Band of few words

I've been listening to a stream of Cease to Begin, the new album from Band of Horses that's out on Oct. 9, and I can't get the first tune--"Is There a Ghost"--out of my head. It's like an Explosions in the Sky song that starts quietly crystalline and then builds not-so-slowly to a distorted climax. Singer Ben Bridwell is awash in reverb as usual, as if James Mercer borrowed Jim James's singing cavern.

But what really amazes me is that the song's lyrics consist of only two short sentences: "I could sleep when I lived alone. Is there a ghost in my house?" That's it. Just repetitions of that. I can't say it's terribly meaningful or that it really reminds me of a time when I was struggling with a similar issue, but it works. Guess that goes to show how much atmosphere and dynamics can add to otherwise blah lyrics.

mp3: Band of Horses - Is There a Ghost