A Conversation With Domenic Dunegan From The Ghost Club On Their Latest Single “Don’t Let Go”
Coming in from Pittsburg, PA is synth-laden and alternative rock driven band The Ghost Club. With breakthrough singles such as “Same Graves” and “This Bird Has Flown,” the band established a unique sound consisting of chilling instrumentals and Domenic Dunegan’s energetic vocals. Their latest single “Don’t Let Go,” released on September 23rd, hits a lighter note, banking on a hopeful, inspiring theme. Domenic aimed to channel the likeness of Bruce Springteen in this song, harnessing the sound in a “modern context.” Unpublished got the opportunity to uncover with Domenic the meaning behind the single, where his influences are drawn from, and what the future looks like for The Ghost Club.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How’s your week been?
[DOMENIC:] As of lately, it's been going pretty okay. I broke my hand at the end of August and when I broke it and went to the ER, they told me it was a hairline fracture and they just sent me home with a splint; when it was really like two significant fractures and two significant dislocations. And since they didn't set it that night in the hospital, I ended up having to have surgery on my hand, like open surgery in three different spots. And I have four pins sticking out of my hand right now. But, that was a couple of weeks ago that the surgery happened. So I'm like kind of recovered and I get these pins out Tuesday which means I'll only be two more weeks away from getting my hand back. So I've just been completely left handed for an extended period of time lately, which is not easy.
[UNPUBLISHED:] For a musician that must be really inhibiting when it comes to practicing. I hope the healing process goes well.
[DOMENIC:] Thank you. Yeah it's kind of inhibiting just in day to day life. Like you don't realize how much you need both hands just for like menial tasks.
[UNPUBLISHED:] So, for readers who haven’t listened to you, can you describe your music to us?
[DOMENIC:] I mean, before we were kind of doing the alt-pop sound and came off of that. But now, I'm trying to pull back a little more and keep everything a little more stripped back and take some influences from artists like Springsteen, Sam Fender, The Killers. You know, this thing started off as just one person, but it kind of evolved into a band. So, we're just trying to not overthink it too much and just bring back some good, you know, no-frills rock.
[UNPUBLISHED:] You released your single “Don’t Let Go” this past month, how does it feel to have it out?
[DOMENIC:] That one feels good to have out because that one got hung up on being released a couple times and pulled because there was a show that wanted it. And they kind of strung us along for that and I was between managers and they pulled it. And yeah, it's something I wanted to have out because that song really means a lot. Out of all the songs I've made, that's one I'm like actually proud of. So, it feels really good to have that one out. Especially because people are receiving it well.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How have your fans reacted to it?
[DOMENIC:] Pretty well, like better than usual ones. It was kind of like a shot in the dark, because there's like saxophone on it and a little bit of a different field. But, people really seem to like it. So, it's kind of inspiring me to really just be more of myself moving forward in these next tracks that I'm making.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I feel like the single is an absolute powerhouse with these strong synths, driving vocals and instrumentals. What was your creative process and inspiration behind it?
[DOMENIC:] It's funny, I usually start with the music first and then go to words. And when Logan was just joining, I was just talking to him on the phone and I was just kind of playing on the keyboard and doing that as I went. And I kind of built the track around that. But, it wasn't until I got out to California to record it with Eric Palmquist. He's like, "alright, we got to figure out some definitive meaning of the song." And I was just going through it at the time, so I'm like, we just got to write about just moving forward no matter what. But I mentioned in passing that I'd like to make a Springsteen song in a modern context. And I said that on a whim, but he really really enjoyed that and really went with that. And that was kind of, you know, our North Star for making the song.
[UNPUBLISHED:] How did you get into music? What was the catalyst to this career?
[DOMENIC:] I've been saying his name quite a bit, but it was actually a Bruce Springsteen concert that made me want to be a musician. My dad was like, "Hey, my friend ditched out. Do you want to come see this concert with me?" I'm like, "Sure, who is it?" He's like, "It's Bruce Springsteen. It's great, you're gonna love it." And I didn't really know much about him at the time besides like you know, the basic Springsteen songs. But, going and seeing that changed my life. I left that place like, “I need to figure out how to do that at any capacity, even if it's like the tiniest little sliver of what that guy did. I got to figure out how to do that.” And that's what my life's been ever since. And it was just like, going on the internet, figuring out how to play instruments, how to write songs, and trying to write songs better than before. I'm still learning. I'm always learning and trying to do things better.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What instrument did you pick up first?
[DOMENIC:] Piano because there was a keyboard in my room and it made the most sense to me at the time. Writing on a guitar is a little tough, because there's six strings, and they're all like, staggered a certain way. Whereas like a piano, all the notes from left to right are like right there in front of you and that made the most sense. And that's usually where I start writing, is on the piano.
[UNPUBLISHED:] It’s been about two years since the release of “Same Graves,” a song that really launched you into the spotlight. I feel like this single has an entirely different feel than your new music. How do you feel you’ve changed or evolved as an artist since this initial release?
[DOMENIC:] I feel like I have a better idea of the things that I want to do and how to get them to sound the way that I want to. Before, I was still writing from the perspective of "Okay, I'm just one guy and I got to, you know, make the track around me." Whereas now it's like, "Alright, I have all these pieces with me, let's try to make this into something more than the sum of its parts."
[UNPUBLISHED:] So you mentioned Springsteen, but do you have any other artists that have influenced you greatly? What have you been listening to recently that has driven inspiration?
[DOMENIC:] Lately, Sam Fender, The War On Drugs. The 1975's new music has been really great. So I mean, that's kind of what I'm picking from at this point.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What is something you’re bringing to the music scene as an artist that hasn’t been seen before?
[DOMENIC:] I don't feel like there's anything that I'm bringing that hasn't been seen before. And that's kind of what I'm getting at is like, "I'm not going to find the next thing that hasn't been heard of." I'm just going to make what it is that I like. If people like it, awesome. If they don't, I mean that's fine too. I'm just really trying to not overthink and try to be unique because in the end, I'm just a guy. I'm trying to connect on a more sincere basis with music instead of like writing about "oh depression, oh medication" or this and that because I feel like a lot of people pander to those topics. I just want to connect with people when I write music, so that's really what I'm trying to do moving forward. I'm just trying not to act more important than I am, I guess if that makes sense.
[UNPUBLISHED:] What does the future look like for you as an artist? Can we expect any upcoming projects?
[DOMENIC:] Well, I'm sitting on a lot of unreleased music at the moment. And I was in the process of starting to write but then my hand got broken. And it's so impossible to get work done with my left hand, that I've just taken this time to like, step away and relax, and think. But, once these pins come out and I get my hand back, it's writing time.
