Tegan And Sara – “Walking With A Ghost (Manila Killa Remix)” (Stereogum Premiere)
“Walking With A Ghost” — and its corresponding White Stripes cover — is arguably the song that catapulted Tegan And Sara to a new level of fame. On an album filled with cyclical choruses and straightforward but layered sentiments, “Walking With A Ghost” is the best example of the form. “[It] was my way of describing the feeling of being haunted by memories,” Sara Quin explains in the upcoming book So Jealous X, which will accompany the reissue of the album. “It was important to me that we capture the helplessness of obsessive thinking and the stranglehold that anxiety could have on my mind.” And it certainly does: “Walking With A Ghost” is all hook, no verse — a repeating cycle that feels like you’re teetering on the edge of a breakdown. Quin turns the phrase around over and over, inflecting different words until she explores every possible permutation of the hook. The repetitive nature of the song also makes it a natural for remixes: the Manila/D.C.-based producer Manila Killa takes on that duty here, transforming it into a starry and slightly chilly electronic track. It’s one of five brand new remixes included on the 10th anniversary edition of So Jealous, and you can listen below.
So Jealous X is out 12/23 via Warner Bros. and is available to preorder now.