Not even a year removed from Impera Ghost has released Phantomime, a five-song ep with an eclectic variety of cover songs.  Let’s shoot right to the last song, “We Don’t Need Another Hero” (Tina Turner cover).  This song was in the Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome movie, one of Tina’s best songs, and especially since this music icon has recently passed on, RIP, makes this cover all the more special.  Starting with a nice guitar riff to accompany the rest of the music, Papa’s vocals sound a little washed out and the keyboards sound excellent as it transports us to the 80’s.  When the bombastic chorus comes in, it makes me realize – Ghost is going to play this cover song live, at some point.  I’ve seen them live, several times, and I know when bands usually hit the main lights on key points in a song.  Once the chorus erupts I can imagine all the white lights lighting up on each of those main chorus points.  It would light up the place magnificently.  If no one in the world knew Tina Turner had originally written this, we fans would have assumed this was an original Ghost song – this cover is excellent.

“Jesus He Knows Me” (Genesis cover), is also one of the best Genesis songs, and Ghost again makes it their own.  The song gallops at a brisk pace and the guitar riffing, transforms this song into a metal tune.  The band should share this song with Phil Collins, sooner rather than later.  The rock icon has been quite sick and I hope he pulls through.  The lyrics also fall in line with Ghost’s imagery as well, to an extent.  The original lyrics were written about how society uses the imagery of Jesus to plaster on everything from television to billboards to magazines all to make a quick buck and this is ripe for the picking for Ghost, who have written many satanic lyrics, however Ghost have shown in the years, their tongue-and-cheek, sarcastic side when taking a stab at religion.  Such an excellent rendition.

There are other covers on this, but I want to hone in on arguably one of the best Iron Maiden songs the band has ever written, “Phantom of the Opera”, from the band’s 1980 self-titled legendary album.  Maiden are my favorite metal band, of all time, Black Sabbath, being a close second.  Therefore how was I going to fair rating this cover, because I knew I was going to be tough on this song, if the cover blew chunks.  Original Maiden singer, Paul Di’Anno, even took to social media blasting the piss out of the cover.  He stated the song had no heart and that he hated the cover.  I love Di’Anno’s vocals on the first two Maiden albums.  For that band’s era and what his vocals brought to metal, was pretty frickin’ amazing; however Paul has had his bouts with serious health issues for decades and seems to always live in the past.  He has had negative rants before, and part of this attitude, from what I have read about earlier Maiden is in fact one of the reasons the band moved on from him after the second album. At the end of the day at least we can say is the dude is consistent!  Well Di’Anno, I will have to disagree with you kind sir, because this cover song is massive and owns!

The original sounding moments of the classic opening guitar riff and melodies are all there and then adding of the aria’s of the backing vocals give this song an epic build-up.  Papa sounds great and he sounds like Papa, he is not trying to emulate Di’Anno.  After the chorus the incoming keyboards add that extra layer of excellence.  The bass guitar is also played extraordinarily well in order to capture the Harris signature plucking.  The ethereal guitar solo at the three-minute mark captures the original to the proverbial T, as does the bass solo afterward and guitar melodies.  The heavier section, with the riff, towards the song’s end, is scaled back a bit in order to usher in a more atmospheric approach.  It works well.  Now does this song best the original Maiden classic?  Of course not, in many ways not even close, because the original song is more aggressive and of course it’s frickin’ Iron Maiden mofos.  But Ghost injects many of their own signature elements, and creating a song, that sounds like they wrote it for one of their albums.  The band obviously loves Maiden, or else they would not have covered it, and for me Ghost crafted this cover with much care and class!

Phantomime is not essential, but for me, a collector of all their material, it is.  This is a fun ep which transports us to the sounds of various 70’s / 80’s musical genres and I enjoy the eclectic nature of this release.  This is quite a lot of fun!

In 2018 they released their fourth album Prequelle, and I picked up the limited edition version and the album cover is still bonkers, off the wall killer, and quite honestly those were the highlights for me.  The album fell flat with many long-time fans because the more commercially and poppier accessible songs, the band would usually include on each of their albums, took center stage and was the entire album.  The heavier riffs, incorporating some of their prior influence like Mercyful Fate, Megadeth and Blue Öyster Cult were pretty much non existent and the songs were just poppy metal and happy songs.  Now the lyrical content of that album, was another thing that was creative-I like those lyrics, but honestly the band phoned that album in.  It’s part of my Ghost collection, but not an album I go back to listen to.  Many close friends, especially Jason “SlimShady in the Brambles”, felt the same about that album.

