What is your name?
My artist name is Ghostly Beard. My real name is Patrick Talbot.
I chose the Ghostly Beard moniker because my real name was taken on the internet, so I’ve looked for something evocative around the idea of being invisible. I wanted to use “Ghostly Bear” but it was also mostly taken. But I do have a beard… and then I’ve found that intriguing icon that I use as a logo, and I’ve licensed it immediately because I loved that it can be interpreted as a beard, or a ghost, or a mask or anything you want really…
What is your genre of music?
I always have trouble when I put my music on a platform and must choose one genre.
I do all kinds of music. The current EP I’ve just released is classic/prog/soft rock. But the next album will be more fusion/jazz/pop rock. Then the next one will be somewhere in between, let’s say classic rock for short…
Give us a little bio about you.
Here is my “official” short bio:
There is an enigmatic bigfoot-like character that just came out of the woods after 15 years of being lost. He goes by the handle Ghostly Beard, and he’s a visionary artistic entity with a boundlessly creative sweep that encompasses soft rock, jazz, prog-rock, fusion, pop, classic rock, and more.
Ghostly Beard’s kaleidoscopic creativity has garnered him comparisons to such diverse artists as Steely Dan, Pink Floyd, James Taylor, Genesis, XTC, Cat Stevens, Weather Report, Michael Franks and Chicago. He crafts immersive dreamy sonic landscapes that emotionally blur the line between dark catharsis and subtle rays of hope. Now, he lets us into his universe with an eclectic clutch of thoughtfully sequenced EPs and albums.
You are set to release Infinite EP, tell us more about the EP meaning.
The EP has been released now (July 14th) and is available on all major platforms.
The major theme of the EP is a human journey in time to infinity, somewhere between life and death, sounds a bit pompous, but I hope it’s the kind of things I’m obsessed with. I’m not that young and I couldn’t write about first love/first kiss and college parties anymore!
Describe each track in two words
Close Your Eyes: Epic redemption
Frozen in Time: Cryogenic love
No Return: Space death
Limitless: Infinite compassion
Winter Dance: Journey end
What was the writing process like?
I wrote these songs over a period of a couple of years, and refined them along the way. I love working on arrangement/production but I always try to do that on songs that have a strong melodic and harmonic content already. If a song doesn’t have that, it goes to the bin.
What was the recording process like?
I do everything in my home studio. I play all the instruments (apart from drums because I wouldn’t have the space to put a drum kit, but I program them with pads and keyboard).
A few years ago, I bought some good recording gear, and started learning about recording/producing/mixing/mastering (I still do, because it’s an ever-evolving craft). I usually spend at least a month per song, refining the sounds and arrangements until they match closely enough what I have in my head. I do that with a process I call “living with it” – I record a draft and then I listen intently for a few weeks, and little by little I have ideas that start to crystallize, then I find a way to record them in my DAW.
What’s the meaning behind the name?
Like many indie artists, I’m invisible on the grand scale of the music industry. I truly like being in the shadows, not displaying myself as I’m rather old and my face is pretty uninteresting, so I’m really a ghost on the internet. I want the music to be what people know and recognize about me. Nothing else really matters.
What’s the message you want to give listeners?
Close your eyes and listen! My long-time relation with music came from listening to LPs/cassettes and radios mostly. It was before the MTV “revolution” and still find it pretty weird that the number one platform for music discovery is YouTube nowadays. I don’t get today’s obsession with image, and this is also why I don’t display my face anywhere. Personally, I love listening to music with my eyes closed: it’s a fact known by any good audio engineer that you hear things very differently when you close your eyes.
Will we see a tour or any shows this year?
Nope, I don’t gig anymore. I’m too old for that, and since I play all the instruments myself, I would be hard pressed doing concerts and playing drums/bass/keys/guitars/vocals… And I’m not very keen on doing simple guitar + vocals, because honestly, I find that a little bit boring.
What are you most looking forward to this year?
I will release a new album this fall, and it’s going to be quite different from the current EP. I’m working very hard to grow a following with people who dig what I do, and to keep a human connection with them. I do hope that they will be opened enough to give this new album a try.
What else can we expect from you?
