John McCracken, left, and Steve Higgins created a confident debut release.
Listen to ghostar’s “Knight Rider” — the triumphant closer of the upcoming EP Swelling — and you get an unshakable feeling of drifting in space.
The Madison duo, which plays a release party at The Winnebago on Oct. 9, has always sought to disorient listeners before kicking them back to Earth via crashing drums and guitars. It’s not uncharted musical territory — math rock and post-hardcore have always walked hand in hand. On Swelling, ghostar has achieved a sense of weightlessness that captivates.
The band has a lot of disparate influences — from the cinematic post-rock of Explosions in the Sky to Title Fight’s shoegaze-core — but Swelling doesn’t get too comfortable with any of them. The opening track, “Party Scars,” draws you in with delicate guitar work, like a slingshot being pulled taut. When it releases, it’s an explosion of blistering drums and chugging guitars, with guitarist Steve Higgins’ voice floating over it all.
Even at its spaciest, there’s a melodic backbone to Swelling that keeps ghostar from becoming too untethered. With post-rock, there’s a tendency to become lost in the noodling — especially among more inexperienced bands. But the members of ghostar seem to know what they want out of their sound. “Sludge Titan” and “T-Rex Machina” are both fairly straightforward rock songs, but packed with enough sonic experimentations to avoid staleness.
For my money, “Prayer Rabbit” is the album’s standout. Echoing, choir-like vocals work alongside the restless jackhammer of John McCracken’s drumming, like The World is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die covering Joshua Tree-era U2.
In fact, it’s kind of difficult to nitpick this album. Sure, there are some rough edges, but for a first release it’s surprisingly assured. I can’t think of a more perfect thesis statement for what this band wants to be. Swelling is a melting pot of soaring impulses and sludgy inclinations, all mixed together without one overpowering the other.
