REVIEW: First Impression of "Ghosts" by Mayday Parade

Huzzah! We've been given a taste of the new music from pop-punk group Mayday Parade, even though the album is more than a month out. Their single Ghosts was released today, August 27th, 2013.

You can listen to it here before reading on if you'd like (sorry, there are no YouTube lyric videos so Spotify will have to do).

Right off the bat, it begins with lead singer Derek Sanders' distinctive voice accompanied by almost angelic the background harmonies. A different direction we're used to seeing from Mayday Parade, but kind of cool anyway. Then as soon as the drums start, we hear the great Mayday Parade we know and love.

I really hate to say this, but I will: it's a nice track, but I can't help but feel that something is missing. Maybe due to an absence of co-lead singer Jake Bundrick's voice that blends and adds more dimensions to Mayday's songs. He's reduced to simply a harmonic device, a background sound. Both equally talented singers, they should both be equally present on the track, which is probably why Ghosts rings empty to me.

Don't get me wrong, I love both Derek and Jake, and Derek has sung solo on many tracks before that I enjoy (such as Anywhere But Here, one of my favorite songs and many songs off of the album by the same title), but this time it doesn't seem like their best work.

What I do admire about it is the direction they took with the song. It's not their typical stuff, and it really mixes it up. It's pretty, even if the lyrics are kind of simplistic and repetitive for Mayday Parade, who have an odd knack of making lyrics, simplistic or otherwise, sound heartfelt and emotional. This track, however, doesn't quite do that for me, but I won't give up on them yet.

Verdict: Ghosts isn't a bad song, but I hope that their new album is better than this single.

What do you think of the new song?

Till next time xx,

Sierra