Modern Baseball streaming new album, 'Holy Ghost'

Modern Baseball are releasing their highly anticipated third album Holy Ghost via Run For Cover on May 13. The wait is finally over and you can stream it now via Bandcamp.

This LP deviates a bit from their previous albums, but it’s not any less excellent. This one is split down the middle; with the first six songs written and sung by Jake Ewald and the last five by Brendan Lukens. Both Brendan and Jake have gone through respective personal challenges prior to the making of Holy Ghost. Jake, who experienced the loss of his grandfather, puts the jokes aside in this album to focus on coping with loss, showing a more serious, mature side of his songwriting. He begins the album with the title track, a song about feeling the energy of his grandfather looking over him and how his death impacted his life, as he mentioned in their documentary.

Other songs delve into the themes of mourning and finding happiness again with help from a romantic partner, like “Wedding Singer” and “Everyday.” His upbeat track “Mass” details the small yet significant things he misses doing with his partner while he’s on tour, as he sings: “Sometimes I wish it was still last summer and you still lived in South Philly/And I wasn’t playing a show in Nebraska, or Austin, Texas.”

The album gets grittier and more upbeat on Brendan’s side, starting with “Coding These To Lukens.” Brendan has been very open about dealing with depression and anxiety and the impact it had on him prior to writing the album, and these songs address that in relatable, honest ways. “Apple Cider I Don’t Mind,” one of the first singles the band shared off this LP, outwardly embraces the band’s Killers fandom while Brendan sings about experiencing betrayal in a relationship. He follows it with “What If…”, a song where he opens up about his anxiety, singing: “Is it possible I’m overthinking this?”

Holy Ghost ends with “Just Another Face,” which is easily my favorite on the album. This one addresses his struggles with depression. He opens the song with self-deprecating lines like “I’m a waste of time and space” and “I scream get lost I hate everything, I can’t say how I got here,” but by the end of the song, he changes pace: “Still I can feel the need to change me from the inside.”

As mentioned, MoBo are heading on tour with the great triple bill of them, Joyce Manor and Thin Lips. That tour hits NYC for two shows at Irving Plaza on June 24 and 25 (tickets). Before those shows, they’ll play a sold-out record release show at Asbury Park’s Wonder Bar on Friday (5/13) with Pinegrove, Sorority Noise and more. All dates are listed below.

Listen to the whole album below:

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Modern Baseball – 2016 Tour Dates
Modern Baseball – 2016 Tour Dates
May 13 Wonder Bar w/ Pinegrove, Sorority Noise, W.C. Lindsay, Superweaks, The Obsessives, Sun Organ Asbury Park, NJ
May 25 Exit Inn w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Nashville, TN
May 27 House of Blues w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Houston, TX
May 28 Emo’s w/ Say Anything, Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Austin, TX
May 29 Gas Monkey w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Dallas, TX
May 31 The Pressroom w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Phoenix, AZ
Jun 01 House of Blues w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips San Diego, CA
Jun 02 The Observatory w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Santa Ana, CA
Jun 03 The Glass House w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Pomona, CA
Jun 04 The Echoplex w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Los Angeles, CA
Jun 05 The Fillmore w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips San Francisco, CA
Jun 07 Hawthorne Theatre w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Portland, OR
Jun 08 The Showbox w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Seattle, WA
Jun 09 El Korah Shrine w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Boise, ID
Jun 10 The Complex w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Salt Lake City, UT
Jun 11 The Summit w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Denver, CO
Jun 12 Granada w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Lawrence, KS
Jun 14 Mill City Nights w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Minneapolis, MN
Jun 15 The Rave / Eagles Club w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Milwaukee, WI
Jun 16 The Ready Room w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips St Louis, MO
Jun 17 Bogarts w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Cincinnati, OH
Jun 18 Agora Theater w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Cleveland, OH
Jun 19 The Opera House w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Toronto, Canada
Jun 21 The Crofoot w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Pontiac, MI
Jun 22 Altar Bar w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Pittsburgh, PA
Jun 23 House Of Blues w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Boston, MA
Jun 24 Irving Plaza w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips New York, NY
Jun 25 Irving Plaza w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips New York, NY
Jun 26 The Fillmore w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Philadelphia, PA
Jun 28 Baltimore Soundstage w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Baltimore, MD
Jun 29 The Broadberry w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Richmond, VA
Jun 30 Cat’s Cradle w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Carrboro, NC
Jul 01 Beacham Theater w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Orlando, FL
Jul 02 Revolution w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Fort Lauderdale, FL
Jul 03 The Orpheum w/ Joyce Manor, Thin Lips Tampa, FL