Background and production
For more information about the history of By Storm, see
Injury Reserve.
Injury Reserve was a Tempe, Arizona based hip-hop group composed of producer Parker Corey and rappers Stepa J. Groggs and RiTchie with a T, known for their experimental and abstract production. [1] After the death of Stepa J. Groggs in 2020, Injury Reserve released their second and final studio album, By the Time I Get to Phoenix, to critical acclaim. [2] They later reformed as a duo under the name By Storm in 2023, [3] along with a music video for Injury Reserve's final release, "Bye Storm", and their first release as By Storm, "Double Trio". [3]
The duo began working on new material shortly after the final Injury Reserve tour in late 2022. However, a full-length album did not materialize out of these sessions. Instead, the duo began to slowly release "songs [they] were confident in", citing pressure from "debuting a new band while also following up a relatively successful album". Throughout 2025, the duo released three singles, each with a Maxi release. They also played shows in Phoenix, New York, London, and Los Angeles. The shows were intended to mimic an improvisational DJ set they did as Injury Reserve in 2019, which laid the foundation of By the Time I Get to Phoenix. As time went on, these shows became more planned with new material being created in preparation. By their last show in Los Angeles, the group finalized My Ghosts Go Ghost. [4] Corey has cited HTRK and Chuquimamani-Condori as inspirations for the sound of the album. [5]
Composition
My Ghosts Go Ghost was described as experimental and abstract hip-hop by various reviewers. [6] [7] [8] Devin Birse of Still Listening described the sonic palette as shifting between folk, psychedelia, jazz, and boom bap. Birse also contrasted the production of My Ghosts Go Ghost with By the Time I Get to Phoenix, highlighting a departure from an experimental rock, "post-apocalyptic" sound. [9] Critics highlighted the maximalist sound of Corey's instrumentation, which incorporates acoustic guitar, violin, saxophone, and synths. [6] [7] [9] Tom Morgan of Clash compared the music to that of Dälek, describing RiTchie's lyrics as "fissure vents on the side of a volcano." [6] Benny Sun of Pitchfork said that "both the lyrics and production of [this album] feel more conversational and off-cuff than anything the duo have previously attempted." [10] Critics have described the album as a reflection on grief and mourning, but the duo has pushed back on this:
I think that word [grief] gets kind of overly brought up a little bit too much with our music... Obviously for songs like "North Pole" or "Top Picks For You", it's unavoidable because that’s literally what the songs are about. I don’t know, it’s kind of weird. You write all this stuff and you don’t really realise what it is. It's less of being in the thick of it, whether you use the word grief or not, and it's more of this later stage. I don't want to say a resolution… It's just like a fact of life. It's a big one. There is a lot of this stuff where it's just these new steps in life like obviously, the first song and the second song. "And I Dance" and "Double Trio 2" being these songs that are not afraid of sitting in it for a minute and then realising you have to push forward. But it's not necessarily 100 percent about grief. [11]
The opening track, "Can I Have You For Myself?", features an acoustic guitar melody before shifting to a folktronica waltz in its latter half. [9] In a review for Beats Per Minute , John Wohlmacher described the instrumentation as "much gentler than anything Injury Reserve had ever produced." [12] On the track, RiTchie addresses his wife on the eve of their child's birth, "tempering his gratitude with a desire for things to stay the way they are." [10] The second track, "Dead Weight", features a looping guitar arpeggio, backed by frantic drumming, unpredictable pauses, and undecipherable vocal layers. [6] [10] [12] Pitchfork compared the track's percussion to Morgan Simpson of Black Midi, who previously worked with the duo on By the Time I Get to Phoenix, [13] and Rashied Ali. [10] The content of the song features RiTchie using hair as a metaphor for shared experience and grief, refusing to cut his dreadlocks to not "forget him." [12]
"Grapefruit" was described as "a constant semi-quaver pattern alongside stilted hi-hats and snares, a somewhat anxiety-inducing rhythm track when backed by minor-key harp flourishes and swooning group vocals" by Ben Devlin of MusicOMH, [7] with Liam Inscoe-Jones of Paste comparing its sound to that of Xiu Xiu. [8] The lyrics find RiTchie talking about how fame leads to unwanted attention and invites people to pry into his personal life. [8] "In My Town" explores themes of financial instability and the struggles of touring through RiTchie's lyrics, ending with 3 minutes with "no distinct direction". [10] Reflecting on the track's lyrics, RiTchie explained the Shell gift cards mentioned throughout the track were a reference to a Live Nation promotion offered after the COVID-19 pandemic that intentionally took attention away from supporting smaller, independent venues at a time of need:
The concept of "[In My Town]" is about when Live Nation was basically bribing artists to tour in their venues post-COVID, and they were doing a program where they were giving artists Shell gas station gift cards, and an extra $1,200 to just play there. There were a lot of smaller acts that would go on tours, opening up for artists that were able to tour in Live Nation-type venues, and they were able to profit on tour when they would normally lose a lot of money, just because they were doing these Live Nation tours. There were actually artists, at that point, that started booking exclusively Live Nation tours... [It's] kind of like going through a conversation of, "Am I going to be a scab?"... Like, "Dang, these Live Nation shows would be sick", but then you want to support these other [venues]... It was literally a program that they were trying to get people to play Live Nation venues, because people were going out of their way, post-COVID, to try and make sure they were supporting the smaller venues. [5]
