Staff writer Jill-Courtney Cote sat down with some of Maine’s finest, the Ghost of Paul Revere
Like a small town beauty queen who makes it to the big screen, The Ghost of Paul Revere is band which has defied odds to rise to the top. Emerging from a local music scene that has produced only a few nationally acclaimed acts in as many decades, in just three years The Ghost of Paul Revere has been able to pull together a well-respected freshman album and dozens of honest, much-celebrated raw and participatory live performances of a quality seldom seen by newbies, even those raised in a thriving music scene which readily produces hit-makers, far away from their home state of Maine. Musicianship, lyrical quality and onstage coherence have been the band’s calling card from their initial days on Portland’s music scene, playing local brew pubs and churches. After a few performances, crowds began to swell, testing the barriers of the picturesque waterfront breweries and demand for the band allowed pulled them across the state and out of it, allowing for a successful tour and a fan-funded album produced in a Portland studio. In the age of indie, residing in a city which holds fast to hipster culture one isn’t likely to expect the most acclaimed local band to be comprised of childhood friends raised rurally, playing unplugged, belting gorgeous gospel tinted harmonies, as they deliver timeless New England stories of farming, fishing, whiskey and love, without a drop of pretense. The ghost’s performances are just as flawless and engaging in local record stores and impromptu cemetery jam sessions as they are when viewed in a large Bowery-owned venue. The jovial and open on-stage back and forth between childhood friends on stage and the honest, relatable lyrics melting over ancestral port pub instrumentation pulls the crowd into a familiarity running deep in the blood of coastal residents.
I wanted to know what the band thought about the roots of their successes and the quality of their performances and musical endeavors, which include a best sell-local album called “Believe”, and band mates who are members of an exclusive club of performers in Maine doing well enough to qut their day jobs. I caught up with the members of the Ghost of Paul Revere, Max Davis, Sean McCarthy, and Griffin Sherry, and Matt Young mid New England tour to ask them about their fan base and the comparisons made between some of the most successful folk and blue grass bands which seem to be waning , at least within pop culture. Griffin Sherry provided some insight into that and much more.
Jill – You’re a relatively young band, you’ve achieved some tremendous things in a short amount of time. You have a well-respected album and airtight performances. What’s factored into your success?
The Ghost of Paul Revere – I believe we’re all extremely passionate about what we do and passion can be contagious. The four of us are very dedicated to the band, to the music we play, and to each other. I also think our audience really keys in on how genuine every Ghost performance is. Similarly, the album lacks much of the copious bells and whistles of modern production. We recorded Believe live and had very few overdubs. That approach gives music an honesty that’s hard to deny.But, most of all, we’re just out doing something we love and having fun.
J – As you know, the Mumford and Sons genre seems to have peaked and volleyed. There are some who associate your style with theirs. Do you believe the wane in their popularity will affect you?
Ghost – While it’s hard not have a good amount of respect for any band that has had as much success as Mumford & Sons, I don’t see much of ourselves in that. Sure, we both use acoustic instruments and sing songs in harmony, but I can think of more than few bands I look up to that could be described that way. We didn’t start the Ghost because that sound was popular. It certainly won’t stop because of it. We try to take risks with our songwriting and perform with honesty. When people hear that, they gravitate to it. I don’t believe there is anything that could make us than to ignore creativity and perform only to pander to what is popular or quickly lucrative.
J – I’m interested to hear about your fan Demographic in Maine and New England. It seems you’d have larger success in southern states. Have you considered extensive touring or even relocating?
Ghost – Our fan base in the Northeast is incredible. They support wholeheartedly the music we want to make, and come out in force wherever we are playing. While I’m not sure I’d ever relocate, The Ghost is certainly beginning to play stretches further south and farther away from home. I think its about time we proved ourselves outside the region we all grew up in.
J – Who would you like to share a stage with? What’s your dream tour collaboration?
Ghost – That list is incredibly long, but Tom Waits would most likely top it along with My Morning Jacket and the Punch Brothers.
J – Your performances require so much coherence and harmony on stage, and you deliver on that. That must require a lot of collaboration offstage. Band harmony isn’t always an easy thing to maintain. How do you do it?
Ghost – I have the good fortune of playing music with some of my best friends. Max, Sean, and I have a lot of history. We know how to push each other in right direction. The four of them are the closest thing to brothers I’ve ever known. Of course there are good and bad days, but you can’t expect anything less from people you work and live so closely with.
J – What’s your personal and band definition of success?
Ghost – I want to make music at the same caliber as the music I love. Nothing less. And I want to have a hell of a time doing it.
J – When can we expect another album?
Ghost – Right now, we’re expecting to go back into the studio sometime in early 2015. I will say that, though Believe has been going very strong here in Maine since January, I think that it has a lot more left in it as we start traveling more and more. It seems people expect music faster and faster these days so perhaps we will do something a little smaller before our next full length. We certainly are hard at work on lots of new material.
You can see Ghost of Paul Revere live throughtout the summer. I full listing of tour dates can be found at http://www.ghostofpaulrevere.com/. Their album “Believe” is available at Bull Moose Records, Amazon.com, through their website, and streamable on Spotify.
