Jersey Beat reviews Chris Broach/Palm Ghosts split

Paul Silver at Jersey Beat had kind things to say about the Chris Broach/Palm Ghosts split:

”Chris Broach and Palm Ghosts have teamed up on this split single, with one song each. Broach, perhaps best known for his time with Braid, had announced he planned to do a series of splits this year, and this one with Palm Ghosts follows one he released not long ago with The 1984 Draft, which I’ve previously reviewed. His song here, “Shoulder Your Own,” is very different from his previous split single. Where that one was very guitar driven and up-tempo, this song is much more keyboard driven and has a slower more deliberate pace. Where that one featured shifting rhythms, but kept a steady texture, this one keeps a steady rhythm, but the texture shifts from heavy and gritty to smooth and cool, with an almost dub vibe. This song is much darker, too. The previous song was more or less what we might expect from someone who came up in the era of Midwest emo and math rock, this new one is very unexpected and a nice surprise. Palm Ghosts has gotten some recent reviews in these internet pages, too, as they’ve embarked on a year-long journey releasing EPs that will be collected together with other tracks at the end of the year to create a double LP. If you like the band’s other releases, you’re going to enjoy this new song, because it slots in perfectly with their catalog of songs. It’s got the Ian Curtis/Joy Division thing going on, with the crooning baritone lead vocals. The arrangement is thick and lush, and though the song shifts between major and minor chords, much of it feels very haunting, especially at the start and finish. The two songs are somewhat different, but I feel they make for a good match on this split.”