Ghost Pavilion is the pseudonym of L.A.-based psych/indie rock artist James Higgs (ex – Spanish Prisoners), and definitely an artist you need to know for 2022. His debut self-titled LP, drops this Friday, October 14th, 2022, and was mastered by GRAMMY-nominated engineer John Baldwin (The White Stripes, Iggy Pop, Sly Stone). The new album has James deepening the path he has carved as a DIY artist, with thought-provoking songs, couched inside bright moments of Indie jams, getting out the bad mojo that life imposes on us.
“This song was brought out by the homelessness I felt around me while living in Echo Park, Los Angeles. The theme is regarding the trouble we see on an everyday basis and how we’ve been conditioned to ignore it. In sight, out of mind.” – James Higgs
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Bio:
Following the ashes of his former, critically acclaimed band Spanish Prisoners, who shared bills with DIIV and Youth Lagoon, Higgs relocated from New York City to his hometown of Los Angeles. He credits this move as the motivation behind previous releases, kickstarting his solo career and enjoying the spoils of creative freedom.
Over the years, Higgs has enjoyed playing these songs for more intimate audiences and at smaller festivals like Echo Park Rising, though it’s been increasingly difficult for him to substantiate live performances, surrounded by close friends and family. “It still feels weird to me: ‘Come see my band play and put yourselves at risk,’” he mimics. “As things calm, if they do, maybe one day I’ll get the band back together, but right now this is the comfortable thing for me to do.”
Higgs is more concerned with his collagist approach toward media, as made evident by the hyperreal ethos of Ghost Pavilion, with its ensemble of visuals depicting everything from futurism, the fetishization of technology and the modern era’s obsession with progress, to repression of the disenfranchised, and the collective deterioration of attentiveness and memory, as we know it.
The visual aesthetic of Ghost Pavilion’s album art mirrors the sleek production and minimal backdrops used to create Ghost Pavilion’s sound. These visuals evolved from the long-term collaboration of Higgs and visual artist Adam Guzman. Guzman currently provides the visual content for many high-profile clients such as Nosaj Thing and Toro y Moi.
An exercise in resiliency and self-awareness, contingent upon the bandwidth of human emotion, Ghost Pavilion is a triumph over solipsistic tendencies, with a bird-eye view of everyday self-destruction. “I kept coming back to movement,” says Higgs. “Getting beyond barriers or bad experiences through movement.” And that’s precisely what he does on “All Along,” the existential finale of the record. “I wanted to reflect on grief,” says Higgs. “Passing away into the unknown, and just taking a step back from the microscope.”
Fortunately, we can expect some live solo performances from Ghost Pavilion. “More of the promotion will be online,” says Higgs. “I’ll still carry on with live performances. They’ll just be online… for now.” Look for Ghost Pavillion’s full-length debut, Ghost Pavilion, streaming everywhere on October 14, 2022.