“It Was Fun, So It’s On The Album”

Inside the making of ‘All Manners Of Manors’, an eclectic collection of songs that talk to the absurdity of the COVID-19 lockdown experience by James Gledhill, 22 August 2020.

As the COVID-19 lockdown took hold of the world, we all reached around for anything that could occupy our time and help give our stalled lives a little burst of purpose. Some of us turned to baking, others turned to hoarding toilet paper but the boys behind Ghost Bumps turned to music.

Housemates Gabe Strachan, Tim Palstra, and Max Karklins, who also make up three quarters of Purr Usual, saw the increased time together at home as an opportunity to experiment with musical ideas that sat outside of their typical leanings.

The project started back in March when Gabe came forward with the idea for ‘Company Dog’. Having set up a studio in their garage, Gabe, Tim and Max went about the process of recording and producing the track themselves. Once the process was in place, the ideas started flowing.

The initial goal was to release a song a week through the lockdown period. This style of release meant that any idea, no matter how wacky, could be seen through and the songs brought to the table need not adhere to a certain style. After the initial release of 4 songs through Bandcamp, and more ideas than they knew what to do with, the Ghost Bumps boys made the decision to pursue something grander - a studio album. This meant that they took a more considered approach to the recording and production process and went as far as remixing and remastering the original four songs.

The motivation behind this album was not only to produce a collection of songs tied to the band’s time living together, but also to hone the process of producing an album from start to finish. Taking this spirit of experimentation one step further, Gabe, Tim and Max, also endeavoured to write their songs on instruments more foreign to them individually, which naturally formed the foundation for some of the more novel musical ideas that shine through.

The other unusual part of the process for the band was that live performance did not need to play a part in the construction of the album’s songs. In fact, I was assured, the majority of the album’s songs indeed have not been performed by the three band mates from start to finish making this a very studio focused album and something that perhaps accurately captures the distance felt throughout the isolation period.

What came out of this is process is an album that takes us from the kitchen sink to the wildest of wests while never slowing enough for us to jump offboard. All Manner of Manors is the culmination of a band embracing the small moments of chaos that have dogged us all in 2020. In doing so Ghost Bumps have produced a listening experience that peaks with silliness and grounds itself in astute observations about the isolated state of mind.

Welcome Home

“What exactly is Ghost Bumps?”

The intro to ‘All manner of Manors’ is Ghost Bumps’ way of including their friends and family, all isolated in their homes, in the project as well as a nod to the mystery surrounding the album. Without any context, close friends and family were asked to send in voice recordings of themselves saying “ghost bumps” in any manner they liked and that’s what we hear in response to the question “what exactly is Ghost Bumps?”. The audio for the question itself came from Monique Sebire from Out On The Patio on RRR in an interview with Gabe discussing Purr Usual, Live at Mont Bagel and the very first stages of the Ghost Bumps project.

What Manner of Manor is this?

“Survive this and you’ll be good to go for the rest of the album.”

‘What Manner of Manor is this?’ is the only improvised song on the album and it’s an absolute jam. The lyrical ideas that inspired both this track and indeed the album’s title, stem from long isolation strolls around the band’s rental in Kew and looking at all the ridiculous and not so ridiculous manors in which people live. Throughout the lockdown experience, I have certainly developed a different kind of relationship with my own home so when the vocals kick in and Tim asks us to “look at your stupid house, and ask yourself, what manner of manor is this?”, I cannot help but look around and wonder how I got here.

The song is at its strangest when Tim, also playing the drums on this track, deep dives into lyrical improvisation, namely mentioning pesto in the fridge that I am told does not exist. It is at its strongest however, in moments when the production shines through lifting it from garage jam to studio jam. It is a perfect introduction into the bizarrely mundane and as I was assured, “Survive this and you’ll be good to go for the rest of the album.”

Company Dog

Slowing down provided the opportunity to go about recording in a “no pressure situation”.

‘Company dog’ was the starting point for Ghost Bumps. The idea for the song came from Gabe’s time working in call centres and realising that the day to day, 9 to 5, lifestyle may just not be for him. Although the song’s genesis came long before isolation took hold it wasn’t attached to any existing projects, so the great slowing down provided the opportunity to go about recording it in a “no pressure situation” which in turn led to the creation of this album.

