Ghosts of the Past

Description

Ghosts of the Past is a double disc compilation by the American indie rock band Starflyer 59, released on Tooth & Nail Records in July 2009. The compilation features 31 tracks of covers, B-sides, demos, and non-album versions of songs. All Music Guide states that “for the uninitiated, this odds-and-sods collection also does well as an introduction to the low-gloss, sleepily atmospheric new wave that Jason Martin has been doing so well since the mid-’90s.”

Starflyer 59’s released the two-disc collection Ghosts of the Past this week. These 100 minutes serve as a victory lap and an anniversary celebration, collecting all of the non-album tracks from the last five years. But it’s not just an odds-and-sods compilation, bringing together as it does all of the A- and B-sides from last year’s Ghosts of the Future 7-inch series.

Ghosts of the Future was a 10-record set recorded and released during the run-up to Starflyer’s 11th album, Dial M. The A-sides were demo versions of the 10 songs that appeared on that album, while the B-sides were all exclusive new tunes and covers. The 20 tunes are arranged in order, each B-side following its A-side, so it’s like listening to the box set in sequence. The whole thing is an ‘80s-inspired festival of reverbed guitar and wondrous melodies.

The demos are stripped-down, of course, but they sound complete to my ears, and some of these arrangements beat out the more colorful ones on Dial M. Ghosts of the Past kicks off with «Automatic», here just bass, drums and violin, and the bare-bones arrangement adds immeasurable atmosphere. The focus is on Martin’s low-key, low-register voice, which sounds as great as ever. «Concentrate» is much less propulsive here, more keyboard-driven, and I think this version is the equal of that on Dial M.

It’s the B-sides, though, that make this an essential purchase. Martin pairs «Minor Keys», which references the Smiths, with a subdued cover of «Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want». He backs «Easy» with «Spooky», a dark and lovely instrumental. The acoustic version of «Mr. Martin» is a lot closer to what made the record, while the electrified version here is revelatory. Martin covers Bread’s «Guitar Man», then teams up with David Bazan for «Broken Arm», a song that makes me want to hear more from this unlikely team-up.

The second disc of Ghosts is more spotty, bringing together B-sides from Starflyer’s three recent EPs. These are definitely second-tier Martin songs, for the most part, although instrumental «White Fog» is a standout. But the three tunes from last year’s Minor Keys EP are terrific – acoustic takes on two Dial M songs, followed by a majestic cover of the Church’s «Under the Milky Way».

The whole thing is rounded off with «Magic», a bonus track from the vinyl version of Dial M. Easily the best thing on disc two, «Magic» probably should have made the album proper, but it ties things up nicely here. “Sometimes the magic works, sometimes it don’t,” Martin sings, over a breezy acoustic strum and a galloping drum beat. The magic works far more often than it doesn’t on Ghosts of the Past – it’s not only a collection of missing pieces for the Starflyer fan, it’s a fine overview of where Martin’s been over the past half-decade. If this is your first Starflyer 59 album, you’ll want to hear more. What else can you ask for? [Andre Salles, Tuesday Morning 3 a.m., August 2009]

> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/ghosts-of-the-past/714624119)

2CD tracklist:

Disc One

1-01. Automatic – 3:53
1-02. Compulsion – 3:46
1-03. Concentrate – 3:10
1-04. Pearl of Great Price (Daniel Brigham Remix) – 4:21
1-05. Minor Keys – 3:27
1-06. Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want – 1:48
1-07. Easy – 2:29
1-08. Spooky – 3:40
1-09. Mr. Martin – 3:24
1-10. Mr. Martin (Acoustic Version) – 3:10
1-11. I Love You Like the Little Bird – 3:47
1-12. Mall Monarchy – 2:55
1-13. M23 – 3:22
1-14. Guitar Man – 3:46
1-15. Black Jacket – 4:03
1-16. Broken Arm – 2:34
1-17. Taxi – 2:41
1-18. Gangs of Riverside – 2:09
1-19. The Brightest of the Head – 3:34
1-20. Altercation – 3:15

Disc Two

2-01. The Man Who Will Lead – 3:05
2-02. Thin As a Needle – 2:42
2-03. The Lucky Ones – 2:12
2-04. For Us – 1:36
2-05. White Fog – 2:21
2-06. Family Line – 2:42
2-07. W.S. 2005 – 2:55
2-08. The Brightest of the Head (Acoustic Version) – 3:34
2-09. I Love You Like the Little Bird (Acoustic Version) – 4:20
2-10. Under the Milky Way – 4:32
2-11. Magic – 3:55

---