Dirty Ghosts are a San Francisco rock band formed in 2006 by Allyson Baker, Carson Binks and Baker's then-husband Aesop Rock, AKA Ian Bavitz. After the departure of Binks and Bavitz, Baker remained as the driving force in the band. History The band formed after the dissolution of Baker and Binks' prior band Parchman Farm, with Baker's then-husband Bavitz providing beats via drum machine. The first song "Battle Slang" released in 2009 was described by Pitchfork as "riff-tastic with stuttering snares and a gritty bass pulse." The demos and singles they recorded eventually became the Metal Moon album, released in 2012 on Last Gang Records. Baker explained what influenced the sound of Metal Moon to CMJ "The idea of music based on the beat, with the guitar and bass working around each other yet together in a really minimal and non-linear way. The first album had more of that type of influence, and definitely my surroundings played a role in that—living with a rapper who was producing his own music in the next room." In 2015, Last Gang also released their follow-up LP Let It Pretend, with musical influences from post-punk and bands like Duran Duran, Devo and The Stranglers.[7] After Binks' and Bavitz' departure, the Dirty Ghosts live band was composed of Erin Mcdermott on bass, and Tony Sevener (Honeycut, Summercamp) on drums - occasionally taking Sevener's place have been Paul Quattrone (Osees, !!!) and Andrew Moszynski (The Deadly Snakes). Videos The videos for "Cataract", "Ropes That Way" and "Katana Rock" were directed by Derrick Beckles. The "Cataract" video premiered on Adult Swim in October 2015. Other Projects Baker is a member of the Red Room Orchestra a collective of composers and performers who’ve played and recorded alongside the Bad Seeds, the Plastic Ono Band, Cibo Matto, Oingo Boingo, Bill Frisell and Lou Harrison. Baker's past affiliations include playing guitar in Toronto bands Armed & Hammered, The Shuttlecocks, Teen Crud Combo and Parchman Farm, the latter of which she formed after moving to San Francisco in the early 2000s.[13] She's played guitar on releases by Aesop Rock, !!!, Kimya Dawson, The Dwarves, Cage, El-P, Felt (Slug & Murs) and Kelley Stoltz. Discography 2011 Shout It In - 7", Classic Bar Music 2012 Metal Moon - LP, Last Gang Records 2012 Katana Rock/Eyes Of A Stranger 7" -Last Gang Records 2013 Third Man Records Desert Gold 7" Box Set Live