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Album Details

• Artist: Sleeping At Last
• Album: Ghosts
• Label: Interscope
• Year of Release: 2003
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: mschmitt on 2006-11-25

A struggling band rests backstage at the now famous Metro in Chicago. They’ve recently released their first album, and have gained less attention for it than wanted. The bassist runs up, "You'll never guess who's here," the others look up, "Billy Corgan from Smashing Pumpkins!" The band is Sleeping At Last, and the celebrated story of their meeting with one of rock’s greatest is told on their website. After that night, Corgan went on to help, critique, and most importantly inspire the band’s newest album, "Ghosts." Originally from Wheaton, Illinois—Sleeping At Last takes its influences from Radiohead, U2, and The Beatles, a mix of melody and pop that can be heard in Ghosts. The band’s songs are heavily orchestral, and have a strong ambient flowing structure. Distorted guitars and other instruments commonly found in alternative rocker arsenals are hard to hear in this album, and for many songs, such as "Ghosts," piano and stringed instruments take the place of guitars and drums. The song "Hurry" is almost completely strings, creating a dramatic atmosphere with its chilling symbol crashes, and sobering acoustic guitar. This softer, almost classical sound is perfectly matched with lead singer Ryan O’Neal’s voice. Soft-spoken yet strong, O’Neal’s lyrics are optimistic, haunting, and hold a great deal of weight. Lyrics such as "In this sea of change, understanding is our shore / I disappear…with no control" speak of the struggle between what one wants to be, and what life gives them. Many of the songs have this common theme, trying to achieve an unspoken goal against the world, leaving the listener to fill in the blanks. "We all are running our very own races / Set out upon the most dangerous of places / And through it all, we were left / With a void in our chests / We’re aching to fill." Since the release of Ghosts, Sleeping At Last has toured nation-wide with Yellowcard, The Format, and Something Corporate. Sleeping At Last should be receiving more attention for their unique musical talent, and if their future albums are anything like Ghosts, they will.

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