The first release of this song back in march, had much more of a “saloon vibe”. The version we now find ourselves with is, however, a little more understated with strong guitar riffs interspersed in a pseudo-blues rhythm. The chorus swells with the introduction of a synth and then we are left with Gabe’s voice confirming for us that he “can never be a company dog”.

Dish Pig

A fun, upbeat, love letter to dish washers everywhere.

Whilst Gabe may not be a company dog, Tim is a dish pig. It is at this point that we are introduced to the whackier side of the album that features “zany, cartoony” characters that help to explore the more mundane elements of isolation life. The origin of dish pig is pretty straight forward in that Tim came up with it at the sink while doing the dishes and looking at the concrete cast of a piggybank that sits on their kitchen bench.

The track is a fun, upbeat, love letter to dish washers everywhere that goes as far as sampling various dishes and utensils clanking together to help build an immersive experience. I am told that many of the lyrical ideas stem from inside jokes within the household, but I am certain that all of us can find some humour, and perhaps some truth, when the song takes a darker turn by exploring Tim’s fear of a dish washer taking away his ability to care for his friends.

The Lobster

“It’s a song about not knowing what to say until you leave.”

‘Sitcom Rock’ is a new genre coined by Max, Tim and Gabe to describe their intentions for The Lobster. The song, like all great sit coms, focuses on two key themes, love and friendship and goes on to question the choices we make because of them.

The song’s title and indeed some of it’s more obscure lyrics draw inspiration from conversations Max has had with the people closest to him. “It’s a song about not knowing what to say until you leave.” Underlying the poppy tune lies moments that speak to reflection and some of the bittersweet moments in relationships.

This is also the first song on the album to feature Sebastian White (Graphic Designer, Musician, Creative Director of Iso-Laid Festival and long time friend of the band) on the drums, who was the only man that could be trusted to help define a new musical genre. However true to the themes of this album, there were difficulties to overcome as Sebi lives in “one of those far away suburbs”. As such the recording of the drums was done in his home whilst the rest of the song was recorded in the Ghost Bumps Manor. Sebi also flexed his design chops in creating the cover art for the album.

Little Man

The song speaks to the heightened relationships we have with our minds in this isolation period.

If the opening few songs might be grouped as some kind of rich man’s menagerie, then with Little Man we turn into part 2 of the album: introspection alley. Where most of us have a voice or inner monologue that guides us through our days, some minds, like Tim’s, do not work that way. The Little Man is a take on that inner monologue or lack thereof that we all experience and in a broader sense the song speaks to the heightened relationships we have with our minds in this isolation period.

Perhaps not as obvious as with Dish Pig, but Little Man is another product of Tim’s kitchen singing and this song is a great example of how throughout the project many of the ideas explored are followed through for what they are rather than abstracted into more clichéd representations.

Stylistically, Little Man sits in a more comfortable pop rock space than many of its album compadres, but it has a sense of scale that catches the attention from the opening few beats through to the hooky choruses.

Spacesuit

“It’s a bit of a shitty situation but we can make it work.”

“I don’t mind just being at home” Says Gabe. “It’s a bit of a shitty situation but we can make it work”. And that idea became the launching point for Spacesuit. There is a sense of wistful boredom in Gabe’s voice as his mind wanders off into the ridiculousness of someone wearing a spacesuit as they while away their time at home.

Spacesuit was the last of the four songs put out before Max, Tim and Gabe decided that they wanted to pursue putting together a full album, acting as a turning point that gave the band the confidence to produce something they could be proud of. As much as anything, it was the success with the production on the track that inspired them to take on the project and as such much of the album’s production was informed by Spacesuit.

Streamin’

If you listen hard enough you may just be able to pick up a sample of the house’s trusty milo tin in place of a real set of congas.

“Streamin’” is probably the album’s most relatable song from a lyrical perspective. It explores the modern-day obsession, or better yet addiction, to our screens and it does it with a funky drive. Musically, it is most similar to “What Manner of Manor is this?”, with a hooky chorus that sticks in your head for hours. According to the band, “Streamin’” kicks off the B-side, as we head from a daytime feel into a darker setting

It was the last song to come together and shows off the recoding and production skills that Max, Tim and Gabe had been developing throughout this whole project. If you listen hard enough you may just be able to pick up a sample of the house’s trusty milo tin in place of a real set of congas.

