ghosthaus
Let’s take a trip down memory lane real quick.
This is Shoobies- a band I spoke to almost a year ago as the beginnings of the lockdown started. When I talked to frontman, Casey Marley, it sounded like things were going well, and it definitely looked like it too considering they had just reached a crazy, big achievement when their song, “Peachy,” hit one million streams (this song just recently reached TWO million streams on Spotify). From the outside looking in, it seemed like things were going the way every new band could only hope for, but in the back of Casey’s mind, there was an entirely new direction he was wanting to take his music. It is not just a one-man show, but he had his mind set on something Shoobies unfortunately could never become.
Over the last year, Shoobies has been transitioning into a new sound, look, and headspace about their music. As the post-pandemic world approached, Casey and the boys knew it was time to launch their new project, but not without some new faces. Casey and Beef were original members of Shoobies, and now with the addition of Dylan on bass and Brandon on guitar, their band, ghosthaus, came to life.
Photo credit - @dentonschmidtphoto (Left to Right: Brandon, Casey, Beef, Dylan)
But why change your sound and vision when everything with Shoobies was going perfectly? Casey went on to explain,
“Our music has changed so much because we are still new to music, and at the beginning, we were also heavily influenced by our surroundings. ...... We got to a point where we stopped taking ourselves so seriously and wanting to be a ‘brand,’ and just focused on writing music we liked.”
But it wasn’t until the start of the pandemic that he was truly able to dial in on the sound he wanted- no outside influences, no following trends, just bringing the sounds from his head to life.
In the early days, they had other people produce their music, but it was always a struggle trying to transfer their ideas and sounds to someone else. Even though they had the utmost respect for their producers and friends, Casey took it upon himself to instead teach himself how to produce his own music. This was a huge turning point for their music, because now they had complete control of their sound. This allowed for ghosthaus to have a type of autonomy that some bands only dream of.
This can be a pretty daunting task though, especially when you are teaching yourself. I sure as hell wouldn’t even know where to begin with producing and engineering my own music! But Casey’s creativity and the support from his bandmates gave him the opportunity to experiment with new methods and sounds that were completely foreign to him. It is complex work though- everyone knows that you must try over and over again till something eventually comes from it.
Starting as a joke, learning how to “sidechain compression” (WHATEVER THE F THAT IS), and watching the movie, “Jennifer’s Body,” is how their debut single, “Skins,” came to life. Casey went in depth about what the song is all about below.
Even though their music has stylistically taken an entirely different route, they still brought two songs forward due to the pure amount of love they got. It’s also a way for the guys to pay their respects to fans and help them not to forget where they started- “Peachy” was one of those songs. It was the first song that really stood out from the other Shoobie songs and showed the band beginning to venture out into a different direction. Sometimes artist can become stagnant with their music, and they turn into a nostalgia band that has one or two great records then falls off. A great band that I referenced during our conversation was Bring Me The Horizon- looking at where they started and the music they play now shows how much they have changed, but also, how great of artists they are. What separates good artists from great artists is their ability to evolve; it’s the same with life- we change and grow every day that passes, and your life experiences mold you into who you are.
In this instance, Casey refused stagnation, and instead allowed his experience with Shoobies to help mold the creation of ghosthaus and their new sound. Casey hopes to continue to write music that he loves rather than just writing music to please everyone else. Him and his mates are growing as young musicians and look forward to a successful career.
“The best artists are the most adaptive.”
What is the new writing process like? Being your own producer must take a lot of time as you’re experimenting, sampling, writing, and then repeating the process over again. Is being locked up all day the right way to do it? Will you get your best work done that way? Hear what Casey has to say about the importance of sunlight and your mental health.
So, what’s next for ghosthaus?? What kind of content are the guys creating these days? They have released two fantastic singles in 2021 so far, but we hope this is just the start of an exciting year for them! Casey and the boys have used the pandemic to get as much music ready as possible, and I’m not going to spoil anything they’ve got planned, but for those who have been following them, you know they have a new album dropping this year- GET HYPED!
It looks like there is a light at the end of the tunnel as far as the pandemic goes; we can only hope we will soon be singing and dancing at music venues filled with people from front to back! Ghosthaus is beyond ready to start playing shows again and taking their house on wheels on a tour. The band has all of the components to become one of the biggest bands that has come out of New Jersey. They have set the bar high with their first two singles and look to shake things up even more with their new album.
Casey has definitely become one of the homies, and I look forward to seeing him do great things with his music. In just a few short years, he has done more than a lot of musicians do in ten. So much talent with such a bright future.
I wish you and the boys all the best. Keep bringing the tunes, and I’ll keep sharing!
Cheers
- Stephen
