Ghost Work may be a fairly new band, but its members hail from some groups that were influential for many throughout the 90s and early 2000s. With the list encompassing Minus The Bear, Snapcase, Seaweed, and Milemarker, it makes sense that Ghost Work’s 2020 debut You’ll Be Buried With adopted a post hardcore and post punk laden approach to indie and alternative rock. A few years later the band has returned with follow-up Light A Candle For The Lonely and it feels like a refinement in almost every way. The sound is much fuller and there is added clarity that allows each instrument to shine, while the writing naturally builds upon what its predecessor was doing. Although the emphasis on driving bass lines and somber guitar leads may make some of the songs blur together, there’s still a lot to like about what Ghost Work has to offer here and it’s exciting to see them continue to grow.
You’ll Be Buried With felt like a very vocal forward album, as the instrumentation was a bit more muted and often felt like it was off in the background. Light A Candle For The Lonely offers a much more balanced recording by comparison while also making everything sound louder and bolder. Right from the first few seconds of opener “Godspeed on the Trail”, you’re met with a powerful, driving bass line, pounding drums, and airier guitar melodies that soar into the clouds. There’s a lot more energy and drive to both the arrangements and the production, which makes the songs really jump out at you more when compared to the debut. Stylistically Ghost Work has the hooks and melodies of indie and alternative rock with the aggressive and somber edges of post hardcore and post punk, which is sure to give off a sense of nostalgia but avoids feeling dated. Tracks like “Erase the Morning” and Under the Fire” would’ve surely been on the radio in the late 90s or early 2000s, as the melodic leads have a lot of staying power and bring that perfect balance of sweeping, airier textures and grittier edges. There’s a consistency to the writing that keeps the listener engaged from beginning to end, and while some of the material has a bit more hooks than others, everything flows in a way that encourages you to experience the album all the way through. Admittedly the emphasis on driving bass lines and a big sound throughout does make some of the material hard to tell apart, and Ghost Work does still have room to vary their formula up a bit more as they move forward. But this type of somber, hook driven rock with post hardcore’s rougher edges remains appealing enough that I still found myself drawn back regularly, even if it wasn’t always clear exactly where on Light A Candle For The Lonely I always was.
While the rest of the band may be a bit easier to make out this time around, Aaron Stauffer still soars over the recording and delivers another standout performance. The way his voice ebbs and flows gives off a vibe somewhere between alternative rock and post hardcore, as it emphasizes melody and softer moments but also brings some aggression when necessary. There’s a decent amount of variety to the performance as well, with songs like “Earthquake” heading into higher registers and harmonized pitches that explore more melodic territory while “Twilight of Hope” goes for more somber and post punk sounding singing and spoken word. Stauffer’s ability to offer a combination of reflective and hopeful verses alongside some sharper ones that bring the punk roots of the band back to the forefront work well, and this is an area where Ghost Work continues to differentiate themselves from some of the others out there.
Since their debut, it’s clear that Ghost Work has worked on refining their approach considerably. The songwriting feels a bit bolder and the sound is much fuller, resulting in some big hooks that balance the melodic and gritty side. This is the type of material that draws you in right from the start, but with similar rhythms some of the songs do start to run together and be a bit hard to tell apart. That doesn’t diminish the appeal, especially when there aren’t a ton of groups doing this particular brand of post punk and post hardcore edged alternative/indie rock right now, but there is opportunity for Ghost Work to vary their formula up further as they move forward. Light A Candle For The Lonely is available from Spartan Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg