Lonely Ghosts

July 5. Lonely Ghosts @ Sonny's Pizzeria-When an audience member at Sonny’s in Fish Creek mentioned dancing, bassist Jeff Koss of Lonely Ghosts began playing Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby" and singer/guitarist Matthew Fischer only half jokingly remarked, "you came to the wrong show." Although one or two songs got the crowd on their feet to dance, the majority of the set consisted of slow or mid-tempo tunes that weren't exactly designed for dancing. Rather, the songs were crafted with an emphasis on evocative lyrics and melodic instrumentation. With songs like "Storm Song," "Dark Girl," "Graveyard" and "Best Friend," Lonely Ghosts conveyed a sense of loss, lovesickness, and regret. The band's setup featured acoustic guitar, a lowe bowe (two-stringed instrument played with a slide), drums and bass. Fischer's voice reminded me of Bright Eyes' Conner Oberst; it had a downtrodden, yearning quality that is one of the bands' strongest assets.-By Ted Johnson - Peninsula PulseI edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4