Dripping tanks and iPhone apps. How we (sometimes) make records.
So…the new EP – ‘Golden And Green’ is with you April 17th. iTunes and the like seem to want to call it a single as it has three tracks, not more. But it’s three songs we want to offer you, not one. They’re ALL singles! :)
It’s been a while in the making, and while just the three songs for now, a lot of stuff has happened to us that’s informed the new tracks. We are gagging to record more that are in the works right now, so we won’t leave it a year before the next. But, life and stuff happens.
Let’s tell you a bit about the songs and our strung-out nature of making them.
‘Golden And Green’ developed from an electronic drum percussion part; Rich and I sat in front of the desk at The Crypt in Leeds, our home-from-home, last autumn and started messing with some handy iPhone apps, channeling Giorgio Moroder. Which we then used to layer up the bare bones of the track. Fast forward a few curries later and we hand it off to Meme up in Gateshead, who comes up with the vocal and the lyrical idea – the idea of pushing through strife and a shout-out for better times; it’s also about decay and growth, about duality and balance. Both Kingman Cheng’s lovely video for the track and Anna Berry’s EP cover artwork reflect (and develop) the idea – we hope you like! Personally – I think the best thing about it is the whirly-tube sound on the chorus – the ones you used to whizz round your head back in the day. :)
‘The Needle I Thread’... in the time since the last record, Meme has had a little girl, Scarlett. A beauty, and already a better singer than me. In true Ghosty style, Meme put a spin on the mother/daughter relationship, and wrote a lyric that, TimBurton-style, comes from a baby’s perspective on the dependency in that relationship. Also, I love Meme’s cello lines in this tune…
‘Null Hymn’…our first collab with The Little Unsaid – a total wizard. Recorded in his loft, and if you listen carefully you can hear his water tank dripping at inopportune moments. It’s a Meme/John Elliott (for he is said Little Unsaid) duet. John’s lyric was inspired by seeing a TV debate on climate change; apocalyptic visions aside, it’s a personal record also about what happens when communication breaks down. No more about that – I’ll post his lovely lyric and you can make of it what you will.
So there’s a lot to deal with in three tracks. It’s pretty much where we’re at – and like you I expect, deals with highs, lows and an acceptance of that as….okay, actually. Meme is fond of the idea that it’s good to be realistic and optimistic, and I think that’s what’s actually come through on this record.
So, roll on the EP release date and launch show at The Ort in Birmingham. We’re sticking the download version of the record out as ‘Pay-What-You-Can’ on Bandcamp because…why not? CDs will be as cheap as we can make them. Then there’s the usual digital outlets. I’ll post links.
We hope to meet you, in all our glam-rock finery and expanded line-up, (with added Rich Huxley and Mariya Brachkova awesomeness) at one of the live dates in April and May, and we’ll help you stave off election drudgery.
Love & thanks for your support
Tim xo