A swirling fire of new Cool Ghouls!

As the last days of summer fall off the calendar, California – as is custom – has fallen under a great wave of wildfire. We peek over our sunglasses at the looming forest, swept asunder by nature’s fury. We cast our glance to the city; and indeed, the Mission is engulfed in flames. We close our eyes, and lo! Projected onto our meager hungry brains, it is A Swirling Fire Burning Through the Rye, the brand new LP from SF’s Cool Ghouls!

Cool Ghouls A Swirling Fire Burning Through The Rye Cover

We, you, and I have been waiting a good many months for the boys to pull through with another foot-stomping, tension-melting, inner-eye blinking masterpiece, and it has finally arrived, mixed, re-mixed, mixed again, mastered and ready to find purpose, glistening on your turntable. This new album, recorded by the notorious Sonny Smith and mixed by Mikey Young (Total Control, Eddy Current Suppression Ring), delivers on all the expected levels, and then some. The songwriting has matured, the harmonies have grown tighter, and the songs are imbued with a new sense of sonic adventure. Infectious and utterly compelling, A Swirling Fire will lay waste to mere saplings of the post-digital age. This is real rock and roll!!! Available 11/11 (wish day) on limited (300 copies) deluxe swirling fire-colored vinyl from Empty Cellar and on cassette from Burger Records.  Pre-order yours here.  And… if you still have doubts, check out lead single “The Mile”, which debuted over at Noisey (Vice):

…and the follow-up “And It Grows” over at Brooklyn Vegan:

…and the follow-up to the follow-up “What A Dream I had” over at Wondering Sound:

“On “The Mile,” the first single from A Swirling Fire Burning Through The Rye, the SF band touch on classic 60s rock like The Byrds, CSNY, and more, astonishing their way through multi-part harmonies on the Sonny Smith-recorded (Sonny & the Sunsets), Mikey-Young-mixed (Total Control, ECSR) track.” — Noisey (Vice)

Release date: November 11th (Pre-order here)

Tracklist:
1. And It Grows
2. The Mile
3. What A Dream I Had
4. Orange Light
5. Insight
6. Get A Feelin’
7. Across The River
8. Reelin’
9. New Moon
10. Sweet rain

Praise For Cool Ghouls:

“The San Francisco-based quartet blends psychedelic and upbeat into their rhythms and vocals to produce a sound that’s wholly unique. And we love them for it.” — FILTER

“Their Tim Cohen-produced self-titled presents a group who has contributed to San Francisco’s indie rock fabric where the exhaled chord rhythms of yesterday ghost through the great tomorrow that never knows” — Impose Magazine

“Perfectly lo-fi without being a caricature, you can picture how well this song will go over as you look around and actually see green grass.” — KCRW

“Cool Ghouls’ eponymous album hit all the right buttons for spring around here, laying wide open and loose with the kind of breezy pop gems that feel good year after year.” — Raven Sings The Blues

“It is uncontrived and unapologetically filled with joy in the most refreshing way.” — The Bay Bridged


New EP by Pat Thomas (of Cool Ghouls), Coasters Riding In The Air

Pat Thomas Album Art

Introducing one quarter of San Francisco’s Cool Ghouls, Pat Thomas! He’s the tall lanky dude who plays the bass. He also writes one third of the Ghouls’ songs.

The Cool Ghouls have made a name for themselves. Their soulful tunes and energetic live set have earned the band back-to-back slots with toast of the coast acts like Sonny and the Sunsets, Thee Oh Sees, The Fresh and Onlys, Mikal Cronin, Fuzz, Magic Trick, Shannon and the Clams etc. etc. etc., and they have no plans to slow their role. Less than a year since Cool Ghouls released their self-titled debut with Empty Cellar and Burger Records – and with a new full-length album already in the can – one might guess that the Ghouls have their hands full. But, like label-mate and fellow San Franciscan, Tim Cohen, Pat has more songs than any one band is prepared to handle.

So as the Ghouls keep on truckin’, Thomas offers us batches of well-marinated solo material, Coasters Riding in the Air. They are infectious all-around-rad takes on classic California psych-rock; and once they are here in the world with us, they’re free to go and do what they please. He wants to keep the songs flowing; to convey another corner of the zesty musical realm that he and Cool Ghouls inhabit; but mostly, because he records ‘em and he’d like to share ‘em. This is a very good thing.

Coasters Riding in the Air will see a limited label-only release on November 26 (worldwide December 3) as a digital download via Empty Cellar and in cassette format from Burger Records. Today, you can listen to his superb track “Not Right Now”, premiered over at Prefix Mag.

“a swaggering and shimmering carefree organic rock dripping with the blithe California sunshine.” – Prefix Mag