"Is There a Ghost" is the first single taken from Band of Horses' second album Cease to Begin, released on August 28, 2007.

According to the student newspaper The Reflector, "A simple finger-picked melody morphs into a strum-and-drum tour de force; there are layers of guitars, but not too much distortion.

[1] In general Cease to Begin has a more Southern rock, less indie sound than Band of Horses' debut album Everything All the Time.

An article in The Scotsman singled out "Is There a Ghost" as one of the main reasons that Band of Horses have received significant international attention,[4] however one reviewer disliked the "polished" sound of Cease to Begin, saying that, "In the switch from low to high fidelity, Band of Horses sacrifices a good deal of angst and quality.

"[5] Others were more enthusiastic, with one reviewer claiming, "'Is There A Ghost' is the catchiest song with only 14 words to its credit since Pearl Jam's 'Smile'.