Spring has allegedly sprung here in the UK but with the snows in Scotland and rain everywhere else it’s a little hard to believe it. What we need is some music to give us a little bit of happiness and I think I’ve found the cure with Lonesome Ghost.
Coming from Dallas, Texas (where the weather at the moment is a damn site better than it is here), Lonesome Ghost is made up of four teenagers: Tanner Robertson (guitar, vocals), Byron Mitchell (drums), Austin Gregg (bass), and Matt Callison (guitar, vocals). The guys cut their teeth in various bands playing shows, house parties, battle of the bands competitions and garage discos before getting together in the spring of 2010 (hmm, spring last year and we’re talking about them spring this year – nice coincidence).
They cite their influences as bands like The Beach Boys and Toro Y Moi and anything that’s happy. Their EP, “None of These Songs are About You or Anyone You Know” is their first release and these influences shine through. Recorded at Busy Box studios, the home studio of Stephen Hudson, it’s a warm, beautiful, yet assured debut and isn’t half bad for a band yet to tour!
The first song, “Golden Cage” starts us off and sets the tone for the rest of the EP with wistful vocals floating over a lovely little guitar and drum arrangement. “My Dear” with its simple snare backing builds into a gorgeous, dreamy number whilst “I Was Only Trying To” has a sound full of maturity that belies the youth of the band. The final offering, “Love is a Dream” is just over 3 minutes of pop perfection that had me whistling along and leaves us on a high.
I listened to this in the car driving on the M25 (one of our most dreadful motorways) in the pouring rain and I can tell you that it certainly added a bit of sunshine to my journey. Hopefully it won’t be long until their first full length album, but in the meantime dust off your shades, plug in your iPod and enjoy.
