Hailing from Buffalo, N.Y., hardcore act Everything Falls Apart sounds an awful lot like Crime in Stereo circa The Troubled Stateside. And I'm pretty OK with that. The group's Ghost seven-inch only delivers two songs, but they're both mighty fine and hopefully a promise of more to come.

"Ghost" graces the A side with passionate vocals, chiming, needling guitar and a propulsive drum beat. It's a pretty straightforward song. "Brace Position" picks up the pace a little. At least on the surface it sounds like a happy song thanks to Derek Raybeck's guitar lead, although by the end it starts to take on some Black Flag dissonance circa My War. It's arguably the better of the two tunes, and the more experimental to boot.

Lyrically, though, both tunes get pretty bleak. "Ghost" is about falling out with a friend. The closing line sums it up best: "I'll propose a toast / 'Here's to your ghost / May you never find your way home.'" "Brace Position" is even more of a bummer. This one's about a plane crash, by Berlin of all places. But hey, if you like dark songs with good backbeats, this one's for you.