I Am Ghost Pt. 2
As a general rule, I get freaked out by dudes with tattoos I their necks. I mean, seriously, you paid someone to hold a needle to your throat for an extended period of time? No fucking way. However, this Steve Ghost character seemed to be all right. Well, anyone who agrees with me that Hawthorne Heights is the epitome of nonsensical angst is OK by me. RacketCait and I had a chance to meet up with Steve at the 2007 Warped Tour, where sweltering heat and three dollar water justified my theft of a snow cone.
RJ: With it being 90 fucking degrees right now, how can you wear a fucking coat?
Steve Ghost: Well, I was told we would be doing some video interviews and I didn’t want to look like a bum.
RJ: I noticed you signing an autograph with your left hand, are you generally a southpaw?
SG: Yea, I’m left handed. Well, it’s weird, I write with my left hand, but I throw with my right. It’s weird.
RJ: Freak.
Racket Cait: (Amazed at the hint of athleticism) What do you throw?
SG: What do I throw? Throw the football around, the baseball around, stuff like that.
RJ: Can you get a sweet spin on the football?
SG: Yea, I can do pretty well. I used to be pretty athletic in high school.
RJ: I thought you meant like a Frisbee.
SG: Well, you get to a venue at like 2, load in, then you don’t have anything to do for a few hours. There’s a lot of time to kill, so we toss the ball around.
RJ: I hear you’re big into horror movies, have you ever written one?
SG: I’ve written horror comic books, animated a couple horror comic books, and I used to animate storyboards for Tales From the Crypt. My first job when I came to LA was as an animator, if you told me that eight years later I would be in a band signed to Epitaph, and playing Warped Tour, I’d be like, “Yea, right!” But I wouldn’t change anything. I’d rather be doing this tour and be broke rather than sit in an office and make millions of dollars. I’d rather do this.
RJ: You could always make millions of dollars first and then do this and not get a shit about money.
SG: I could do that. I can always go back to animation later on, I’m going to keep practicing.
RJ: If you are into looking for logos, I know we’re looking for some.
SG: Really?
RJ: Yea.
SG: Oh, alright, I’m touring, so I don’t have a lot of time, but definitely hit me up.
RJ: Rad, do you draw with your left hand?
SG: Yea, I’m a left handed artist.
RJ: Do you have any plans to get back to comic books?
SG: I’m working on one right now, it’s called Lovers and Kings, it’s real hard for me to finish it it because of the tour, but I hope to finish it by the end of the year. I have backing from a couple of comic book companies who said they would publish it when it’s 100%, the way it’s going now, I don’t know. I just don’t have the time to sit down and finish it.
RJ: What kind of car do you drive?
SG: I don’t have a car anymore, I used to have a purple Taurus, and I used to have a truck before that. When we signed to Epitaph, they bought us a van in my name, and rather than having a truck, a car and a van, I sold the car and truck and just drive the van around. I knew I’d be touring nine months out of the year, so I just kept the van.
RJ: Is it a rape-van with no windows on the side?
SG: Of, yea, it has windows but they’re blocked out for security reasons, so people don’t look in and see our equipment or see it’s a band, let’s steal their shit.
RJ: So if you’re driving down a city street, and you see a mom with her child, do you see her pull the kid a little tighter?
SG: I would if I saw me driving down the street.
RJ: Would you trust your kids to be around you?
SG: I love kids.
RJ: When you say kids, what are we talking about, preschoolers, 7-10 year olds.
SG: I say kids now, I mean high school kids. I say, oh, those are some cool kids, but they’re like 17 years old. When you’re 17, 18 years old, those are the best years of your life, you’re able to do stupid shit.
RJ: Do you like to frolic.
SG: No, but our drummer, Ryan, is a big time frolicker. I’ll randomly look and see him skipping towards me, and I’m all “what are you doing, man” and he’s like “Nothing, I’m just happy!”
RJ: If he was a comic book character, would you name him Frolic?
SG: I dunno, man, he’d be like some frolicking gnome.
RJ: How do you feel about the Grand Slam Breakfast at Denny’s?
SG: You know what, it’s amazing how they can give you so much food for so little money, I always wanted to know how they can do that. Two eggs, two bacon, two pieces of toast, two pancakes…
RJ: They have that new Extreme one, where they give you three of everything!
SG: I feel kind of bad because there’s starving children all over the world.
RJ: Take ‘em to Denny’s!
SG: Maybe, we’re experts in Denny’s. I always get the same thing, I usually get the “something bird.” (Super Bird!)
RJ: I know what you’re talking about.
SG: Yea, I have this huge distaste for Waffle Houses, do you know what those are? They’re generally found on the East coast, they’re like Denny’s but way worse.
RJ: Waffles are pretty good, though.
SG: Ugh, We always want to leave early.
RJ: You down with touch lamps?
SG: I’ve never seen a touch lamp.
RJ: What!?
RC: You just touch the pole and it turns on.
SG: Like the Clapper?
RJ: It’s way awesome, you just poke it, and it goes on!
RC: Your friends just touch it!
RJ: How do you feel about all the bands that have bleeding, bloody, blood, bleedy, bleeding bloody blood and all that nonsense in their name?
SG: We get compared to a lot of bands like AFI, Aiden and My Chemical Romance, a lot of bands that have a darkness to them, we’re not about razors and cutting yourself, all are lyrics are pretty positive, we’re looking to be dark, but in a beautiful way. Darkness can be just as beautiful as light. We’re trying to be an elegant dark. We’re not a fan of bleeding bloody. There’s a lot of bands with that in their names, I think it’s funny.
RJ: You would think that they would be particularly violent. Or suicidal, cut myself. Like stupid fucking Hawthorne Heights, with their stupid songs.
SG: Oh, yea, what was it, “slit my wrists and black my eyes?”
RJ: Yea, they want to bleed themselves dry and punch themselves in the face until they die.
SG: I never understood that lyric. Hmm.
RJ: Maybe I’m wrong and while he’s bleeding like a stuck pig, he wants to put on eyeliner.
SG: I think punch him as he’s dying.
RJ: Well, let’s do it! We’ll be like a Make-a-Wish foundation! You slit his wrists and I’ll pound his face until he’s done.
SG: Let’s kill him? Alright.
RJ: What’s your worst masturbation story?
SG: Oh, jeez. With a girl here, it’s interesting. I don’t really have any. I’m pretty suave. I’m in and out, people will never know,
RJ: What would you do for a Klondike Bar?
SG: Ask for one. And if you said no, I’d be all like “OK.”
RJ: You wouldn’t slit my wrists and black my eyes?
RC: Or masturbate?
SG: I’d masturbate for a Klondike Bar.
RJ: Would you look for another doctor if your brain surgeon had a thick southern accent?
SG: Yes.
RJ: But he has a doctorate degree.
SG: We’ve come across a lot of people in (in horrible hick accent) Arkansas and Alabama, I hate to be mean, but it really is bad out there. There are a lot of dumb people that live in the South. I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of people in the South that will want to kill me, but (shrugs.)
RJ: You would think with the dyed hair and the all-black, they’d already want your life.
SG: Pretty much.
RC: If you were an action figure, what would your special feature be?
SG: Well, everyone wants the Kung Fu Grip. I’ve always been a fan of the action figures that don’t do much. I really like the old school GI Joes, where you can throw them against the wall and they won’t break, whereas toys nowadays…
RC: They break if you twist them!
RJ: Well, they had that little black rubber band which, like any rubber band, will break if you twist it too much.
SG: Yea, they were just built to last. I used to work for McFarlane Toys, so I can say, you can not play with McFarlane Toys. You turn a neck and it falls off. They are meant to be looked at, but they call them toys!
RJ: Has there been a lot of fans that try to get all sexual with you?
SG: There’s been some crazy shows where there are no barricades, and kids are crowd surfing and girls will grab my butt.
RJ: Yea, I totally saw some chick walk by you earlier and rub up on you.
SG: Really.
RJ: True story. Are you stoked about the iPhone?
SG: Everyone’s talking about it, but I have the crappiest cell phone. I can call people, and I can text, and that’s all I really care about. I don’t care about sending photos or go on the internet. I just want a phone so I can call my mom.
RJ: Do you call your mom often?
SG: Not as much as I should. (At this point, I shook my head in disgust.) I know I know! I’m a bad son.
RJ: Go call her, call her right now, do it. (Didn’t happen.) Tell me a joke.
SG: This is the lamest joke ever, but why did the mother pirate tell the baby pirate not to see the movie?
RJ: You tell me.
SG: Because it was rated ARRRRR!!!
RC: That was pretty lame.
RJ: Alright, man, we’re out.
-Jonathan “RacketBoss” Yost & Caitlin Elgin