The promise of a few beers and some hang time with your best friends is what helped steer Vancouver quartet Dead Ghosts towards putting together their third, and arguably best LP, Love and Death and All the Rest. The peace of mind obtained by renting out a remote barn in Ladner, which allowed the garage rock mainstays to self-record the set in relative isolation, likewise added to the experience. That said, Dead Ghosts are pretty up front about how the space isn't entirely ideal.
"It's not insulated, it's freezing cold, and there's rat shit everywhere, but we can play as loud as we want," singer-guitarist Bryan Nicol explains with a laugh as the band, bundled in flannels ahead of a bone-chilling jam, sits down with Westender for a drink at Main Street Brewery.
"There's nothing you can do, you're in a barn. You just give it a good sweep once every couple of months," guitarist Andrew Wilkinson adds of the rural rodent mess they cope with. "There were actually mice living in my monitors, which is really scary when you're turning a knob and a mouse pops right out of the front."
Despite the odd in-studio fright – it's also peppered into the talk that the converted space also houses swooping owls and a questionable fellow in an adjoining shack colourfully likened to a "weird hick serial killer from True Detective" – there's plenty of good spirits surging through Dead Ghosts' latest.
Hopped-and-bopped numbers like "Rat Race" and "Waste My Time" are tangled up in reverb, oldies rock melodies and slopped-but-sublime rhythms, assuring the unit's rightful place on playlists alongside the likes of the Everly Brothers, any of the off-the-radar obscurities found on the Back From the Grave series, or the modern day raucousness of the Black Lips.
While Dead Ghosts – which also includes drummer Michael Wilkinson and bassist Maurizio “Moe” Chiumento – have spooked up self-recorded offerings in the past, they took their time with Love and Death and All the Rest. Though in the grand scheme of things, the band haven't made any drastic changes to their vintage sound, the last six months have seen them exploring their sonic options. This includes slathering smooth backup "woohs" on nervous janglers like "It's Up to You," to going the mind-bending route with an acid-dappled and backwards-masked guitar solo on "All in a Row."
"When you think about when you record a record, most people will go in for a seven day-straight binge – just get in and get out. We were writing the songs at the same time we were recording them," guitarist Wilkinson says of the advantage of the relaxed schedule. "It gives you the freedom to get a little screwy."
Thematically, Nichol notes that the record's "Drink It Dry" references a warped European trip in which the quartet and Italian garage crew Movie Star Junkies got wild off a round of extreme drinks in Torino. As noted in song, even a sip will make you "lose your mind."
"They took us to this shaman-like guy that made these illegal drinks that made you hallucinate," he elaborates while flipping through countless blurry iPhone photos of a glowing-eyed barkeep. "We had two of them: one was called Tamango and one was called Mystero. It came in a little dixie cup."
Chiumento likened the experience to drinking paint thinner and getting a giggle-less high, while Nichol confessed it made him puke by the time they wandered over to an outdoor rave. "It literally hurt every square inch of your body. I got a song out of it, at least."
While Dead Ghosts have traveled throughout Europe and North America, their current schedule just has them playing Victoria and a record release party at Vancouver's Cobalt on Nov. 28. Eight years in, though, the act doesn't so much care where they are, so long as it's a place where they can jam together.
"The day we practice is the day I look forward to the most," Nichol beams as he looks around a table full of buddies. "I'm going to drink some beers and play music with my friends. That's so rad! I don't even give a shit about the weekend."
Dead Ghosts
Vancouver psych-rockers celebrate the release of their new album Love And Death And All The Rest, with special guests The Shivas, And Strange Things at The Cobalt on Saturday, Nov. 28. Doors at 8pm, tickets $10 at Red Cat, Zulu, and TicketWeb.ca
