Black Sands – Old Ghosts (2020)
Pairing rock beats with RnB vocals, Black Sands filled us with unending energy with ‘The Hardest Pill To Swallow’. Now they are turning to intense electro-pop for the gravelly yet haunting ‘Old Ghosts’. With a nod to the darker side of pop music, Andrew Balfour creates a single of beautiful imperfection.
The single was written as he was struggling to cope with the death of his sister. Through the song, he pays respect to her and her struggles with drug addiction. A navigation through the complex emotions of loss and grief, it uses his experiences to motivate you and help you move forward through the beautiful imperfection that is life.
‘Old Ghosts’ has a progressive opening that rises from the depths with a somewhat creepy humming line. The deep beats that grab you after the opening weave into the pulsing electronic tones to draw you higher. There is darkness in the melody, but the forward movement of the music has you feeling inspired. It is an interesting combination of emotional hits that perfectly captures the duality of emotions following a loss. The dark tones act as the grief and negativity that is part of the grieving process. The lighter tones that pluck their way to life is the motivation to move forward and remember the good.
Balfour’s vocals are a growling accompaniment to the pulsing melody. The backing vocals are an airy haunting layer that floats over the darker melody and vocals offer an interesting interplay. While his vocals have a delightful growl to them, there is a melodic flow that navigates the complex emotions brought forth by the single.
Black Sands navigates grief and loss to lead you to moving forward and acknowledging that loss makes you who you are in ‘Old Ghosts’. The dark pop melody creates a duality of emotions with grief and loss on one side and acceptance on the other. Balfour’s gravelly vocals growl through the lyrics to fill you with the motivation to move on and remember the good
Find out more about Black Sands on his website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