Near the midpoint of the tracklist is lead single, "Zig Zag", a track that incorporates "a maelstrom of glitching synths and noodling guitar" that eventually swallows RiTchie's vocals. [8] In the song, RiTchie speaks to an audience of his attempts to dodge the obstacles in life, only to "finally succumb and no longer be able to dodge." [12] "Best Interest" features rapper Billy Woods, asks "blunt questions," and incorporates a distorted, artifacted violin in its instrumental. [7] [12] It is followed by "Double Trio 2", the sequel to the duo's 2023 debut single, "Double Trio". Like its predecessor, Corey's production features elements of jazz, incorporating "bright, squelching, backpack-era horns" on top of "dense, needle-quaking percussion," and was compared to Ben Frost. [3] [8] The track's saxophone, performed by Patrick Shiroishi, is the only live instrument on the album. [5] Beats Per Minute described the track as expressionist and chaotic, and Tom Breihan of Stereogum described it as "buzz-drone." [12] [14] Lyrically, critics described the track as a struggle to move on from grief, continuing the themes of the first "Double Trio". [3] [12] [14] The track also interpolates "Bye Storm" from By the Time I Get to Phoenix, and samples the first "Double Trio". [5] "And I Dance", the album's penultimate track, is a "clattering and emotional club meditation" that finds RiTchie celebrating that he has made it to "the other side." [10] [15] Beats Per Minute compared the track to Kanye West, and called the song an "epic spiritual hymn that embraces religious imagery while embracing the beauty of life." [12] Pitchfork compared Corey's production on "And I Dance" to Arca. [10] My Ghosts Go Ghost concludes with "GGG", on which RiTchie is trying to "summon ghosts of the dead" to no avail. [8] In the song's final verse, RiTchie is "dodging [his] shadows to trying to cast more," questioning whether or not he should "light candles," checking the doorhandles and his basement, not knowing if he did "it" wrong. [12] Beats Per Minute described it as a "séance [that] becomes the struggle with life... and, ultimately, with mourning." [12] In an interview with Anthony Fantano of The Needle Drop, RiTchie reflected on the song's themes of shedding your past:
The last song [is] talking about "okay, I don't need my past, I can move on from this," whether people want to say it's grief, or even it's certain things that have been attached to you for a while, and you're kind of trying to shed it off. It's like, "I don't need that," so it's the idea of trying to move on from it. And then [your past] being like "Alright, bet," and then you realize, "Oh shit, that was important to my development." That's kind of the idea of it, when the character realized that the ghost is quite literally gone... And now he's looking for the ghost... You can perceive how you want to perceive it, but the idea was about the general "ghost," it wasn't a particular [person]. [5]
The album ends suddenly, mid-chord, with Paste calling it a "symbol of uncertainty more fitting for [By Storm] than any other duo working today." [8]
Release
Following the release of "Double Trio" in August 2023, the duo would not release any new material as By Storm for a year. On December 25, 2024, the duo returned from their year-long silence with a post to their social media accounts, revealing they would release new music in 2025. [16]
On February 25, 2025, the duo announced their first single since 2023, "Zig Zag", and premiered the music video the following day. The single formally released on the 27th across all streaming platforms. [17] On March 8, 2025, the duo performed their first live show as By Storm in Phoenix, Arizona—the first of five live shows that served as the foundation for My Ghosts Go Ghost. [4] [18]
On April 2, 2025, the duo announced their second single, "Double Trio 2", a sequel to their 2023 debut single, "Double Trio". They premiered the music video the following day, and the single arrived on streaming platforms on the 4th. [14] On April 12, 2025, the duo announced another live show in Phoenix; however, they performed with a different setup. [19] At the show, the duo premiered a then-untitled track, which became the opening track, "Can I Have You For Myself?". [20]
On July 2, 2025, the duo premiered the music video to their third single, "In My Town". The single released on streaming platforms the following day. [21] The duo would perform live in New York, London, and Los Angeles between May and October. [22] [23] Before their Los Angeles show in October, the duo confirmed the existence of an album, and announced that it would be their last show before finalizing the album. [24]
On January 7, 2026, the duo announced the "final single" to an eventual debut album, "And I Dance", alongside confirmation that they had signed to deadAir Records on their social media accounts. [25] On January 14, 2026, the duo formally announced My Ghosts Go Ghost on their social media alongside a statement, and premiered the music video for "And I Dance" the following day. [4] The single formally released on the 16th across all streaming platforms.
My Ghosts Go Ghost was released on January 30, 2026, through deadAir Records, with the duo holding a release party in Tokyo, Japan. [26] [27] In the lead-up to its release, a limited edition vinyl pressing of 1,000 copies was released on January 26, 2026. [4] It was followed by a general release vinyl and CD, alongside other merchandise, on February 2nd. [27] [28] On February 4th, the duo announced the MGGG Tour, with dates in the United States, Canada, and Europe. [27] On February 7th, the duo also held an invite-only "special presentation" in Phoenix to celebrate the album's release, with invites being offered to fans through a raffle. [29]
