Ghost Orchids//Biography. 238794//Ghost Orchids/1/A synthetic high-hat keeps pace against a pulsing bass run; a synth refracts above the rhythmic terrain, then submerges beneath a rush of chiming, delayed guitar; vocals appear inside the sound, then fade, leaving echo repeating to infinite. Video warps; sounds speak to one another; the ringing in your ears becomes a language. Dub in a void. 7884786//Ghost Orchids/2/ Ghost Orchids emerged from the sweaty punk shows and dance clubs of San Francisco, as well as from involvement in Sonny Kay's post-VSS tech-dub outfit Subpoena the Past and electro-rock band Nights Over Egypt. The band began in 2000 with the express intentions of invoking the sonic ghosts of 1981-Eno, Jah Wobble, Factory electro-dirge, the echo-mania of King Tubby-against indie rock piety and the faltering glam-rock revival. The resulting music crossed post-punk propulsion with simple, ambient keyboards and hybrid acoustic/electronic percussion. The band in this incarnation toured the West Coast and recorded with Dustin Donaldson (of SF art-wavers I Am Spoonbender) The recording completed in those sessions, entitled "Architecture," was released in October 2001 by Vancouver label Global Symphonic (www.globalsymphonic.com). 865345//Ghost Orchids/3/ The band has continued to develop its distinctive sound, particularly exploring the tension between beat programming and noisy, energetic live performance. The percussion translates beats learned on the dance floor; the keyboard and the bass take turns laying down the sleazy, propulsive loops; echo-delay is less an effect on the angular guitars than a programmatic attempt to create another reality, ghostly and visible, adjacent to our own. The resulting sound unites the tightly wound rhythms of electronic music with the all-out noise of a punk band and the sexual ambiguity of new wave. Moreover, the band has increasingly incorporated elements of visual art into their performance, referencing the video-blitz of early Cabaret Voltaire and the sexy, abstract mindfuck of contemporary digital video art. 8972348//Ghost Orchids/4/ Ghost Orchids toured the West Coast in November 2001 with to support the release of their CD on Global Symphonic. They have in the last year played with such internationally renowned bands as The Locust, Radio Berlin, Suicide, Pleasure Forever, Vue, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, I am Spoonbender, Adult., and The Faint, as well as San Francisco's Noise Pop Festival. Summer plans include a dance 12" on Global Symphonic, and an East Coast tour. The band currently includes Julian Myers, on synthesizer, vocals, and bass; Bonnie Pipkin on synthesizer, and vocals; Christian Beaujean on electronic percussion; Ian Zasweta on guitar and beat-programming; and Christopher Golden on digital video. 3873387//Ghost Orchids/5/ Polyrrhyza Lindenii: Extremely rare orchid native to the Caribbean, whose white flower blooms only once a year. 345//62456TransmissionCOMplete. GHostOrchids/ NEXT TRANSMISSION |