So I've been sitting on the new album by Ghostfire, The Tyburn Jig, for some weeks now, listening to it and trying to wrap my brain around how I'm going to review it. You see, dear readers, I've run into the unique conundrum of discovering that, while I firmly believe that The Tyburn Jig is a finely crafted work indeed, I also find that it is simply not to my personal taste. However, as a music reviewer, I do not consider it my job to impress my will and ideas of musical taste onto my readership. Rather I consider it my sacred duty to provide information to help readers decide for themselves what aural delights are worth their pursuit. So although I don't particularly enjoy Ghostfire's The Tyburn Jig, I'm here to say that you just might. Here are some details to help you decide:

"Smoke and Mirrors" opens with an organ fanfare leading into an extended intro of punky bass and guitar riffs with driving drums behind. The intro gives way to a gruff-voiced verse with jangly acoustic guitar, bouncy bass and organ punctuations beneath. The raucous intro becomes the chorus with the addition of an organ ostinato. This verse/chorus variation repeats a couple times before dying out into an organ hold.

"Dance of Fate" opens with a mournful interplay of piano and cello before driving metalish guitar, bass, and drums enter to produce an Evanescence-esque instrumental texture. Then it calms back down to bass and drums backing up an raw, roughly delivered vocal. As the verse progresses, electric piano and guitars rejoin the fray to build back to a chorus taken from the intro. A slow guitar solo replaces the 3rd verse before building to a final chorus and march-like outro.

"Vaudevillain" is classic dark cabaret, evoking the ska-meets-creepy-sideshow atmosphere of the more upbeat tunes from such acts as Hellblinki and This Way to the Egress, complete with a final verse shouted through a megaphone. The traditional rhythm section of guitar, bass, drum set, and keys add to the ska-punk emphasis.

"The Confession" is soaring pop rock with jangling guitars, Farfiza organ, a soaring lead guitar riff, anthemically shouted vocals, and a prayer-like spoken section. The unexpected entrance of mariachi-esque trumpets in the middle adds contrast.

"Book of Dust" opens with a clean guitar ostinato with sparse keys, bass, and drums. When the raw, hoarse vocal enters, the guitar alternates between laying out and playing a couple chunky measures of overdrive which stick around for the entire chorus with a warbling organ going along for the ride. A restrained guitar solo ushers in the final verse and a piano lead heralds the outro. 

"Creepshow" is Ghostfire's take on the dark cabaret trope of the creepy lullaby. It enters with a jangle of guitar and a roll of thunderstorms before subdued bass, drums, and piano help create an urgent texture. Then that once-gruff vocal enters as gently as it can, in its lower register where it sounds more controlled, smooth, and deep. The chorus opens up a bit into a more rocking texture. The verses intensify, adding affects and doubled vocals to increase the urgency. The final repeat of the verse dies away with a tinkle of music box-like piano.

"The Man" is a rootsy rock and roll two-step with shouted call-and-response vocals and swelling, distorted organ punctuating a driving texture from bass, drums, and guitar. The piano entering mid-song tempers the vocal. A organ/guitar instrumental and a stripped down final verse leading to a raucous final verse round things out.

The intro "Masters of the Sea" sounds almost celtic with its acoustic guitar and tuned tom drum. Then the piano and electric guitar enter, reasserting that, yes, this is a rock song, albeit with a nautical bent. Surprisingly though, it is not in triple time.

"Drinkski Song" starts with a guitar cadenza and builds to another carnival ska-punk groove, this time with the twist of a tack piano accomplishing the upstroke. It's a bouncy tune, again referencing the likes of Hellblinki and This Way to the Egress. The harmonica is a nice touch, as is the klezmer-esque accelerando ending.

"Styx," the album's finale, alternates between a subdued vocal verse with punctuating drums and bass before opening into a crunchy, metallic chorus. I particularly liked the gradual build of the interlude where the piano enters. A nice contrast to the rest of the song and a great dramatic device. The piccardy third (that is, ending a minor song on a major chord) was also a nice surprise.

If I may offer some constructive criticism, a lot of what I personally struggled with in regard to this record were its production values. I found the mix difficult to listen to and I thought a lot of the keyboard sounds, especially those that mimicked non-electronic instruments, came off as rather synthetic. There also appear to be some synch problems. Unison lines from different instruments don't line up. Whether this happened during recording or editing is unclear. I also had a hard time connecting with the vocalist. His roughness seemed a bit affected and I noticed several spots where he sacrificed tune and melody in favor of maintaining character. Lastly, I would've loved to see more variation in the song structure. Ghostife seems to adhere very strictly to a verse/chorus structure, occasionally adding a contrasting bridge. I think I'd enjoy the result if they were tasked with spicing that up a bit. "Styx" is my favorite tune of the album because it has so many surprises. Throw us some more changeups, lads! We can handle them.

Ghostfire is a solid English rock band and The Tyburn Jig serves as proof. If you enjoy your straightforward rock and roll with a dark, Victorian flair, then Ghostfire might just be for you. Check them out at http://www.ghostfiremusic.com

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Professor Dimitri von Stadberg is the singer/bassist for Atlanta-based steampunk band The Extraordinary Contraptions.