{"product_id":"animal-races","title":"Animal Races","description":"\u003cp\u003eIt's impossible to separate \u003cstrong\u003eCool Ghouls\u003c\/strong\u003e from their adopted hometown. Whether playing dollar dice games and shooting pool or stepping out for a walk through the Californian hills, this is a band who swapped their young lives in stripmall suburbia to settle in the Shaky City of their electric heroes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe place where \u003cstrong\u003eGram Parsons'\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem\u003eFlying Burrito Brothers\u003c\/em\u003e unwittingly inspired lesser-known followers of the Cosmic American gospel to commit readings to tape, \u003cstrong\u003eCool Ghouls\u003c\/strong\u003e slot right in the city's rich musical lineage. Pat M, with \u003cstrong\u003ePat Thomas\u003c\/strong\u003e (bass \/ vocals), \u003cstrong\u003eRyan Wong\u003c\/strong\u003e (guitar \/ vocals), and \u003cstrong\u003eAlex Fleshman\u003c\/strong\u003e (drums), made their own celestial pilgrimage to their place of worship and have established themselves as one of the city's brightest young bands playing, against the backdrop of a chaotic big city, a laid-back psych-rock sound for the here and now.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThose who fell for the raw, primitive sound of the band's 2014 album \u003cem\u003e'A Swirling Fire Burning Through the Rye'\u003c\/em\u003e recorded with local hero \u003cstrong\u003eTim Cohen\u003c\/strong\u003e of \u003cem\u003eThe Fresh and Onlys\u003c\/em\u003e, will be pleasantly surprised by the Ghouls' latest evolution in sound. This time recorded with melodic maestro \u003cstrong\u003eKelley Stoltz\u003c\/strong\u003e in his backyard Electric Duck studio, the album was mixed and mastered by \u003cstrong\u003eMikey Young\u003c\/strong\u003e (\u003cem\u003eTotal Control\u003c\/em\u003e \/ \u003cem\u003eEddy Current Suppression Ring\u003c\/em\u003e), and features full-colour artwork by \u003cstrong\u003eShannon Shaw\u003c\/strong\u003e of \u003cem\u003eShannon and The Clams\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"Animal Races\"\u003c\/em\u003e is the harvest of work we created between last year's tours, working in bars, record stores and coffee shops,\" says \u003cstrong\u003ePat M\u003c\/strong\u003e. \"We chose the title because the song's lyrics are a broad characterization of society. So any track on the album, whether it be about love, personal growth, death or whatever, takes place in the setting of the 'animal races'\".\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCommenting just as much on the individual's place in society as the San Francisco community itself, the theories of 'self-actualization' and 'anima' by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung about achieving individual potential pervade \u003cem\u003e'If I Can't Be The Man'\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003e'Material Love'\u003c\/em\u003e. Whether time-hopping from the summer of love on \u003cem\u003e'Sunrise'\u003c\/em\u003e or channelling the freewheeling feeling of \u003cem\u003eThe Grateful Dead\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eCanned Heat\u003c\/em\u003e through loud guitars, acid riffs, party screams, and stacked-as-fuck three-part vocal harmonies, each of \u003cem\u003eAnimal Races\u003c\/em\u003e' 11 tracks bring the four-piece's electrifying live performances to life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e'Time Capsule'\u003c\/em\u003e is about exactly this, explains \u003cstrong\u003ePat T\u003c\/strong\u003e; \"when you replay a recorded track, that little chunk of time is brought into the current moment. This is especially true of a recording of a live performance. \u003cem\u003e'Time Capsule'\u003c\/em\u003e was designed to open the door for improvisation and is the encapsulation of just one version of this song, each version specific to the one time we play it. It's going to change a lot as we play it over the years.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor a band who, just like society and the world itself, is constantly evolving, \u003cstrong\u003eCool Ghouls\u003c\/strong\u003e are the perfect antidote for San Francisco's current state of mind, providing the real-life soundtrack whilst not letting the city's culture be burned to the ground. LP - 180 Gram Electric Blue Vinyl with Download. CD - In Gatefold Wallet.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Melodic","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50471125811531,"sku":"403373","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/c1530d3b-c1ed-4b03-985d-5a49bfd6f7ae_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727392178","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/products\/animal-races","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}