Ghostly Kisses Share New Single 'Keep It Real'
Their sophomore album Darkroom, out May 17th, synthesizes those missives into a mesmeric album that brings our inner monologue into view.
By: Michael Major Feb. 21, 2024
Ghostly Kisses share “Keep It Real,” a propulsive and haunting electropop single that pulls inspiration from the “Box of Secrets” initiative, where the band invited fans to anonymously share their most personal secrets.
What they discovered was a global, post-pandemic, postmodern era of pain - an intense and strange loneliness felt around the world. Their sophomore album Darkroom, out May 17th, synthesizes those missives into a mesmeric album that brings our inner monologue into view.
Margaux Sauvé explains the track “stands out for us as the darkest and one of the most impactful tracks on the album. It was inspired by the narratives shared in the Box of Secrets, where individuals wrestled with deciphering the thoughts of others and sought to shed light on complex situations.”
Listen to the new single below, and previous singles “On & Off,” and “Golden Eyes,” which Paste Magazine called “a beautiful love story full of vivid, glowing flickers of doubt and companionship.”
Comprised of French-Canadians Margaux Sauvé and Louis-Étienne Santais, Ghostly Kisses has become an international sensation, cultivating a cult overseas audience. The duo's style of writing reflects their ability to bridge the gap between people who may feel far away, a gift they've honed on their sophomore effort Darkroom.
Traditionally, Sauvé and Santais would each set up in a different room, sharing snippets via email and only meeting up to finalize ideas. “Writing separately ensures we're not influenced by anything else, and we can bring more depth to our process,” Sauvé says.
This time, the messages from the “Box of Secrets” provided an unusual baseline for that influence rather than just their own individual experiences, and the result refracts and shimmers kaleidoscopically. After compiling demos, Ghostly Kisses brought in new collaborators to further bolster their new electronic palette: co-producers George FitzGerald (London Grammar, as well as solo work) and Oli Bayston (Boxed In, Yune Pinku).
Longtime engineer (and Santais' cousin) Alex Ouzilleau further helped shape the work in the studio, and Gabriel Desjardins' string arrangements add depth and drama to the proceedings. To test their boundaries even further, Ghostly Kisses tested their recordings while on tour, a new step in their process and a portal into connecting more with their music and their fans.
“We heard from a lot of fans from countries where they couldn't openly love the person they were in love with for political or social reasons,” Sauvé says. “I felt that pain, identified with it in my own way, and knew many others would too.”
Each track of Darkroom's magnetic run comprises its own world, with Sauvé's vocals as the radiant arc connecting their orbits, the moments and themes shared by fans finding resonances—the whole Ghostly Kisses universe together even when expressing its loneliness. In moments, Ghostly Kisses offer an awe-inspiring hope for connection, for love, even when it seems impossible.
By opening up their music to be the conduit for other people's stories, they landed up finding their own. And by doing so through the stories of their fans and in new, more kinetic tones, Darkroom should prompt that same hope in many around the world who may otherwise have felt the darkness creeping too far in.
Ghostly Kisses will embark on a world tour this Spring, touring Europe and North America. Tickets available HERE.
Tour Dates
European Tour
Apr 02 - Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg @ Kulturfabrik
Apr 03 - Cologne, Germany @ Jaki
Apr 05 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ Rust
Apr 06 - Oslo, Norway @ Blå
Apr 07 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Bar Brooklyn
Apr 10 - Hamburg, Germany @ Nochtspeicher
Apr 11 - Berlin, Germany @ Frannz Club
Apr 12 - Warsaw, Poland @ Hybrydy
Apr 13 - Prague, Czech Republic @ NOD
Apr 14 - Vienna, Austria @ B72
Apr 17 - Munich, Germany @ Kranhalle
Apr 18 - Zurich, Switzerland @ Bogen F
Apr 19 - Milan, Italy @ Magnolia
Apr 20 - Bologna, Italy @ Locomotiv Club
Apr 23 - Paris, France @ La Maroquinerie
Apr 25 - Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Tolhuis
Apr 26 - Rotterdam, Netherlands @ Lantarenvenster
Apr 28 - Antwerp, Belgium @ TRIX
May 01 - London, England @ Islington Assembly Hall
May 02 - Salford, England @ The White Hotel
May 03 - Glasgow, Scotland @ King Tut's Wah Wah Hut
May 04 - Dublin, Republic of Ireland @ The Workmans Club
North America Tour
May 23 - Montreal, QC @ Church of the Gesu
May 24 - Ottawa, ON @ Club SAW
May 25 - Quebec City, QC @ Imperial Bell
May 29 - Boston, MA @ Cafe 939
May 30 - Washington, DC @ Songbyrd
May 31 - Brooklyn, NY @ National Sawdust
June 01 - Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
June 04 - Chicago, IL @ Sleeping Village
June 05 - Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
June 07 - Denver, CO @ Globe Hall
June 08 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court
June 11 - Seattle, WA @ Barboza
June 12 - Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
June 14 - San Francisco, CA @ Brick & Mortar
June 15 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
Photo by Fred Gervais
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