I came to Eskimo Joe a bit later in the game. I was always aware of their music through the radio, but it wasn’t until the release of Inshalla that I really connected with the band. So I was pretty excited to see what they served up with their newie, Ghosts of the Past. The single “Love is a Drug” set the bar high, but sadly I’ve got mixed feelings about the disc.
It’s really hard to put my finger on exactly why I haven’t connected with this recording. It sounds gorgeous. Eskimo Joe are a talented trio, and they’re probably incapable of making bad, or even mediocre, music. This disc is really piano rich, and that gives the album an epic feel. It helps the music soar and elevates it beyond the guitar-rock the band used to deliver.
And there are some really great songs here. “Gave it All Away” is such a strong opener, with its big rock sounds and crashing drums. I loved the quirkyness of “Echo,” which has one of the most unusual and compelling melodies I’ve heard in some time. The title track seems destined to become a single. It’s got just the right combination of rocking riffs and melodic hooks to appeal to the MMM set.
A lot of the disc is quite big, but I prefer it when it’s less grandiose. The alt-country feel of “Just Don’t Feel,” with its acoustic guitars and rich strings, was like a breath of fresh air. And I was initially struck by the simplicity of the closer “Sky’s on Fire.” The initial portion feels like it was recorded on an eight-track in a bedroom. That lack of polish gave it a real truth, so I was disappointed when this track too became big.
Frankly I could listen to an album of the small stuff, and that might be where my problem with Ghosts of the Past lies. This album sounds incredible, but such refinement comes at the expense of some soul. The lyrics are really strong, but it’s difficult to focus on them with so much else going on. It’s interesting that Eskimo Joe gave fans a preview of this album with an acoustic tour. Personally I think that stripped back delivery would have made these songs much more compelling than the wall of sound the band’s offered here. Ghosts of the Past is far from a bad album, but it’s not quite the record it could have been.
Image source: Eskimo Joe website
14 September 2011 – 