Then Ghost released a new single – “Hunter’s Moon” and I was like…well that’s the Ghost I love.  Immediately this new song crushed every song on Prequelle.  It was a return to form.  The thumping bass and heavy bass drums added to the greatness.  The return of their catchy guitar hooks, vocal lines, creepy melodies and speedier moments were also joined by a much heavier guitar tone, which was last heard on 2015’s Meliora.  Papa’s vocals were in top form and the speedy part was definitely a welcome return to their earlier recordings.  I was apprehensive though, thinking the rest of Impera would not be as good as this song, but I was wrong, hell Impera, is an excellent album and if you were to erase the sour and vomitrocious taste of Prequelle, from your mouth, than Impera should actually be their fourth album, it would have perfectly followed Meliora.

12 songs in 46 minutes, 3 of which are instrumentals and the already awesome “Hunter’s Moon” are on this album.  After the opening instrumental, “Kaisarion” then comes blasting in with an almost AC/DC classic opening guitar riff and Papa lets out a scream to wake the dead.  The song is on the poppier side of things, but immediately noticeable are the guitar hooks and tight rhythm section.  The catchy riffs and vocal patterns are such a welcome return and check out the guitar melodies.  Drenched in classic metal sounds and blood and sweat, is what this song is about.  The song has some speedier moments and the chorus is too damn catchy.  This is a fun and catchy album opener.  “Spillways” has moments that would not be out of place on their second scorching album Infestissumam.  Epic vocal patterns, 80’s sounding keyboards and a nice guitar solo.  Great song and some cool drum patterns.  The damn chorus is beyond catchy.  If you’re not singing this song, right after the song ends, it’s because “Call Me Little Sunshine” is up next.  This song plain rules.  Starting with an opening acoustic moment the thumping 808 bass drops are incorporated and was something actually not surprising to hear on a Ghost album.  They go for bombastic and over-the-top sounds so this fits with the song.  A slower and moodier piece I feel playing this song live, with that thumping bass, will be a highlight at that concert.  Super catchy, the song is drenched in atmospheric 80’s metal and I’d imagine fans would hold up their smartphone lights to this song.

“Watcher in the Sky” has Infestissumam and the band’s classic debut Opus Eponymous sound all over this track.  The song hops, almost makes you want to be-bop to it.  The double bass moments are well placed and the guitar riffs and melodies are perfect, especially when being played with the ridiculously catchy chorus.  This chorus and aria sounding vocals and epic buildup moments towards the end of the song is musical genius.  Who the F comes up with this stuff???  Oh yeah, Ghost does.  The song is terrific and then among all the other great songs, another standout is “Twenties”-my pick for the best song on this album.  Excellent buildup, which is brooding and then right into a thumping stop and start part with excellent sounding drums.  This song would have sounded awesome on any of their first 3 albums, but mainly Meliora, because this song has creepy and moody elements to it.  Vocal whispers and a wide range of other vocal tones from Papa erupt throughout the song.  The guitar tone is heavy and really pounds home that rhythm section.  Due to the drum pattern and parts of the guitar riffs one could almost suggest this has a poly-rhythmic element and it works well.  The chorus and guitar melodies and a plethora of sounds are beyond catchy and hey those lyrics are terrific. I never thought I’d hear Papa sing “Listen up, you motherfuckers..”, but he sure does on this song.  It’s tongue and cheek, as the lyrics are on this song, but man I love this part and the song.

The rest of Impera is also great and also features the best production to date on any Ghost album.  Beyond loud, over the top and the mix captures all their nuances which make Ghost great.  To have Ghost return to form is such a sigh of relief, since I appreciate this band quite a lot and feel the hatred from some people, regarding this band, is unwarranted-but to each their own, right?  If you disliked their prior album (the album which shall no longer be named) then rest assured, this is not like that album but is a continuation and call to roots, of their first 3 albums.  Impera has an outstanding album cover and checks out the extensive cd booklet.  The band has always put a lot of energy into making their booklets packed with lyrics, drawings and pictures and this one is excellent.  Yes, Ghost has returned to form with Impera, yes this album rocks and quite honestly will be a highlight for me, by year’s end and beyond.  I’ve listened to this album, since it was released, about 50x already.  Buy or Die!

Their 3^rd album, Meliora, feels incredibly rushed though.  I was so looking forward to this album, thinking, how they could possibly top tunes like “Year Zero” or “Elizabeth”?  The answer is that they can’t – well, not on this album.  It’s not a complete wash though, so I will go through the positives first, before I rip this a new a-hole.

Album opener “Spirit” is pure classic Ghost, getting into the galloping power metal speed territory that the band flirts with on some of their tunes.  “He Is”, “Mummy Dust” and “Deus in Absentia” are also all great songs, I will say.  Memorable choruses, riffs, and song arrangements.  In many ways, parts of this album come across a little heavier/riff-oriented than their previous albums.  The production is top notch, and the digipak packaging is exceptional, with lyrics and memorable drawings, just like on the last album.

Now for the not-so-good.  The rest of the album seems like a bunch of songs that were not even good enough for B-sides on their previous 2 albums.  Really, they are mediocre at best. They still retain  Ghost‘s memorable aspects, but they’re kind of boring as well.  I was expecting the band to use more heavier chants and choruses, ideas which had started to become fully realized on the second Ghost album, but that is not the case here.  In fact, the songs are more streamlined and fairly one-dimensional.  Ghost needs to go in the direction I suggested, as well as becoming more theatrical, and not toning that aspect down. I really feel this would further their sound and make them even more interesting.  The band also throws 2 filler tracks onto Meliora, making this actually an 8 track album. The fillers, while interesting in their ambience, could have been included on an EP with better tunes.

Meliora is more of a grower, but it is rushed.  They should have taken a little longer to think this album out before releasing it.  Disappointing.

And I’m happy for their success. I loved Opus Eponymous and its saccharine, satanic retro-occult shtick (which one reviewer brilliantly termed as “Scooby-Doom”). Yet something didn’t turn out quite right on Infestissumam. It sounds fantastic, and it brings in new elements like ABBA worship and surf rock shimmy, but for Pinhead’s sake, where are all the hooks?

“Ritual” was a perfectly subversive pop song, a shot of devilish glee (and viral-savvy success) that combined churchyard organs and doomy riffs with deliciously blasphemous lyrics. Most of all, it had an insidiously singalong chorus that wormed its way into your brain and pulsed there like a parasite. First single “Secular Haze,” by comparison, features creepy carnival organs with a lurching rhythm, but the chorus is as lifeless as a corpse in a failed, well, ritual. That’s a real sin, especially for a pop song. (Loved the ’60s Top of the Pops-style video though.) “Per Aspera ad Inferi” has the same problem – the verses are a pounding Gothic dirge, but the chorus is all crescendo, no climax. It’s a relentless serial-killer chase that somehow never catches its quarry. At least “Secular Haze” and “Per Aspera” sound like eerie ear-candy; “Body and Blood” and “Idolatrine” abandon the sardonic, minor-key menace that made Opus Eponymous so memorable. If “Ritual” was a sugar skull filled with bile, then these two songs are little more than Halloween cookies.

Onto the good stuff: the remaining five tracks on Infestissumam are closer to ‘Goddamn!’ than ‘Fail Satan’. “Year Zero” is the real standout here – a thundering, tell-tale heartbeat complete with Gregorian vocals, Grand Guignol organs and a soaring and dramatic chorus. With its anthemic chant of “Asmodeus, Satanas, Lucifer,” it’s “Year Zero,” and not “Secular Haze,” that should be freaking out parents across the country as their kids don T-shirts emblazoned with the death’s-head grin of Papa Emeritus II. “Ghuleh/Zombie Queen” is the other campy album highlight, and strands David Bowie, Dick Dale and ABBA on a deserted island with the Horror of Party Beach. It’s really two songs in one – the first half a piano-driven croon, and the second a psychedelic surf rock shamble. Another great chorus too, especially with the wild organs echoing in the background. “Jigolo Har Megiddo” is a gloomy, organ-grinder Beach Boys tune with burlesque-swagger drums and a creepy-cool falsetto during the solo/bridge. The album closes with two solid spook-rockers, “Depth of Satan’s Eyes” and “Monstrance Clock.” Both feature the sinister lyrics and hooky melodies that made tracks like “Elizabeth,” “Death Knell” or “Stand By Him” so much fun on the debut.

There are also two bonus tracks if you get the deluxe version of Infestissumam – “La Mantra Mori,” an understated and atmospheric ballad, and an off-kilter cover of ABBA‘s “I’m a Marionette,” a song which was already kooky and theatrical to begin with. Ghost‘s version just makes it a bit creepier, but it’s nowhere near as inspired as the brilliant, dark transformation of The Beatles‘ “Here Comes the Sun” from Opus Eponymous.

