Funny story: Chicago’s quartet of weirdos, Touched by Ghoul, recorded their sophomore album, Cancel the World, at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio in July 2019 with the title already in place. They mixed it in January 2020, and then the world was actually cancelled. After idling for months, the album was sent for pressing the vinyl to support tour dates. Tours were again cancelled. And the pressing plant’s press was broken. Cancelled.

Of course, everyone’s been through the wringer over the past couple of years, and some much more severe than this. But Cancel the World may just be the forbidden music so many artists have sought to make. Ironically, the album finds the band taming its aggressive Birthday Party/ Babes In Toyland noise-rock attack ever so slightly in order to embrace melodies and allow their tousled cynicism to truly shine on songs like “Better Than Me,” “Lost at the Costco” and the title track.

Touched by Ghoul is fronted by former Sybris singer/guitarist Angela Mullenhour, along with guitarist Andrea Bauer, and the rollicking rhythm section of bassist Alex Shumard and drummer Paige Sandlin. The intrepid group made its debut with 2016’s Murder Circus album (also on Chicago imprint Under Road Records) and for a while things were going pretty great pre-pandemic: TBG played some unforgettable shows (supporting Foo Fighters at Wrigley Field; and also opening for MC50 and Local H), received great press and built up a small army of zombified followers.

At last, with nothing more than this album on the horizon for the time being, Touched by Ghoul are here to undo whatever star-crossed curse they’ve brought unto the world, one gloriously weird, catchy song at a time.

The Big Takeover is touched to be able to premiere a cartoonish yet nightmarish new video by the band, for its song “Lost in the Costo.” While the band’s sound is often of the finger-snappin’, fast-paced variety, the song in Touched by Ghoul’s new video captures them in a deceptively breezy mood. But while “Lost in the Costco” is easy on the ears, the song’s lyrics are actually terrifying:

“Costco days/ and Costco nights/ It’s all the same/ Under the Costco lights.”

Both songs, however, captures an undeniably crackerjack, infectious sound.

Watch the video here:

Cancel the World is available on LP, as a download and for streaming via Under Road Records.

To purchase Cancel the World, go here.

For more on Touched by Ghoul, go here:

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