Austin, Tex.-based guitar-drum duo The Ghost Wolves perform everything with a wink, but this is no novelty act. Carley and Jonny Wolf — an onstage force of nature and offstage couple — neither depend on nor eschew modernity. Their aesthetic feels culled from some bygone era, but when? The rockabilly ‘50s? The punk ‘70s? Or are is this stripped-down but fully-electrified pair a hint of what the future holds?
Their new single, “Getchya Hip Thrust,” comes with a B-side — and what a Bb-side it is. The fuzzy, grinding “Black Crow” features Irish DJ/artist/rock royal BP Fallon. Fallon, along with working in words and photography, was a publicist for Thin Lizzy and T. Rex. He’s toured with Zeppelin, U2 and The Kills and recorded a 7-inch on Jack White’s Third Man Records.
Listen here:
Fallon’s delivery on “The Crow” is spoken word more than sung vocal. His voice just slightly registers an Irish accent and his tone, warmer and more amused than a snarl, is a fitting companion to Carley’s girlish vocal. Johnny sings too, while a tambourine snaps and the guitar growls. It’s dark and just menacing enough, but also playful. The Ghost Wolves rock like pros, without taking themselves too seriously.
The single itself is no slouch of a song. “Getchya Hip Thrust” is the Ghost Wolves at their finest. Bodacious garage rock with a sneer of slide over guitar strings, kick drum thick and angry, and Carley’s almost-cutesy-were-she-not-such-a-badass vocal: all pout and spit and bite. I don’t even know what it means to get one’s hip thrust, but the Ghost Wolves sell it. (Pre-order the limited edition single here.)
You can learn more about the Ghost Wolves here and here, and watch a video interview with the band below. Or get your own hip thrust when the band makes its way back to Asheville next week for a Thursday, Sept. 27, 10 p.m. show at The Get Down.
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