13ghosts, of Birmingham, Alabama, is now 4 piece, with Brad Armstrong at the helm on lead vocals and guitar, Sammy Boggan on bass, A. Vernon as multi-instrumentalist, and Jason Lucia on drums.
13ghosts has, as a band, endured a good deal: the early loss of a founding member, multiple line-up changes, and having a record (Cicada, their third) pulled because of copyright problems. Their last offering, The Strangest Colored Lights, was released in 2008, and then they took a little break.
Brad Armstrong briefly joined the Dexateens and spent some time touring the countryside; Jason Lucia played drums for FisherGreen; the others rattled around their day jobs.
Then the Dexateens decided they also needed a little rest, and Armstrong gathered the ‘ghosts back together to make their fifth record: Liar’s Melody.
It’s a “where are they now” record, and judging by the music, where they are now is a pretty good place. The songs are alternately aggressive – the first song, Water, Rise, starts with what I can only call a buzz-saw of a bluesy riff – sweet, and filthily reflective, but they are all thrumming with life.
I am particularly fond of the delicate finger picking and complicated poetry of the title track, and of I Was Happy, the song which provided the title of this post. It’s a extended reflection on the gradual awareness of no longer being miserable or, perhaps more accurately, of having learned to accept and enjoy happiness. It’s wry and funny and lovely, and all y’all should listen to it.
At this time Liar’s Melody is only available digitally from This Is American Music, though a limited run of cds will be released in the near future. You can keep up with the ghosts via the TIAM tumblr.
Meanwhile, here they are with “Born to Rock n’ Roll”:
