Is there any other band like The Burning Hell? For a start, any artist who can sell out two nights on the spin in Sheffield in post-COVID world probably deserves an MBE (this country gives those things out for far less). It’s one of the many stories that make the Canadian act a DIY treasure for the devoted few.
The songwriting alliance between Mathias Kom and Ariel Sharratt is one that fits like a glove. A yin and yang odyssey that would be reduced without each other, the duo conjures up stories that etch to the mind. The same way the late Tom Robbins cross-pollinated absurdity into reality to create a unique world for his readership, The Burning Hell open their own exclusive portals for their audience – the latest leading to their new album, Ghost Palace.
Following the excellent Garbage Island (2022), The Burning Hell is at their playful best on Ghost Palace. Once again, there’s plenty of death and destruction, but instead of pivoting and feigning in horror of that impending doom, Kom and Sharratt embrace the inevitably through humourous wordplay tailor-made to sit around the fireplace to.
Ghost Palace sees Kom and Sharratt joined by frequent collaborator and touring band member, Jake Nicoll (who also produced and mixed the album), while new band member, Maria Peddle (fiddle/ vocals), fellow touring guitarist, Steven Lambke (ex-Constantines), Carlie Howell (double bass), Amy Nicoll (oboe) and José Contreras (organ) add the relevant sonic embellishments throughout.
Thematically, Kom and Sharratt’s songbook for Ghost Palace is littered with everything from pop culture and nostalgia to animals and architecture in what could be considered a full-circle affair. Starting with Celebrities in Cemeteries – a tale involving everyone from Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde to Gram Parsons and Serge Gainsbourg, and alongside a swathe of circus folk amid a backdrop of wonky bass lines and playful synths, it would be a pop hit if it wasn’t so clever.
The circus remains in town with What Does It Do and How Does It Work. An abstract fable with everything from a bear working through their own trauma to Adam and Eve shaking trees, it’s the kind of sidewalk sing-along reminiscent of the late Daniel Johnston.
Where mass culture is concerned, Brazil Nuts and Blue Curaçao is an accurate play on it. Taking its cues from Ruper Holmes’ Escape (The Pinot Colada Song), unlike Holmes’ admission that it was his most throw-away song, Kom’s ingenious narrative turns the mundane into magic, making all-inclusive holidays and going to the bar to grab a drink sound like the most profound story you’ve ever heard. Bottle of Chianti, Cheese and Charcuterie Board is woven through a similar thread. Again, a song with a cast of protagonists that you probably went to high school with, in true Kom fashion there’s a former tennis pro and a rabbi thrown in for good measure.
The Burning Island - Ghost PalaceIt’s Sharratt’s turn to exercise some of her own genius, this time from behind the DJ deck on Luna FM – a tale sent from the airwaves as a dark ’80s synth rock vibe sparks intrigue. It’s The Burning Hell at their most inventive, and they don’t stop on Summer Olympics. A raw, scrapbook sketch that investigates nostalgia (“Good times, bad wine, lips buzzing the humming from the power lines”), notwithstanding the opening and closing ceremonies, Kom uses the last vestige of sport that hasn’t been swallowed up by narcissism and capitalism as that very “museum of the past, future and present”.
Elsewhere, the country air fills the nostrils on Duck vs. Decorated Shed. A song inspired by the architectural theories of Rob Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, the story unravels where protagonist is unafraid to show their true self or, indeed, “how to wear your heart on the outside of your clothes”. In a world of pretenders, who else should take the prize than the duck itself?
The Burning Hell, Steven Lambke, Jake Nicoll @ Jimmys, Liverpool – 30/05/2023
And that avian dominance continues with the beautifully exotic ballad, Birds of Australia. The noise of parakeets, magpies and kookaburras placing you at the heart of the country where, true to form, Kom turns the narrative on its head with wildlife baying for human blood as their habitat shrinks by the hour.
It’s the best dark ballad on the album until the eponymous closing track. Kom has penned many memorable lyrics during his time in The Burning Hell, but with one like “There’s a hole in my heart / The size of my whole heart” all bets are off. An acoustic-led earworm that stays with you for days, Ghost Palace is an au revoir (“We’ll leave all the lights on / We’ll see them shine for a while, after we’ve gone”).
It’s enough to bring a tear to the eye and parting with a line in the next verse like “They say in space no one can hear you dream”, Kom’s dead-pan delivery has you reaching for the Kleenex. It’s not an obvious heartbreaker, largely down to the inventiveness of The Burning Hell juxtaposing cheerful instrumentation against apocalyptic dread like few others have. Kom and Sharratt’s lyrical dexterity, revealing more layers each time, which is essentially what the great artists do. Like Robbins did for literature, The Burning Hell do the same in song, and on the back of Ghost Palace, once again, is there any other band like them? No, there is not.
Ghost Palace is out via BB Island / You’ve Changed Records. Purchase from Bandcamp.
