It’s probably a good thing that
Apollo Ghosts aren’t more famous, or else they would make all the other bands feel bad about themselves. They consistently put on some of the best live shows I’ve ever seen, which they achieve with a simple three-piece lineup and a no-frills approach that relies on nothing other than high energy and good songs.
Last year, they released an album plus and EP, and are currently gearing up for their second LP,
Mount Benson, due out April 10. In the meantime, they have a released a split 7″ with fellow Vancouver outfit
Role Mach.
Apollo Ghosts’ contribution to the single is “Library Card Amulet,” a shimmering rocker that’s equal parts fuzz and jangle. Bassist Jay Oliver eschews his usual instrument in favour of a guitar, something that gives the song a more textured sound that the band usually attempts. Wrapping up in a countrified breakdown, it’s one of the highlights in the band’s already-impressive studio output, and bodes well for next month’s
Mount Benson.
I recently caught up with frontman Adrian Teacher, who shed some light on how “Library Card Amulet” came together.
CH: Where was the song recorded?
AT: This song was recorded at
JC/DC Studios in Vancouver with Dave Carswell. I can’t remember if John was there or not, although I remember him commenting on the final mix. We recorded it in a couple of hours before our
Shonen Knife show on October 25th. Instruments recorded live off the floor to tape, vocals overdubbed right after that.
CH: Why did you decide to go bass-less on this song?
AT: In the initial demo, I didn’t have bass on the song, I had two guitar parts. Jay and I used to play a lot of guitar together, so we thought it would be a fun change. We might do more of that in the future.
CH: Will this song appear on your upcoming Mount Benson LP?
AT: No, it was a special 7″ project for
Geographing so it won’t appear on the
Mount Benson LP, which will come out in April. Rather than talk about our upcoming record, I’d like to share a quote about the actual mountain (located in Nanaimo, BC), written by Frank W. Teague for
Victoria’s Daily Colonist Sunday Magazine in 1913:
An Expedition up Mt. Benson.
By Frank W. Teague.
The traveller when approaching a town or city, the surroundings of which are familiar to him, is almost invariably able to tell his whereabouts long before he reaches the place by some distinguishing landmark that comes to view as he proceeds on his way, for every community more or less the world over, has its well known crag or peak or glacier, its shaggy forest or rocky headland, its shining lake or ever rolling river.
MP3: “Library Card Amulet” 
