Fresh off the back of their recent EP If You Have Ghost, Swedish band Ghost have been enjoying some time off before another hectic touring and recording schedule in 2014 – which includes a stop in Australia for Big Day Out.
One of the band’s freakily masked ‘nameless ghouls’ was putting his feet up and enjoying the well-earned break.
“I’m enjoying some time off at the moment. It’s winter here, so we’re looking forward to the Australian summer.”
For a band with members still gowned in anonymity, the ‘nameless ghoul’ was as forthcoming as he could be in regards to his identity. “I play guitar. If you like you can refer to me as ‘fire’,” he explained.
The Big Day Out appearance will have the band lining up alongside a diverse range of genres in the music world. The ‘ghoul’ is looking forward to seeing some of the acts he perhaps wouldn’t normally have access to.
“I know that traditionally, before Soundwave Festival, the Big Day Out was more rock oriented. This festival, I think the bands like Primus, Mudhoney, Vista Chino, and Pearl Jam will be cool, and from a personal point of view, I’m very glad the Deftones are playing, who are some personal friends of ours.”
“As soon as we’re not cloaked up, most people don’t react to us”After recently playing at the 2013 Soundwave Festival, the band are no strangers to Australian shores. They hope the organisers spare a thought for the heavily cloaked Swedes when it comes to the timetable scheduling.
“Luckily we played most of the shows [at Soundwave] in tents. It’s never optimal being in hot weather, obviously it gets very warm, but we’re use to it. Hopefully this time we’ll play a later spot, though I think we’re playing in tents at all the shows.”
With such anonymity comes freedom. Soundwave, like many other festivals involving the Ghost clan, provided the band members ample opportunity to move around in a veil of obscurity.
“As soon as we’re not cloaked up, most people don’t react to us, so we can move freely. At Soundwave we had a lot of fun. There were many of the bands we knew on the bill. We hung out with Anthrax and Loaded, but there were so many great bands playing at the festival. It was a very familiar vibe,” the ghoul divulged.
Whilst some audience members have described a Ghost gig as an almost religious experience – albeit a satanic one – the band are all about entertainment first and foremost.
“At the end of the day it’s entertainment, but that doesn’t exclude an element of seriousness to the subject we are singing about or the theme that we bring forth. I think sometimes it can get confusing with a lot of extreme metal bands, where their stuff is more for the higher purpose, but at the end of the day we are just a medium for entertainment or for pleasure.”
Ghost developed an almost overnight cult following after several high profile musicians promoted the band, namely James Hetfield (Metallica), Phil Anselmo (Down and Pantera), and more recently, Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters).
“It’s an honour. We’re in our 30s – most of us – and back in 1991 the biggest bands on the planet were Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, Nirvana, and Pantera. Having people from all those bands advocating for our band now is a tremendous feeling. When you’re sitting there and you have some sort of personal relationship now you don’t really think about it that way, but when people ask about it, it’s like whoa…that shit is amazing,” the Ghoul said.
“…at the end of the day we are just a medium for entertainment or for pleasure”If You Have Ghost has the band covering some interesting and odd choices of songs, with the likes of Abba and Depeche Mode receiving the Ghost treatment.
“For a long time we discussed a lot of different songs. Every time we hear something that we can ‘Papa-fy’, we definitely try it. We haven’t refrained from metal – it’s just that, frankly, we just feel that there is really nothing that would be fun to cover and we would have nothing to add in playing a Demon song or a Merciful Fate song or all that stuff that people associate with us. Whereas if we bring out a Leonard Cohen song, for example, we hopefully bring out something that you’ve never heard before.”
The aforementioned Grohl produced and played drums on the EP as well as some guitar parts. However, this ghoul was quite coy about the prospect of a Grohl appearance at the Big Day Out, adding, “Well, he’ll be cloaked up so you won’t see him”.
Ghost won’t be resting on their laurels following the Big Day Out tour, either. Despite the release of two albums and an EP in their short time as a group, the band are intent on recording following their busy touring schedule in 2014.
“Until August we’re playing the circuit and festivals, and we’re going to stay on the road for most of the first [half] of the year. We’re basically doing another lap around the world starting in Australia, then a European run, American, European festivals, and on top of that, somewhere in between return to South America. We’ll return to the studio and record our third album thereafter,” he emphatically dictated.
Call it entertainment, call it devil-worshipping rock theatre, call it a pop, rock, metal amalgamation – regardless of how you choose to describe them, when Ghost comes to town, it is one show you do not want to miss.
If You Have Ghost is out now through Spinefarm/Carolina
Ghost Big Day Out 2014 Sideshows
WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22 – MELBOURNE, THE HIFI (18+)
Tickets available from www.thehifi.com.au or 1300 843 443
TUESDAY JANUARY 28 – SYDNEY, THE HIFI (Lic/AA)
Tickets available from www.thehifi.com.au or 1300 843 443
Big Day Out 2014 Dates, Tickets
View Timetables and Maps here.
Friday 17th January ~ Western Springs, Auckland*
Sunday 19th January ~ Metricon Stadium & Carrara Parklands, Gold Coast
Friday 24th January ~ Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne
Sunday 26th January ~ Sydney Showgrounds, Sydney
Friday 31st January ~ Bonython Park, Adelaide**
Sunday 2nd February ~ Claremont Showgrounds, Perth**
*For New Zealand Big Day Out 2014 lineup and ticketing details, please refer to www.bigdayout.com and choose AUCKLAND
**Subject to council approval
Tickets and info at www.bigdayout.com