Remember what Mia Farrow said at the end of Rosemary’s Baby when she sees baby Andy (Christ) for the first time? He’s a perfectly formed little baby, all pink and warm and full of promise, but his eyes! “What have you done to it? What have you done to its eyes?” Infestissumam is unholy, but it’s also uneven. Despite the superior production, atmosphere and overall listenability, it should have been bristling with better hooks – especially given the band’s subversive pop ambitions. The Nameless Ghouls have plunged their gilded dagger into the mainstream, but they slice an artery when they could have punctured the heart.

The mysterious Ghost come from Sweden, but not much else is known about them aside from a few promo shots, which feature shadowy figures led by a skull-masked Satanic priest. Rumor has it that this is actually a side project from members of Watain and Repugnant (and, depending on who you believe, Fenriz on drums), but the music is nothing like those bands. Instead, we’re treated to a groovy, retro blend of ‘70s heavy psychedelic rock, NWOBHM and organ-drenched doom. Think Blue Öyster Cult, Mercyful Fate and Black Sabbath, but all done up with a catchy, cheeky pop sensibility and paired with cult Satanic lyrics.

If that sounds like a gimmick, well yeah, it is, but it’s also really freakin’ cool. First off, that cover art is just badass. If I were a teenager in the late ‘70s, that would be hanging right above my bed, along with some Star Wars, Master of Reality and blacklight posters. And I’d have “Ritual” – the most addictive thing I’ve heard all year – blaring over and over (on vinyl of course). Just wait until you hear Ghost’s honey-throated frontman crooning the chorus: “This chapel of ritual smells of dead human sacrifices from the altar.” You can’t help but laugh – and then you’ll play it over and over again as well.

Ghost isn’t all pop, of course – they’ve got just enough ballsy swagger and doom atmosphere to offset those syrupy choruses. Plus there’s not a single growl or shriek on the entire thing, proving that you don’t have to be extreme to be evil. (I say that with a wink; this is about as scary as a Hammer horror film festival). “Con Clavi Con Dio” kicks off with lurid keyboards and a lurching, downtuned guitar before the vocals spiral into a cellar-ritual chant. “Satan Prayer” wraps slithery melodies, a tell-tale-heartbeat bassline and eerie organs around its blasphemous refrain. And “Death Knell’s” creeping, minimalist doom leads into a soaring chorus, like Candlemass murdering The Beach Boys in some lonely California inlet.

“Ritual” is still the best track on here – the perfect blend of hooks, attitude and smirking glee – while others like witch-anthem “Stand By Him” or King Diamond-lite “Elizabeth” trade a little too much of their menace for mirth. However, Opus Eponymous is still all very listenable and entertaining, which is why I instantly put it on my top ten for 2010.

The kvlt among you may already be vomiting into your pewter D&D skull goblets, but anyone else with an appreciation for high-concept ear-candy should dig this like an exhumed corpse. No matter who these guys really are, it’s clear they have a love for cult-trash nostalgia, fog-shrouded showmanship and just great, catchy songwriting. Can’t wait to see them live if they ever tour, and can’t wait for their next collection of sinister, sugary Satanic hymns. Hail Ghost! Ghost lives!

     Enveloped in a shroud of mystery and standing anonymous beneath the painted faces, hoods and robes which their sect demand, the six nameless ghouls of GHOST deliver litanies of pulsating heavy rock and stimulating lyrics which “glorify and glamorize the disgusting and sacrilegious”.  The music and philosophies of GHOST specifically target “individuals who have a void in their life perhaps caused by some form of emotional trauma or upset” (research suggests these are most likely adolescents); this dearth can then be alluringly filled by GHOST’s music and philosophies, “so that in time the easily manipulated will come to share the views and goals of the Coven’s ministry and can prepare their own plans for the downfall of humanity.”

     A sampling of the sextet’s suggestive strain is available for ingestion immediately as Stereogum premieres the shadowy GHOST song “Ritual”.  Check out the unsettling, “chirpiest song about human sacrifice” ever put to tape today at this location. 

      “Our mission is not as much about conversion as it is about underlining which path you all have chosen to go, and where it will ultimately lead you,” declared GHOST in a rare communiqué.  “We are the file playing back in your digital earpiece while you are carelessly approaching the end.”
    
     The track listing for GHOST‘s Opus Eponymous is as follows:

          1.) Deus Culpa
          2.) Con Clavi Con Dio
          3.) Ritual
          4.) Elizabeth
          5.) Stand by Him
          6.) Satan Prayer
          7.) Death Knell
          8.) Prime Mover
          9.) Genisis

     GHOST is: Vocals – ???, Guitar – ???, Bass – ???, Drums – ???, Keyboards – ???, Chants – ???.