Ghost Bath – The Super Spooky Exclusive Toilet ov Hell Interview
I do this genuinely. I want to learn something. Dig deeper. Probe. What I got from this particular interview was, to say the least . . . mystifying.
CT-12 started going on about Ghost Bath last year when their 2014 opus Funeral started making waves within the community. My first listen aroused a feeling akin to waking up and finding out you’re drowning, except you see Saint Peter donning a beard and corpsepaint.
So, you claim you blast other DSBM bands. Abyssic Hate is what you slit your wrists to. Well, Ghost Bath might not be for you. Conversely, it may be just the thing you’re looking for. If you combined Deafheaven with Lustre, then threw in some Asian flair, you’d get some kind of amalgam of Ghost Bath. They manage to seamlessly embody a somewhat traditional USBM instrumentation, a unique Euro-DSBM vocalization, and a hint of the Far East. It’s a band that is one part joyous, one part moribund, and one part frightening.
On this reeking shitheap we call the internet, there have been rumors circulating about the origin of the band. On this subject, I will say this one thing: I was instructed by 无名(Nameless) that any questions regarding culture or nationality would not be answered. He was true to what he said. Sadly, many of the questions I had prepared revolved around this; I believed it was important. I will let you decide for yourselves what this really means. I give zero fucks about their trve origins, so long as what I hear makes my heart die, melt, and incinerate in a hopeless conflagration.
This is the unedited version of our conversation:
BB: The term “ghost bath” refers to death by submersion in a body of water. It sounds almost peaceful. Is this how the members of Ghost Bath would prefer to end themselves?
Nameless: The death “drive” as humans is something that enjoys showing its face throughout our lives. The stress of life; the need for food, shelter, and water; social acceptance; and the constant pain of both our physical body and mental state is a constant force. To some, these daily stresses are nothing but an annoyance and to others it brings a great deal of agony.
Beyond our instincts to survive, exists this death drive -the Thanatos- a low moaning that fills the background of our daily motions. It strives only for peace -for sleep. What could ultimately destroy the perpetual discomfort of life itself? A return to the inanimate state. A journey back to the lifeless matter we once were made of. Death brings this final peace. And in death, the woes of the living are no longer an issue. We are nothing and everything once again.
BB: Funeral took the DSBM scene by storm last year, and Moonlover is looking to continue this trend. We’ve heard “Golden Number.” The release date is drawing nigh, what can we expect to differ in this highly-anticipated album?
Funeral explored the notion of dying. The act itself. It asked the questions of what the process consists of and how this, in return, affects those who go through it (which is everybody at one point or another). It takes the view of both the dying and the surviving.
Moonlover is a piece much more connected to life in the reality that we all occupy. An envy of those with courage enough to brave the cold stare of death. For we are too cowardly to attempt such release. So here we stand, stranded on the Earth. And while we walk through the grave sites of those who have gone, the governing celestial body that is the moon smiles down, lighting the way. Moonlover is an obsession with isolation, the darkness, the night.
BB: I would pay an insane amount of money for a Ghost Bath vinyl. These do not currently exist. Is there any hope for vinyl pressings of Funeral or Moonlover? More shirts or clothing?
Many have asked us this question. If it were up to us, we would press both on vinyl. Currently there is no plan set in stone for either, though the topic has been brought up to both Pest and Northern Silence. If any plans develop, a post on one of our pages will inform those who are interested. Shirts are in the same boat.
BB: In many Asian cultures, the professional mourner has become a norm at funerals for people who feel that our generation no longer properly weeps for the dead. Is there an intentional relationship to this phenomena in Ghost Bath’s theme and tone?
No.
Funeral (2014)
BB: In Funeral, you used a portion of painting by John Everett Millais called “Ophelia.” With Moonlover, you’ve chosen a piece called “La Luna” by Luis González Palma. Why did these works connect with Ghost Bath’s music?
The best art is found by accident. Both of these pieces were discovered and stumbled upon. The moment they were uncovered, it was known they would be the covers. An unexplainable feeling. Possibly the same attachment/emotion described as “love at first sight.” Luis Gonzalez Palma gave us written permission as long as we sent him a copy for his son. Hopefully he enjoys the album.
BB: “Am I Dead Yet?” was a leitmotif in Funeral. Well, you’re obviously not dead yet. Will Moonlover ask the same questions? Has it answered any?
In short, no. Funeral was an album drenched in the idea of death, while Moonlover is a torturous state of stagnation on the earth. The album was written as an earthly endeavor. The sounds and scapes should be a longing sensation for something more.
BB: Is there any likelihood in a tour of North America supporting Moonlover?
A tour is currently up in the air. But it would be a lie to say we are not preparing for something of the sort.
BB: I know Ghost Bath want to retain a bit of anonymity but, before we go, maybe you can give us a little piece of information that no one else knows.
Ghost Bath, the entity, continues to work extremely hard for the next album is already underway. We have seen death. We have explored the melancholic and the mundane that exists on our planet. But what of the state beyond our consciousness? What of the beings that exist beyond our comprehension? What of those who inhabit our dreams, who seize our thoughts, and who soar above the heavens?
We will soon learn.
–无名 (Nameless)
So, there you go. Did we learn anything new? I have no fucking idea. The only thing that really matters is that Ghost Bath continue making brilliant albums. Their second full-length, Moonlover (NSFW album art), will be released March 13th on Northern Silence. You can now stream two of the tracks from their bandcamp.
I’d like to thank whoever it was I actually talked to for the opportunity, and I eagerly await the new album (we’ll go ahead and put it on my top 10 of 2015).
Ghost Bath on Bandcamp | Ghost Bath on Facebook | Northern Silence
