Ghost Train- Songs for Swingin' Corpses

With notable credits including Wreckage and Screams for Tina, the members of gothabilly/psychobilly band Ghost Train have a fairly prolific past, perhaps more prolific than you'd expect from a band that's technically aimed at a fringe cult corner of an underground genre. I recently had the pleasure of reviewing the band's solid debut CD single, Nice to Creature. Now they're back with a more substantial, albeit still rather short, offering with the 5-song EP Songs for Swingin' Corpses. Featuring the same upbeat rockabilly/surf rock music foundation and often witty, quirky lyrics combining vintage horror/sci-fi film themes with typical rockabilly surf/beach ones, Songs for Swingin' Corpses is another slice o' campy cult fun.

Clocking in at a mere 16 minutes, the disc opens with the upbeat "Amazing Colossal Man", combining groovy surf rock with retro horror/sci-fi film theremin and quirky sci-fi lyrics. "Whisky and the Banshee", the longest offering here, marries old-school bass-driven rock with cool slide guitar work and a catchy rhythmic chorus. "Sinner" is a great up-tempo rock number with both country and punk influences…not to mention what appears to be a nod to The Monkeys, while "Ghost in the Invisible Bikini" is a sinister surf rock track with crunchy distorted guitar hooks and some great lead work. The disc ends with both its shortest and fastest offering, "Date with the Devil", a fairly brief song with some interesting percussion and a punk edge.

Overall, Songs for Swingin' Corpses offers a very solid set with strong performances and songwriting. Granted, at 16 minutes, anything less than a solid set probably wouldn't bode well for the band, but it's a rather good disc nonetheless. Its blend of upbeat retro rock and clever vintage horror/sci-fi wordplay may not be for everyone, but it's a fun, refreshing, and intelligent album from a band that, unlike most floating around the goth spectrum, don't appear to take themselves too seriously.