The Ghost In You | photo courtesy of the artist
PREMIERE: The Ghost In You channels heartache and suburban ennui on Heaven Help Us
Growing up in Montgomery County, I never thought a lyric like “Take me back to Willow Grove / my heart belongs to Hatboro” might ever exist in music, or sound nearly as poetic as it does. But that’s the magic of The Ghost In You – in going specifically regional and somewhat colloquial, singer and songwriter Billy Polard crafts songs of experience that are beautifully and boldly universal.
The Ghost In You’s new record Heaven Help Us is out this week, and we’re thrilled to premiere it for you here at The Key. Fans of the introspective heartache of Jose Gonzalez and Iron + Wine should take note: Polard is highly adept at lightly orchestrated, emotionally-driven indie-folk with an atmospheric, dreamy air.
Polard tells us that this record is his most personal effort to date, written in the wake of a breakup and recorded in car seats in mall parking lots on holidays (seriously).
The songs on this record all share a common theme. In many ways this entire album is a desperate plea and love letter to a lost love that has never gone away. Even the album title itself refers to my not being able to let go or accept the idea of giving up on each other.”
Polard has been teasing this new music for a while now, the aching “Fear the Fall” as well as the atmospheric intensity of “Haunt You.” Seen as an entire body of work, though, Heaven Help Us is a beautiful portrait of overcoming the sting of heartache, something we’ve all experienced – whether we’re from Willow Grove or West Virginia or Manchester.
Listen to the album in its entirety below.