15 tracks, 52 minutes. Ghostly and resplendent album of 15 battle anthems for the indefatigable, and sadistic theme songs for the bloodthirsty pursuers of us all in this cruel world.

The Paper Chase's signature sounds (strangled guitars, bombastic percussion, terror-stricken strings, bizarre samples and crashing pianos) are firmly in place on their latest endeavour, Now You Are One of Us. Here, the Dallas quartet creates the sonic equivalent to George A. Romero's classic zombie films, in which one and all inevitably become one of them.

Songwriter/singer/producer John Congleton examines the way fear can be utilized as an instrument of control, even as it spreads like a plague across the land. Possessed by fear of pacification, domestication and ultimate dissolve, the characters in the songs struggle to retain their identity. Layers of trepidation are aurally peeled away and scrutinized while a looming unknown lies just below the surface. Beyond the fear of death, is the characters' dreadful realization that perhaps they never even existed. The sound of ghostly forces opening and closing squeaky doors becomes eerily significant, and Congleton's trademark desperation is at its most crucial as he exclaims, "We will show this cruel world we were here."

Despite the disturbed poltergeists that are its room mates, The Paper Chase sound right at home in their self-wrought haunted house. Over the album's seamless course, the band not only offer battle anthems for those who won't go down without a fight, but also the sadistic theme songs of their bloodthirsty attackers. Another histrionic epic is rendered, but we wouldn't expect anything less from Congleton and his crew.