“I was scared to write these songs, because a lot of the topics are challenging,” starts Chasing Ghosts founder, frontman and chief songwriter Jimmy Kyle. “But that’s how I knew I was onto something. It made me feel nervous.”

 

On one level, those topics draw on the harsh realities of life that can impact anyone. “Busted Lung”, for example, was inspired by the resilient and stoic survival of one of Kyle’s friends, who was bashed in a sickening hate-crime; the suicide of a mate who returned home after fighting in Afghanistan lies at the heart of “Wear My Medals”; and the emotional wreckage caused by young parents splitting informs “Kids Raise Kids”.

 

Key to Kyle’s delivery is his talent for storytelling, a central tenet of Chasing Ghosts ever since the former metalcore musician founded it as an acoustic solo project in 2011.