On Holy Ghost!’s debut album, they produce a solid set of energetic dance-pop numbers that are entertaining, but don’t provide a lot of depth. Yet another player on the ‘80s-inspired dance scene, the New York City-based electro-pop duo present ten upbeat tracks to keep you moving for the whole fifty minutes. The songs themselves aren’t strikingly different from one another, and the album tends to run together into one catchy mixtape. Holy Ghost! has, however, strongly established themselves with a quickly recognizable style.
Holy Ghost! has found one formula that works, and every song on their debut album is just a variation on that. They get more nostalgic on “It’s Not Over”. They get funkier with “Static On the Wire”, a track that uses funk to get even groovier. However, every song fits the bass-heavy, lighthearted, and plenty groovy description of the whole album. The vocals generally take a back seat to the synth-driven beats, except where they get a moment to shine on the harmonic “Slow Motion”. This contributes to the similarity of the songs on the album, which would benefit from some distinction between tracks. Overall, the album lacks complexity because the catchiness is overwhelming.
Holy Ghost! has at times a wistful twist, at times a spacey one, and at times both. The music overall is consistently fast-paced, accessible, and well executed. Though this is their first full-length album, Holy Ghost!’s success is no surprise. The duo had already produced some widely heard singles and videos, as well as toured with popular acts including LCD Soundsystem (QRO live review on tour with Holy Ghost!) and Chromeo (QRO live review). Remixes of the songs have already popped up on this summer’s playlists all over the blogosphere. While this album doesn’t vary much in style from track to track, it is an enjoyable set of bubbly, synth dance beats.
MP3 Stream: “Hold On”
