The Only Ghost in Town - The Summer Was Over Before it Began

The Only Ghost in Town – The Summer Was Over Before it Began



The Summer Was Over Before it Began is the first release from The Only Ghost in Town, the nom de plume for bespectacled New Jersey native Dan Saraceni (also of buzz-worthy indie band By Surprise, recently signed to Topshelf Records). The Summer Was Over is Saraceni’s ode to obscure lo-fi pop; his eyes only looking up from shoegazing to seek out the first Castor CD on Discogs. The album, originally released on cassette by Long Island’s Rok Lok records, has been self-released on CD-R with 3 additional songs, expanding on TOGIT’s drone-and-moan fuzzed out blend of whirring guitar distortion and faded vocals.

The album begins with “Aware”, which begins with 5 seconds of twinkling guitar atop reverby vocals (“And I wonder where the summer goes”) before urgently plunging into strident guitar chops. On just listening to the first track a few things become readily apparent. One, Saraceni has listened to quite a bit of Further in his time (it’s no secret, there’s a Further cover a few songs into the album). Two, the lo-fi production fits the music like a youth-large My Bloody Valentine T-Shirt. Three, despite the vocals being buried and sometimes indiscernible, the songwriting is oddly catchy and I find myself mumbling along in the car and humming the melodies at my desk at work.

The album is impressive even when it breaks down the wall of sound, tones down the distortion, and turns up the vocals. “Too Much” excises the tinny drums in favor of confessional Secret Stars-eque vocals where Saraceni asks “Is it so wrong to miss you when you’re gone? I think I’ve said too much now, you probably think I’m nuts.” “Too Much” is one of the longer songs on The Summer Was Over, clocking in at 3:11 (I’m sure Dan would appreciate a “Come Original” joke here), yet it doesn’t betray the short emotive bursts of the 1-2 minute tracks that drive the album.

In terms of the three additional songs, “Snowglobe” is a noisy trek through the halls of unrequited love, “Candid Summer” is an upbeat instrumental track that eases some of the sonic tension that binds the album, and lastly “I Know” offers a perfect closing track that brings the The Summer Was Over Before it Began full circle, exuding big guitar riffs, ebb and flow vocals that crest melodically during the chorus, and enough lo-fi distortion to make a young J Mascis jealous.

There are a few copies of The Summer Was Over Before it Began on cassette left at Rocklok, they are only $5 and close to selling out. The CD-R is available in the same place for $4. You can also stream the album on bandcamp.

Makeout Party - Carried Names

I’ve been meaning to write this review for a long time.

I first heard Carried Names in May, right after the CD release in New Jersey, and over the past two months I can say with confidence that I’ve listened to this EP at least 200 times. I got a good 30 listens just from driving back to Massachusetts from a show in Delaware. For 8 Hours my band mates and I listened to the album on repeat. No one complained or asked to listen to anything else. Carried Names is honestly that good.

I confess that I was probably emotionally predisposed to this album through my friendship with the band (the song “7 Durant” is about my house). Regardless, I feel it’s necessary to point out that while I think that Makeout Party are all great dudes, my appreciation of Carried Names is based on the fact that it’s a near perfect album possessing the emotional depth of End Serenading Mineral, the musical intricacy of American Football, and the melodic grace of mid-career Getup Kids.
Carried Names begins with the mid-tempo “Mid-Twenties Relapse”. Lyrics wax on about post college ennui and the failings of love while the song builds up instrumentally until collapsing into a twinkling guitar outtro where Carmen croons, “We couldn’t float, we were capsized. Can’t say I wasn’t surprised. Everything wasn’t all right.” The song transitions perfectly into the next track “Restore” which showcases Makeout Party’s tight knit sound along with a renewed sense of urgency; the drums and guitars coax each other to drive the song harder and faster.

The next track, “The Worst Fourth of July Ever” may be the best track on a CD full of really good songs. The guitars entwine perfectly, one brightly strumming while another picks the strings longingly. Carmen sings about the difficulty of living on the road while maintaining a life at home; “If I knew that the time would just stop on a dime, then I’d have been sold to stay home. I could sleep on our plans for one more year and wake up to thoughts that this time it was clear.” The song ends with a haunting vocal melody with everyone in the band harmonizing together; it is slightly evocative of Transatlanticism Death Cab but not obviously derivative.

Carried Names continues on with the stripped down “A Year Plus One Month,” a bittersweet ballad about the elusiveness of love and the refuge of religion. Though I generally abhor when bands drop the God bomb, there is something truly beautiful in Carmen’s imagery and delivery of the lines, “Remember sneaking into the church? Remember praying in its pews? It’s been a year plus one month so let’s apologize for our sins.”

The last two songs on the album, “7 Durant” and the title track “Carried Names” are just as remarkable as the previous four songs. “7 Durant” marvels at the wonder of cheap champagne, house parties, and long drives while “Carried Names” is a testament to longing with the song reaching a fist pumping crescendo complete with driving guitars and pleading vocals; powerful without being excessive, emotive without coming across whiny.

I strongly recommend this album to anyone who appreciates mid-90s emo but I feel good recommending Carried Names to anyone who likes music. Makeout Party are tight, inventive, and honest, possessing an emotional depth that feels like a breath of fresh air in a world full of shallow music and oversaturated markets.