Deflecting Ghosts rip their soul open on cathartic single, "Broken"
If you haven’t yet heard of Deflecting Ghosts, consider Broken your urgent introduction. On only their third single, the rising hard rock outfit has delivered a track that feels less like a song and more like a confession shouted into the void — raw, vulnerable, and utterly unflinching. Broken captures a gut-wrenching turning point: the precise moment when denial crumbles, self-confrontation floods in, and a long-avoided reckoning takes hold.
The track opens with deceptive calm — a stripped-back, almost fragile acoustic guitar riff accompanies tender, introspective vocals that feel like a private journal entry set to melody. It’s intimate, cracked at the edges, and deeply human. There’s no attempt to mask the emotion here, no sheen of bravado. The singer’s voice carries the heavy ache of someone teetering on the precipice of personal collapse, observing their own unraveling with an aching, weary clarity. And then it hits.
About a minute in, Broken detonates into a wall of soaring guitars and thunderous percussion, the kind of climactic, full-bodied sound that catches in your throat and makes your chest tighten. The contrast is electric. Where the acoustic opening feels like a whispered admission, the full-band explosion is a howl of surrender — and Deflecting Ghosts navigate that transition masterfully. The heavy riffs don’t just sound good; they feel essential, mirroring the lyrical themes of inner chaos and catharsis with crushing precision.
Vocally, Broken is a standout. The performance walks a tightrope between tender vulnerability and raw, throat-ripping intensity. Even as the instrumentation ramps up to a hard rock onslaught, the vocals never lose their emotional clarity. It’s a performance that’s both technically strong and emotionally searing — a difficult balance that few emerging bands manage so convincingly.
The production deserves equal praise. There’s a clarity to the mix that allows the soaring guitar, distorted riffs, and layered vocals to breathe without sacrificing punch. The build from delicate balladry to hard-hitting anthem feels organic rather than forced, a testament to both the band’s songwriting instincts and studio execution.
For a band only three singles deep, Deflecting Ghosts already sound like seasoned veterans of their genre. Broken is an emotional sledgehammer disguised as a hard rock anthem — a stunning, standout moment that signals this is a band worth watching closely. If this is what reckoning sounds like, let’s hear more.
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