The first album recorded by someone other than the band themselves, Modern Baseball enlisted Joe Reinhart (Hop Along, Joyce Manor) at Headroom Studios in Philadelphia to help refine their sound on Holy Ghost.
In a tight 28 minutes, Holy Ghost covers an impressive emotional range, with co-songwriters Jacob Ewald and Brendan Lukens literally splitting the record in half. The record kicks off with six songs from Ewald and ends with five from Lukens. What they ended up with was a complete record of the past two years– the highs alongside the lows, tales from the road and glorious days at home alongside songs of heartbreak and personal struggle.
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Modern Baseball co-frontman Brendan Lukens had a pretty intense year leading up to the release of Holy Ghost, having gone to treatment for depression and addiction, which was captured on the Tripping in the Dark a short documentary film. They’re not a band that’s quick to hide their scars or laugh away their wounds—you don’t get to be heroes of the so-called “emo revival” by putting on a happy face. The thing of it, though, is that their music is so damn fun that it’s hard not to come away from Modern Baseball’s most intensely emotional and personal moments without a feeling of satisfaction, catharsis or hell, even just feeling good. Holy Ghost is split into two halves, the first comprising songs written and sung by Jake Ewald and the second by Lukens. The distinction is notable; Ewald’s spacious compositional style on “Hiding” and Lukens’ immediacy in “Apple Cider, I Don’t Mind” provide a strong contrast, though the flow and sequence still works simply because this is a band that comes together most strongly as a whole, grasping those worst personal moments and turning them into two-minute celebrations
This band is so honest and down-to-earth, it’s amazing. Love the vibe of the whole album.
The Fat Angel Sings 