Ghost – Impera

Ghost have been shrouded in controversy since their origins. They are touted as a metal band with satanic elements within their imagery and message.

Written by: gdmonline

ARTIST: Ghost
ALBUM: Impera
LABEL: Loma Vista
SERIAL: LVR02403
YEAR: 2022

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

LINEUP: Papa Emeritus – vocals * A Group Of Nameless Souls – all instruments

TRACK LISTING: 01 Imperium * 02 Kaisarion * 03 Spillways * 04 Call Me Little Sunshine * 05 Hunters Moon * 06 Watcher In The Sky * 07 Dominion * 08 Twenties * 09 Darkness At The Heart Of My Love * 10 Griftwood * 11 Bite Of Passage * 12 Respite On The Spitalfields

RATING:

WEBLINKS: Site Link | FB Page

Background

Swedish band Ghost have been in existence since the mid noughties, and have developed a cult following based on their music, imagery and themes. From a GDM perspective, it was a case of touch and go as to whether I would write about this band, but in the end it’s the music that counts and Ghost deliver a sound that fits our demographic nearly perfectly.

Ghost have been shrouded in controversy more or less since their origins. They are touted as a metal band with satanic elements within their imagery and message. However I see the band as a modern day equivalent of Danes King Diamond, but are way more extreme. So out there in fact, that they have struck problems with the Conservative right in the USA, due to the lead singer and character Papa Emeritus who is dressed up as a satanic anti Pope. Scary viewing indeed. ‘Impera’ though, is apparently far lighter, pop based metal than their earlier albums – so it has been said.

Ghost also encountered a lawsuit from previous members regarding royalties, so much so that the band leader Tobias Forge completely gutted the band lineup in 2017, and to protect the band members anonymity, they became collectively known as A Group Of Nameless Souls. The lawsuit was eventually chucked out in 2018.

The Songs

According to the numerous reviews out there on the Net, ‘Impera’ has been pigeon-holed into the pop metal genre, which kinda flies in the face of their demonic imagery. But who am I to argue, as the album released in March 2022 jumped to top positions all around except for dimwit New Zealand where it got to a high of 38, no chance of beating out all the crap hip-hop rubbish ahead of it, which permeates the Kiwi airwaves.

Ghost released three singles in advance of the album: ‘Hunters Moon’, ‘Call Me Little Sunshine’, ‘Twenties’. A fourth single ‘Spillways’ was released in July 2022. ‘Hunters Moon’ was featured on the 2021 slasher movie ‘Helloween Kills’. Musically, Ghost should appeal to many of the GDM readership, as it’s very melodic and well paced. The quieter songs such as ‘Call Me Little Sunshine’, ‘Darkness At The Heart Of My Love’ are very cool. There are also three interludes: ‘Imperium’, ‘Dominion’ and ‘Bite Of Passage’. The winners for me are ‘Spillways’ and the aural overkill of ‘Twenties’.

In Summary

Whether this is the only Ghost album we review on GDM remains to be seen, particularly as their legacy story unfolds. Who knows where it will end up. Musically though, their sound has an overall melodic structure, so that shouldn’t surprise anyone who is an avid follower of Swedish rock/metal. To read more about the story of Ghost, go to their Wikipedia Page for extra reading.

Video

Spillways

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