Highway Ghosts often sound like they are part rock band and part cowboy film score composers. That’s not to write them off as a novelty act. Their chirpy, twangy guitar picking styles are very much rooted in the western feel of movement and action. Backing vocals are inspired by the best the movies ever offered, coos that remind you of all the epic scenes of betrayal, violence, and redemption. With a rocking beat under every song.
This music is inspired not by country and western but by country rock influences. You can hear shades of The Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and The Eagles in the mix.
Opening track “Alone” has a slight flavor of an old cowboy song. The two step shuffling beat, chirpy, twangy guitar, and isolated out on the range feel of the lead vocalists make you picture a lone cowboy facing his fate. The guitar picking style is assertive and lead singer Dave DeLuca has edge, placing this rootin tootin music squarely in the rock category. The lead and rhythm guitar parts are complex and fit each other like a glove. Glorious backing vocal coos gives this song a faintly haunted feel. It echoes in the mind like a song you’ll always like and want to return to.
“Losing Harmony” has a nice snap in Matt Slowick’s drums and Dan Cody’s rhythm guitar. Guest musician Noel Coakley applies his gritty banjo in just the right places. Lead singer Deluca croons in a lilting pace, just enough to let his colorful timbre ride peacefully above the gritty sound. This is definitely a band that can do a lot by contrasting the smooth with the gritty.
“Reinvent The Wheel” is mildly reminiscent of The Eagles, resting somewhere between country grit and rock and roll freedom in its flowing spirit. These boys know how to layer their songs with guest player Jim Gambino’s swirling organ chords and they make the most of him and their other guest players on this disc.
“Sweet And Lovely” features lead singer DeLuca emoting with plenty of lift from his backing vocalists. His voice has a sharpness that rings with authenticity. You just know that he’s lived what the song is about by the way his voice is crying out, a penetrating energy that stands above everything around it.
“Please Don’t Run Away” moves forward like a horse that just got a swift kick in its hind quarters. Sprinting banjo notes, edgy rhythm guitar, and humming lead phrases combine to create a sense of speedy motion. The chops from each player impress with their nimble picking, sparks fly off the guitar notes while the rhythm section gallops along merrily.
“Saving All Your Sins” is a mellow piece that gently pokes you in the arm with occasional western guitar phrases. Dennis Barry is the singer this time around, and he unfolds his tale at a down tempo pace that gives him time to color his vocal melody with a home on the range seasoning. The lead guitar makes a comely appearance, a picking style rooted in the old west, notes carry with a gravitas born in talent.
“Nothings Changed” finds Dennis Barry’s low end pumping up a shuffle beat with a smooth finesse in its runs. DeLuca, desperate and plaintive in his pleas, becomes larger than life in the chorus. The bands sounds like they’re making a steady walk down the center of town to face down the outlaws. There is a confrontational feel that makes this music sound tough, enjoyable, and impressive.
“And She Goes” skates by with bristling earthy guitar melodies that arc into something cool on the break. Barry’s vocals ride along the surface with a purposeful stride and the fulsome groove of the song just carries the listener along. Highway Ghosts can also turn up the heat and dive straight into driving rock. Their tune “Can’t Put Me Away” is funky rock with washy organ chords and bracing guitars.
Highway Cost have a lot of commercial appeal. It’s not just because the blend popular roots genres. They have their sound down pat and there remains a consistent quality of structure from beginning to end. “Laurie” has hit single written all over it. The song gets its fill of jumpy organ shots and fills and as lead vocalist here DeLuca is a swaggering cowboy. He moves his words around the bopping beat with unusual confidence for a local artist.
“Why’d You Run” is another possible breakthrough song for Highway Ghost. It’s application of organ, gritty guitar, and punchy rhythm section is particularly handsome in its sonic architecture and delivery. It’s the kind of song you’d find yourself humming along to after you’ve heard it on the radio three or four times.
The closing track “Done Before” has a tremendous lift in the way DeLuca croons the opening lines. That earthy delivery cries out with the authority of someone who needs to get something off his chest. That the band can make you instantly visualize their songs speaks to the dramatic impact of their words and music.
There is a lot of drama and talent going on in this band. Highway Ghosts have learned to hone their sparks into something lean, savory, and in motion.
