GhostStory - Prometheus

BIMM Manchester Weekly Features 1st Issue

Spencer Mason is a songwriter, performer, author and lyrical wizard not to be slept on. In fact, I doubt you’ll be getting any sort of peaceful snooze while blasting his latest sense-obliterating piece - ‘Prometheus’ – which is set to be released next week on the 19th under the alias GhostStory. While his previous works have consisted of an array of rock band material and spoken word poetry, Prometheus will shock listeners up to speed with an ‘atomic, hybrid concoction of spoken word and Berlin-esque techno’. If that single sentence doesn’t make you as intrigued as I was when I first read it, just wait until your earphones explode with the monolithic hammering of bass that takes GhostStory’s latest project (and your mind) into the dark expanse of a laser-lit dance.

One of my favourite things about GhostStory and Mason himself is his attention-to-detail in regard to lyrics. As a spoken word artist this might seem unsurprising, but his background gigging in bands such as ‘Incarnate.’ (which ‘has a full stop in it because it is a statement’) has made Mason stand out from many more Manchester acts. He does a transcendent job of pulling the audience in, hanging on every word. This makes GhostStory’srecorded work so much more relevant, as you can truly immerse yourself in the narratives of his soundscapes at your leisure.

“The lyrics of the track Prometheus confront the same story in a contemporary context. As I can only write through the filtered experience of Psychosis and Disassociation, the scene took the form of a narrative driven between two beasts, centred in all of us.”

The lyrical content of Prometheus is, as I have said, one of the primary focuses of the track, telling the story of Greek legend, well, Prometheus – the titan deity said to have created humanity, for all our perfections and flaws, for better or for worse. While highly relevant and important to the criticism due of humans, the juxtaposition between the track’s ancient pantheon context and the modern rave audio is nothing short of fantastic. The chugging, churning beat draws endless metaphors to my mind of the progression of the human race and our industrial existence. Did the titan who stole fire to help us thrive think that we would use it to turn the skies black and char the homes of creatures smaller and more innocent than us?

GhostStory’s Prometheus is not only thought-provoking and darkly invigorating, but it is also a grinding, pounding piece of sonic art that will stay in my playlist after release. I have never wanted to be in a dark room surrounded by lasers so much in my life.