After this second album, I have another third one in the pipeline that will contain what I consider some of my best songs, with a style that is a real blend of all the genres and influences that I have.
My plan is to raise awareness with this first EP, intrigue people with the second album, and hopefully have enough of a following to really hit home with the 3rd album. I intend to put all my efforts in promoting this one especially, probably hiring a PR agency to help me with that. This one should be released next Spring. And of course, I continue to write and record in the meantime.
Are you a signed?
Nope, and I have no intention to be. I like the freedom of being indie and putting out my music and present it the way I like. I strongly support indie fellow artists and anyone supporting them as well, including radio hosts, podcasters, bloggers, indie supporters of all kinds, and fans of course!
Who are your influences?
Many bands and artists, from a lot of genres. Right up there would be Peter Gabriel, Michael Franks, Pink Floyd, Steely Dan, Mile Davis, Joni Mitchell, Yes, Weather Report, Frank Zappa, James Taylor, King Crimson, Led Zeppelin, J.S. Bach, Pat Metheny, Magma… that’s only a very short list, but I love all sorts of music and I’ve played in many styles over the years.
Where do you see yourself now in 5 Years?
Still writing music, recording, mixing, also being more involved in the indie world.
When you’re not doing music, what do you do?
I have my own company doing software consulting in a niche market for a Java platform. This is a full-time job already. Then I’m putting a lot of time and efforts in interacting with as many people as possible on social medias, mainly Twitter and Facebook. And then I always try to be fully available to my teenage daughter! So, I rarely get bored.
Where would your dream venue to play in your hometown?
I don’t have a dream venue. If I were to play, it would be in the pit of a Broadway Musical. I’m not very keen on spotlights… My dream venue is truly my studio! ?
Would you be up for collaborating with an unsigned artist or band? If so how can they contact you?
I have been collaborating with a singer on a couple of songs, and would love to find other singers to work with as I feel more like a composer/arranger/producer/player than a singer. But I’m quite a control freak and I usually have a very clear idea of where I want to go with a song, so I’m not easy to collaborate with. I’m open to suggestions though, if I find fellow artist that I dig and that I’m connecting with at a human level too, why not? Anyone can find me on social medias.
What was the song you listened to most that influenced you to go more in to the music scene?
When I was 8 years old, I was a fan of “The Sound of Music”, then my older brother made me listen to Led Zeppelin “Whole Lotta Love” and my life changed. I still feel that the music I do is somewhere in between these two.
Where is your dream festival to perform?
I don’t dream of any festival.
What made you go in to music?
The thrill of crafting a new tune and shaping it into something that I’m proud of. I was always curious about music and have spent years learning harmony and playing all kinds of music, from blues to rock to jazz to folk to bossa nova to prog to country to classical and anything in between. I love it when music blends many genres and surprises me and evokes a deep emotion, and I want to achieve that too.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given?
Do your own thing. But don’t spare the efforts! You can do anything you want if you really put your mind and heart to it.
What advice would you give to aspiring musicians not just about the industry also just as an artist/band?
Learn everything you can about music, listen to all kinds of things. Play all kinds of genre, master your instrument(s), work your craft, really work hard to get to a level of technique where you can play anything… then forget about technique altogether, and play with your heart. Absorb all the music you hear and play, be a musical sponge. Then forget about it and do your own thing. Find your own voice.
What quote or saying do you always stick by?
“In music, silence is more important than sound.”- also “Don’t worry about playing a lot of notes. Just find one pretty one.” (both from Mile Davis).
When you are at a gig, what are 5 things you cannot forget?
I don’t gig.
You come off Tour (If I were on tour)
1/ Where is the first place you go?
Home
2/ Who is the first person you see?
My daughter
3/ What is the first thing you eat.
Comfort food, like spaghetti perhaps?
Do you have social media accounts so your fans can follow you?
Best place is my website
I keep it up to date always, for example my blog:
And I also have a newsletter you can subscribe to, I send a monthly email, usually with news and bonus tracks:
https://ghostlybeard.com/contact
Otherwise people can find me on
Twitter
Faecbook
Youtube
Lee Pugh
August 26, 2017 at 10:38 am
A fascinating glimpse under the beard! I really can’t wait to hear the next offerings!!