Easily one of our most anticipated releases of 2019 (It was number twelve on our “19 for’19” preview, Read that here), Ghastly Sound is finally ready to astound and amaze with their debut full-length coming at you through Magnetic Eye Records in September. But is the magic still there? Can this three-piece from Vermont hold your attention beyond three or four songs? Why are we treating this opening paragraph like the closing of a Batman episode from the ’60’s? Tune in next week at the same RNRF time and the same RNRF channel to find out! Or you could just keep reading below…
But I digress.
We don’t like to throw around the “best of the year” tag loosely because it takes a special kind of album to warrant that title but we’d be lying if we didn’t say that all of Have A Nice Day, the debut full-length from Ghastly Sound, didn’t give us all the goosebumps from start to finish. Contender for the top spot? Fuck yeah!
But I digress again.
“Bait and Switch” is a step beyond what “Crippler Crossface” teased when it was released as a standalone last year. Whereas that track was all apocalyptical and bleak (And kind of a smokecreen of what was to come, actually), the HAND opener is filled with hopeful sounding harmony and melody with Tyler Gurwicz’s clean vox shining as TJ Maynard’s bass hums and Ryan Lewis’ ferocious drumming lays the most solid of heavy foundations. And did I mention how frelling all around epic the track is??? “We’re All Shadows” is equally stunning as it creates this wall of sound from Maynard and Lewis’ combined instrument prowess with Gurwicz acting as the sonic guru, wading through the quagmire.
“Deathlogic” brings the brutal but still brims with those progressive overtones while “No Security” is intricately immense with an aural walloping that has these huge Caleb Scofield-style bass stylings (We couldn’t think of a better descriptor) from Maynard which both warms the heart and brings a tear to the eye as the reverberations cut deep and linger on like the bestest (Not a word) Cave In jams usually do.
Next up is “Selina Kyle” and Holy Shit! Gurwicz’s vocals are a stand out as is but here listeners get his full swooping range with these broad vocal passages amidst the spacious atmosphere that he, Maynard, and Lewis create and then a sweet falsetto, nay, croon only to have the rug pulled out from beneath as the song ends and seems almost like a segue to “The Holoscene Has Ended”. That one combines the styles Ghastly Sound have become known for as a rumbling Maynard bass line collides with Lewis’ thunderous drums before switching between the smooth groove and this chaotic cacophonous barrage of elegantly crafted noise with Gurwicz’s screams on full display.
“Electric Tumor” is as if Failure continued the sonic experimentation of Magnified and went heavier instead of to a Fantastic Planet and then the title track bounces in with another memorable anthem to close out Ghastly Sound’s debut full-length with Maynard and Lewis’ bass and drums respectively forming a union of sonic urgency with Gurwicz’s vox exploding in a throated growl before the inevitable conclusion hits.
All in all, a “nice day” indeed!
Have A Nice Day arrives via the unstoppable, the unflappable, the unterrible (Also not a word) Magnetic Eye Records on Friday the 13th in September. Pre-orders are available here. Personally, we’re partial to the “Halloween Orange” vinyl but regardless of your delivery method of choice, when the tunes get to your earholes they’re guaranteed to slay. You can also keep up-to-date on what’s going on with GH by following the band here and here.