You know what our culture needs more of? It needs more folks working in various disciplines concurrently. I think that the famous-guy overkill hasn’t quite reached its apex, but we’re getting ever closer. It might be unfair to levy that all on Ryan Gossling and Zach Shields (whoever that dude is). Neither guy seems to be a douche and (at least one) does some decent work in film and the like. Even the conceptual stuff that bolsters the band – Dead Man’s Bones – comes off as thoughtful. There’re a spate of rules that the two set for themselves that include caveats about recording and playing instruments. At points these tenets serve the group well – others not so much. But that’s the point. The duo, accompanied by the Silverlake Conservatory Children’s Choir for much of the album, wants to work independently. And apart from taking up with Anti-, they’ve succeeded.

A video released by the group from a few months back, “Name in Stone,” is noticeably absent from the band’s first self titled album. And unfortunately, with all the effort and dedication that folks have spilt into the group, nothing here is almost as good. Reaching a high point on some internet-released video might come off as bizarre, but it’s not for lack of creativity. “Name in Stone” just worked a bit better, and eschewed the ‘50s camp of the group’s first album. That’s not to say that the video, set in a graveyard and sporting folks dressed up as ghouls didn’t possesses that Ed Wood quality.

There’re still campfire styled ghoul songs on the album, though – in fact that’s pretty much all there is. So it’s confusing as to why the album doesn’t work as well. But this all reaches back to the tenets that the Gossling and Shields set up for themselves. Playing their own instruments – however many are called for – shouldn’t have readied the album for mediocrity, but it kinda did. “Name in Stone” works mostly due to the fact that the song is pretty much just a guitar and vocals. By contrast, the album is made up of a series of tracks that utilize keyboards, a spate of percussion and even some out of place programming (“In the Room Where You Sleep”).

But in assessing the music here, Gossling and Shields should receive their due deference based solely on the fact that they pulled it all off. Of course each – ok maybe only Gossling – having showbiz ties probably didn’t hurt, ‘cause, seriously, this probably would have been a low profile deal if the group included some people that no one ever heard of.

Regardless of that, Dead Man’s Bones is an extension of the actor’s creativity. It might not be the best conceived and executed disc of the year, but it has ambiance in spades. Ghouls agree, sometimes that’s all one needs. This here is proof. And if this all sounds remotely interesting to you, it probably is: all echoes, choruses and creepy stories. Ideal for the upcoming season.