Dirty Ghosts Sign to Last Gang for Aesop Rock-Produced Debut

BY Gregory AdamsPublished Dec 13, 2011

Last Gang Records tends to focus on Cancon talent (Metric, Mother Mother, Ohbijou), so despite her San Francisco zip code, Dirty Ghosts vocalist Allyson Baker's Toronto upbringing places her firmly within the label's homegrown roster.

The project's Last Gang debut, Metal Moon, is due out February 21, and according to the press release, it fuses '60s blues and psych rock with "a more modernist, mechanized sheen," while Baker's vocals showcase both "streetwise attitude and affecting vulnerability."

Formed in 2006 by Baker and fellow Toronto expat Carson Binks, the latter exited the band earlier this year. When it came time for Baker to record Metal Moon, with Aesop Rock adding beats and acting as co-producer, the musician had reworked some of their existing songs completely. The record reportedly boasts everything from minimalist electro ("Steamboat to Concord") to arena-ready rock riffs ("19 in '71"). You can stream the funky, dub-infused first single "Shout It In" below.

While Baker cut her teeth in punk groups on both sides of the border, her new experimental vision relies less on six-strings than previous work.

"I play so much less guitar now -- to me, this is not guitar music," she said of Metal Moon in a statement. "I'm thinking more about songs, and not volume and attack. That's part of being young, but then you get older and you're like, 'I want to write a song 
that's catchy and that people will enjoy.'"

Metal Moon:

1. "Ropes That Way"

2. "Shout It In"

3. "Surround The Controls"

4. "Battle Slang"

5. "No Video"

6. "Katana Rock"

7. "19 in '71"

8. "Steamboat to Concord"

9. "Pretty Face"

10. "Beast Size"

Dirty Ghosts - Shout It In by Last Gang Entertainment

Latest Coverage