to arms with their debut EP release For The Dead. Emerging from the Houston music scene back in July 2023, the group has quickly made their mark through fusing elements of alternative rock and emo, led by singer Maze Lozoya, and complemented by guitarists Krueger Rosen and Gash Spadola.
With arrangements that would fit comfortably along a Warped Tour lineup, listeners can expect no shortfall of melodic, yet haunting themes across these six tracks.‘Defang’ opens the record, standing out as the punkiest (and shortest) song of this release. The looping guitar hooks allow Lozoya to snowball the energy up to a crescendo before the two-minute mark, while the rolling percussion and palm muted chugs motion for mosh pits.
Following this is the leading single ‘Bodybag’. Straight off the mark, we’re met with fast-paced guitar melodies that anyone old enough to remember Myspace will feel at home with. Overflowing with half-time cymbal splashes and synced-up kick drum stabs, both Rosen and Spadola nod to their influences whilst giving space for the vocals to soar.
‘Angels’ briefly allows the listener to catch their breath through spacious, echo-driven verses before bowling out machine gun guitar riffs that lead to the final chorus, whilst ‘December In Bloom’, a track filled with thick chords and emotive call and response vocals, closes the record.
For The Dead is an EP that gives listeners something to sink old fangs into, overflowing with a familiar nostalgia from the depths of a now bygone noughties era. As Ghosts have earned their three cheers and will undoubtedly be ones to watch as their repertoire continues to grow.
Rating: 7/10
Recommended Track: Somewhere West Of Hate