About The Ghostfires

Born from the Tide

The Ghostfires formed on the Northern California coast in 2019, when guitarist Maren Cole and drummer Jonas Ruelle started recording in a rented beach house during an El Niño winter. What started as two friends chasing reverb and wave noise became a four-piece by spring, with bassist Petra Vance and keys player Dayo Asante rounding out the sound.

The band’s debut EP Low Season arrived in 2021 — six tracks of sun-bleached guitar, minor-key melodies, and lyrics about distance and the pull of water. They recorded it live to tape in a converted boathouse, and it showed.

The Sound

The Ghostfires sit in the space between surf instrumental and moody shoegaze — tracks begin with clean, Duane Eddy-influenced twang before drifting into walls of reverb and layered harmonics. Tempo rarely climbs above a slow burn. The ocean is always somewhere in the room.

“We’re not trying to evoke the beach. We’re trying to evoke that feeling right before dark, when the water turns gray and everyone’s gone home.”

— Maren Cole

Now

Their full-length debut The Undertow is out now on all platforms. They’re currently touring the West Coast and working on new material between shows.