Guns, Whisky and Salooney Tunes

“It was fun, so it’s on the album”.

It’s at this point on the album that we’re introduced to some more of that salooney vibe. In an unsurprisingly unconventional turn of events, the title of ‘Guns, Whisky and Salooney Tunes’ came before any of the song itself with Gabe interested in exploring a certain musical vibe. One of the intentions was to create a more visual song with a clear time and place in mind and in doing so, the boys have created a very specific genre piece.

The track is a great example of how some songs on this album speak to the specifics of lockdown life while others represent the whacky places our minds wander to when given the time to see creative ideas through. “It was fun, so it’s on the album”. This tune really speaks to the fact that this album was about doing the songs that Gabe, Tim and Max never ordinarily got to do, and it’s the product of the collaborative process that allows such silliness to be taken seriously.

Tank Bruce

“There’s a bit of Tank Bruce in all of us.”

No one can be sure where Tank Bruce came from, perhaps he fell from the sky to give humanity salvation, perhaps he was raised by wolves in the foothills of Idaho or maybe Tim’s phone autocorrected the words ‘Thanks Bruv’ to Tank Bruce. We may never really know. What we do know is that Tank Bruce’s operatic entrance to society is as much fun to listen to as it was to make.

The idea for the song came to Tim ‘from a weird state of mind on a crazy old day’ and from there the components quickly fell into place. The song takes the salooney vibe to a whole new place with a range of samples that both heighten the drama in Tank’s tale and point to the silliness of the whole song. Easily the longest track on the album, Tank Bruce takes us on a journey that takes some darker twists and builds to a big finish. “There’s a bit of Tank Bruce in all of us”.

Sorry Pete

A small moment that speaks to the larger difficulties we have all faced in isolation.

Less spaghetti western opera and more straight up pop-rock, Sorry Pete pulls us back from the gunslinging world of Mr Bruce to the more grounded circumstances of our 2020 lockdown. Although who exactly Pete is and why Tim and Sebastian are so sorry might elude the average listener, I am assured it was a small moment that speaks to the larger difficulties we have all faced in isolation.

The chorus features the album’s most sing-a-long inducing moment with us all happy to admit that “isolation has been messing with our heads”, while Sebi White (The Sebastian in question) joins in again on the drums.

Bintang Bali

I’m not sure Tourism Bali will pick up the right’s.

A hot favourite for silliest song on the album, Bintang Bali is a jovial homage to the Bali bogan. It may surprise listeners, or perhaps the most knowledgeable among us can recognise the genius hidden behind the knockoff Ray Bans, but Bintang Bali proved the most difficult song on the album to get right.

The song’s conception happened in the typical Ghost Bumps manner of taking a silly idea and converting it to song format as quickly as possible although unlike many of it’s album counterparts, the song has had a few life cycles and is the only song that was performed live in the pre-COVID era. I’m not sure Tourism Bali will pick up the right’s but it will hold it’s own on any true blue getaway playlist.

Retro Reality

The cyclical nature of the song reflects the repetitive nature of lockdown.

After a quick trip to Bali we are back in the throes of the Melbourne lockdown with 'Retro Reality'. The cyclical nature of the song reflects the repetitive nature of lockdown, but thankfully it expresses this through a poppy chorus and some sharp lyrics.

Initially, the album was to be released much earlier with a far quicker turnaround time. But then Gabe wrote Retro Reality, which acted as a turning point in the project as it slowed down the production process. The band then decided to slow the whole project down to ensure that they were giving each song the attention it needed to shine.

Potatoes and Onions

From the craziest of peaks we’re left with the bittersweet notion that whatever manor we may be in, at the end of the day, “it’s only me”.

‘Potatoes and Onions’ was an exercise in subtlety, something not largely present until now. Written by Max and Tim, well past midnight in a quieter moment, the intention was to write a beautiful and genuine song. To capture the intimacy, it was recorded live as a voice memo on Max’s iPhone making it one up the only songs to have been played from start to finish in the recording process.

From the craziest of peaks we’re left with the bittersweet notion that whatever manor we may be in, at the end of the day, “it’s only me”.

If you’d like to get in touch please email max@hegelsbagels.com.au