Lusitanian Ghosts’ Canadian Invasion!
Canadian Portuguese Swedish Collective Announce Montreal and Toronto performances, North American Documentary Premiere and Digital Compilation, "Chordophone Rock n Roll"
Lusitanian Ghosts brand new single “On and On”
released worldwide on February 14, 2025
Cover photo features: Mestre Adelino Leitão, Neil Leyton's grandfather, who introduced him to Portuguese
chordophones before his passing. In the 1950s, he performed in the band "Os Fatalistas."
Toronto, Canada – Wednesday, February 6, 2024 – Lusitanian Ghosts -- the Lisbon based trans-Atlantic neo-folk collective widely regarded for their innovative work in bringing new life to medieval instruments through socio-political songs -- are heading to Canada this month for live performances in Montreal, Toronto and to debut their self-titled documentary feature film. The collective, who have performed at venues and festivals in Portugal, Germany, Sweden and Finland, releasing three critically acclaimed albums in the last 6 years are dedicated to presenting ancient sounds in the 21st Century.
Lusitanian Ghosts’ new single, “On and On” will be released this Valentine’s Day followed closely by a Canada / US digital compilation, Chordophone Rock n Roll which is slated for February 19, 2025. They perform February 20 at the Folk Alliance International Official Showcases, at the Sheraton Centre Hotel in Montreal, followed by a Toronto performance at Lighthouse Artspace on February 25th.
The band’s debut project includes a documentary that explores the historical significance of these chordophones, revealing how they nearly became extinct. The instruments themselves serve as the true “Lusitanian Ghosts,” representing a lost cultural heritage. The film will make it’s North American premiere on February 15th as part of the Celebração: Discover The Sounds of Portugal a 6-day music and film series featuring Portuguese based artists appearing live on Toronto’s only fully immersive stage. The series is presented by Why Portugal and Starvox Entertainment. For tickets to the screening and Lusitanian Ghosts February 26th performance please visit: www.starvoxent.com.
Founded by Canadian Neil Leyton (Canadian indie-glam combo The Conscience Pilate) and Micke Ghost (a.k.a. Mikael Lundin), Lusitanian Ghosts are an innovative musical project marries thought-provoking socio-political lyrics with historic instrumentation to create a unique musical fusion that resonates with fans on both an emotional and intellectual level. By skillfully recasting these heritage folk violas into rock n roll songs Lusitanian Ghosts have created moving melodic settings for examining tough topics such as dealing with dark pasts while striving to build a better world.
Pictured left to right: Johnny Sousa, Janne Olsson, Neil Leyton, Micke Lundin, Abel Beja, ToZé Bexiga
Photo Credit: Katja Ruge @ Clouds Hill Studio Hamburg
The new single, On and On” tackles the complexity of love, loss and morning. “Losing a loved one is perhaps the hardest emotional hardship that human beings can endure, and this world is full of loss, heartbreak and pain at the moment,” says Leyton. “Still, life must go on and we must find a way to reconcile ourselves with what we have lost and the pain that is part of the process of letting go and moving on. Like several other Ghosts' songs, I asked Micke Ghost to sing this one. I love that emotive Bowiesque tone of his voice!"
Lusitanian Ghosts skip the usual guitars, writing and performing their socially conscious alt-folk songs on Portuguese folk violas, like the Viola Amarantina, Viola Campaniça and Viola Terceira. Portugal might be a small country, but in every different region these ancient folk instruments come in different shapes and string arrangements, not to mention the tunings: from 10-string to 18-string variations, they infuse the songs with a positively medieval sound, re-inventing these instruments for the 21st century.
These instruments like the Beiroa, Campaniça, Braguesa, Terceirense and Amarantina were once on the verge of extinction and are in fact the real "Lusitanian Ghosts" -- Lusitania being an ancient Celtic tribe in what would become the central territory of Portugal.
The collective is led by Portuguese Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Leyton on vocals and Swedish musician Mikael Lundin (Micke Ghost) on vocals and the viola Amarantina, featuring João Sousa on drums and the Adufe, Abel Beja on the viola Terceirense, ToZé Bexiga on the viola Campaniça and piano and Janne Olson on bass and the viola Beirão. Other Ghosts include O Gajo and OMIRI.
“On and On” - Track Information:
Recorded by Nelson Canoa and Adrian Lussi in Portugal and Sweden.
Mixed by Adrian Lussi in Stockholm.
Mastered by John Webber at Air Studios London.
Produced by Neil Leyton and Mikael Lundin.
Words and music by Mikael Lundin.
Additional Lyrics by Neil Leyton
Published by Lusitanian Music Publishing.
About Lusitanian Ghosts
Lusitanian Ghosts was a creative collaboration between Neil Leyton, who is also a founding member of Toronto’s indie art rockers The Conscience Pilate, and Micke Ghost. The pair formed Lusitanian Ghosts when Leyton took a viola Amarantina from Lisbon to Stockholm; Leyton then decided to make an experimental album mixing the various regional Lusitanian (Portuguese) chordophones with their usual brand of singer-songwriter rock n roll.
The collective gathered at Canoa Studios in Portugal, with producer Ricardo Ferreira, and recorded ten songs, featuring Leyton on bass as well as the viola Beiroa; Micke Ghost on the Amarantina; Vasco Ribeiro Casais aka OMIRI on the Braguesa and Nyckelharpa; O Gajo on the viola Campaniça; and Primitive Reason’s Abel Beja on the viola Terceira. In the absence of Lil’ Ghost, who would join later, Ricardo also played the viola Toeira: making it 6 regional chordophones on this unique record.
Their second album, Exotic Quixotic, was recorded on analog tape at Clouds Hill Studios in Hamburg and released digitally in late 2021. The album was produced with contributions from a diverse group of musicians, including Vasco Ribeiro Casais (OMIRI) and Primitive Reason’s Abel Beja, expanding the sound palette with instruments like the nyckelharpa and the viola toeira.
The third album, released in September 2023, was recorded on 2” 24-track tape at Clouds Hill Studio by engineer Sebastian Muxfeldt. The final mixes, completed in both stereo and mono formats, were mastered at Soundgarden Tonstudio by Chris von Rautenkranz, ensuring the recordings retained their raw, analog essence.
