This week on Pump Up The Jam, we’ve got Ghost, Cold Cave, Belle Ghoul & much more.
The flock of the faithful has been rewarded! Sweden’s Ghost are touring North America again and they have a new EP. Popestar features five tracks, one of which is a brand-new song called “Square Hammer.” Watch the video below, directed by Zev Deans (responsible for the band’s “From the Pinnacle to the Pit” video as well as this terrifying Portal video).
There has been a lot of chatter amongst Ghost fans about the fact that there are only four Nameless Ghouls in the video instead of five. Looks like Omega is missing, but rumors of his replacement run rampant.
Popestar also includes several terrific covers (would you expect anything less from Ghost?) of Echo and the Bunnymen, Simian Mobile Disco, The Eurythmics, and Imperiet. If you haven’t yet purchased their most recent album Meliora, you can get it now in a deluxe version that also includes the Popestar EP.
Popestar U.S. Tour Dates
September 23 – Memphis, TN – Minglewood Hall
September 27 – Tulsa, OK – Brady Theater
September 28 – St. Louis, MO – The Pageant
September 30 – Kansas City, MO – Arvest Bank at Midland Theatre
October 1 – Madison, WI – Sonic Boom Festival
October 2 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
October 3 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore
October 4 – Kalamazoo, MI – Kalamazoo State Theatre
October 5 – Cedar Rapids, IA – Paramount Theatre
October 7 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theatre
October 8 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
October 9 – Missoula, MT – The Wilma Theatre
October 11 – Calgary, AB – MacEwan Hall
October 13 – Vancouver, BC – The Vogue Theater
October 14 – Seattle, WA – The Moore Theater
October 15 – Eugene, OR – McDonald Theater
October 16 – Portland, OR – The Rosalind Theater
October 18 – Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
October 20 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
October 21 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
October 22 – Las Vegas, NV – The Brooklyn Bowl
October 25 – Phoenix, AZ – Comerica Theatre
October 27 – Lubbock, TX – City Bank Auditorium
October 28 – San Antonio, TX – The Aztec Theater
October 31 – Little Rock, AR – Metroplex
November 2 – Orlando, FL – The Hard Rock
November 3 – Miami Beach, FL – Fillmore Miami Beach
November 4 – Jacksonville, FL – The Florida Theatre
November 5 – Charlotte, NC – The Fillmore
November 7 Raleigh, NC – The Ritz
November 9 – Toronto, ON – Queen Elizabeth Theatre
November 11 – Montreal, QC – Metropolis
November 12 – Brooklyn, NY – Kings Theatre
If you prefer Goth to Ghost, break out the black lipstick because there’s a new Cold Cave single! The band (a.k.a. Wesley Eisold) released a 7” on September 9 featuring two tracks, “The Idea Of Love” and “Rue The Day.”
The release was limited to 500 copies and is already sold out, but keep your eyes peeled for a future singles comp from Cold Cave such as their previous one, Full Cold Moon.
Also new is “Lion’s Den,” the latest track from the upcoming Marching Church album Telling It Like It Is. It displays singer Elias Bender Rønnenfelt stretching his vocals into a falsetto and it’s both surprising and appealing. Earlier this year, fellow Danish post-punk band Lower disbanded, so it’s good to hear that two of their members (Kristian Emdal and Anton Rothstein) are forging ahead with Marching Church.
Vallens has yet another new video out, this one from the title track to her compelling and gorgeous Consent album. There’s something about it that reminds me of early ‘80s videos which is always a good thing.
Detroit’s Belle Ghoul (featuring Tait Nucleus of Electric Six and Jesse Smith (Patti and Fred’s daughter) released a covers EP a few years back and multidisciplinary artist Autumn Luciano has conceived a lovely video for one of the covers, The Zombies’ “Care of Cell 44.”
The latest single from A Shoreline Dream’s upcoming album has also been released. “Whirlwind” is just more evidence that I need to hear this full album when it is available. It sounds totally retro but utterly fresh, a rare and wonderful combination.
This week’s #FlashbackFriday is Echo and the Bunnymen’s “Nocturnal Me,” from their 1984 album Ocean Rain. This one goes out to all you fans of Ghost and Stranger Things (the song was featured over the closing credits of one of the episodes of the Netflix series and is also covered on Ghost’s Popestar EP).
Love Ghost.