New Music: Lankum – Ghost Town

We haven’t learnt our lesson, and we’re going to be taught it again. That’s the message I got from Lankum’s take on Ghost Town.

While the original version was born in the riots of 80s Britain, with wealth flaunting itself in front of the poor and scapegoating minorities, Lanukm don’t so much update the song as remind us that things are back to a place that we were assured we would never return to. The youth are once again fighting among themselves, factories and homes are empty, and immigration is less of an option, thanks to politicians.

And just as The Specials subverted ska to be more representative of Britain of the 80s, Lankum similarly take folk and indie music – Ireland’s great cultural exports of the moment – and strip away the glamour.

You don’t need to be Irish, an immigrant, or part of the embattled workforce to recognise what Lankum are telling us and also showing us in the video. But the real question is will those in a position to remedy things actually listen? 

Ghost Town is out now and can be downloaded on Bandcamp. The track has been created as part of a new work by Oona Doherty. For more info on Lankum and the song, head to Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok.