www.facebook.com/noghostATL
From: Atlanta, GA
Sounds like: Alternative Metal
1. How did you get started with music and how did you develop your sound? Who thought of the name “No Ghost" and is there any meaning behind it?
No Ghost originally started back in the summer of 2013 in a suburb outside of Atlanta, Georgia with myself (Jake, the vocalist) and our guitarist and bassist. Things were innocent enough as in the beginning this was just as boring of a band as any, we were just some kids playing in a garage with dreams of small victories like playing warped tour, or getting signed to label X or Y. Within that first year we had lineup changes I won't delve too far into but eventually we settled on a four piece that comprised itself entirely on creating a new type of sound among Alternative metal and the metalcore community. Nu was on the full uptick and My Ticket Home was one of everyone's favorite recent records along with us all having a large love for the great bands that ravaged the 90's and early 2000's (and in some cases still tour today), we knew that what we wanted to do wasn't going to be some chug chug cookie cutter fresh from the bowels of a songwriter type of release, so we planned ahead and always tried to make No Ghost about something much more than just being another band with the word "ghost" in it. Originally, the name stemmed form the bandsfirst practice spot which was actually legitimately haunted by the spirit of a dead soldier from the civil war era. Doors would slam, or open unexpectedly and as if they were pushed or kicked open in disgust. We did not stay at that location long but we did develop the name "No Ghost" after a night of hi-jinks and slight terror from our old friend on Troupe Smith rd. in Conyers Georgia. if you want to get technical, The vocalist (myself), and the bassist were both saying no ghost at the same tie, and the name stuck!
2. What do you want people to take away from your music?
If I could have honest listeners take away one thing from No Ghost it would be that there is so much more to come, what you hear on Animate: Void is a collection of memories and pain felt amongst our first real test in the waters of being a real band with potential. We butted heads with our writers, nearly called it quits midway through studio cycle because of how little it felt like we were going to ever be able to put this album out properly, and most of all when you are at such a young age (19-21) life is hitting you with every pent up emotion so incredibly quickly that it can be hard to focus on the eventual success that requires the hard work to bridge the gap. We love all people involved in the making of this Record, but it was no picnic and it was a two year process that killed multiple cars, strained our relationships with our families at times and even made us lose sight of who we always wanted to be for a while. All of that is behind us, but the story truly should be known to anyone who is Brave enough to give a new Metal band a listen.
3. How would you describe your sound to the average listener?
It can be difficult to accurately capture what the sound of No Ghost is on our debut record, but if I had to summarize it into something logical it come off as "An explosive, riff covered Alternative band with extremely dynamic vocals throughout, going from the heaviest end of some listeners spectrum's to some of the most emotional metal to come from a young band in the metal scene in quite some time. We have always strived to be a wave of refreshingly new heavy music, for kids and adults to enjoy and help get through their day with.
4. Who are three bands you’d like to tour with?
Realistically there are many answers about who we would all love to tour with, but from who we've gotten to share the stage with already (Silent Planet, Cover Your Tracks, Earth Groans, Hail The Sun, Ghost Key, Dayseeker) We would be open to just about any act that can put out dynamic performances! Whether that would be a younger band like a Northlane, Polaris, Cane Hill etc or an older one like an Underoath or another larger scale band. We are more than happy to play with anyone who can bring a room together and let us open the night up with an electric, unrelenting assault of crisp Alternative Metal music that we believe our music community would love to hear.
5. What are your three desert island albums that you'd never get tired of listening to?
Oh man, this is hard because I get really picky sometimes, but If I'm speaking for myself I would have to choose one Underoath record, and that would probably be Lost In The Sound Of Separation, I'd have to pick a Deftones Record and that would more than likely come down to White Pony or Koi No Yokan, and for the third choice, I'll keep myself from going too insane with a nice Circa Survive record, Blue Sky Noise or Juturna depending on the limitedness of the island! Hahah.
6. What’s your take on the current state of Metal?
Depending on what you're listening to there are a few ways to answer that question. If you're talking metalcore, I'd say its in some pretty dire straits, labels are pushing the same bands from 5-10 years ago and expecting bigger results, which is in turn creating less and less viable new heavy music form these bands, all the while it is pretty apparent that whoever these writers are, they're forcing bands to go into a simplistic formula which on paper may seem like prevents room for error but truly all that it is doing is generating an emptiness among modern metalcore bands and making them all blend in together more and more everyday, which as both a listener and artist is pretty gross, and not in the good way.
7. What’s the current music scene like there in Georgia both locally and state wide?
On a local level, like most states the scene is flooded with bands, some talented and some not. Slowly over the past few years it has systematically died down as many of the bands that were considered to be at the top either went poaching for more personal talent to add to their bands and taking down others, and other larger bands among Georgia simply haven't been able to amass the funds, time, or drive necessary to promote and be a new interesting band that listeners can grab ahold of. That being said, we certainly get a lot of good shows and tour packages coming through here and if you can maintain a contact at our major venues (The Masquerade, The Tabernacle, Cloud Springs Deli) then you have a shot at playing a show with 100+ kids and adults in the room on any given night.
8. What’s your take on legal/illegal music downloading?
Personally, I really think that music being flooded through all forms of distribution INCLUDING leak sites are the way to go. People are going to download music and if they really want to support the artist then they will, it is up to us as artists and musicians to understand the fluid market that is modern music in the 21st century. Simply put, if you don't know how to market, don't know how to make your band have it's own place on the internet for people to find it and know that they can talk to you or ask questions about things then you have fallen far behind as a young band. Our worlds communication is vastly changing all the time, and the more that people see that you cannot try to fight that or turn back the clock to a time where bands got 20 grand at a minimum to go and record an album the better.
9. What’s next for No Ghost?
Next up on our list of things to do, besides keeping ourselves incredibly busy promoting and busting this album down every rabbit hole imaginable, is to put out TWO Ep's this year. We've started on brand new material and have found a great direction to go in with our talents and from the small amount of people who have heard new material we think we're headed where we need to go. Our second EP will consist of basically B sides from the Animate: Void sessions that include songs that were either too heavy or just didn't have a proper place among the album. Both I'm sure will be available for Free download AND stream and of course for purchase if you so choose to keep No Ghost in your thoughts.
10. Any shoutouts?
Shoot, there are many names but I'd like to thank Lee Rouse and Josh Landry for sitting in the smoke covered rooms all day and night with us in both Senoia Georgia and Glow In The Dark Studios, helping coming up with dope new kinds of alternative music that we are extremely proud to call our own today. I'd also like to thank Chris Davis for always allowing us a spot to practice in and helping us stay sane through our interesting journey that's lead us to here so far, and although I know I'm going to think of people I need to tag here, those three were probably the most essential to our come up. And of course, shoutout to you for having us on for the interview Mike, It's been a pleasure.
