GHOST: Prequelle(2018)

Funny how in less than a year one can change a opinon on something!

Ghost was a band with a gimmick. I was 49 years young this time last year when my Brother Todd as an early 50th Bday  gift to moi took me to see Iron Maiden last June(2016).

Ghost was the openers and when Todd purchased the tickets back in January of that year he was beyond psyched  that Ghost was opening.  He kept preaching them to me to check em out! I did on YouTube and what not but the whole “We’re Satan” yada yada spiel I  had been down that road before with Nikki Sixx and his bag of musical tricks with Motley Crue’s ‘Shout at the Devil” release back in 83!

Before Motley was Maiden themselves with of course the brilliant “Number of the Beast’ record. Crue and Maiden though it was basically  one track that sold the album and by golly it worked.

Ghost though have used Satan as a concept or should I say Lucifer but in a clever way. They don’t go on and on with it just occasionally perhaps as a shock tactic for today’s youth. A shock tactic which is not a shock to me anymore. Been there! Heard that! Decades ago!

Tobias Forge or whatever alias he is going with which on Prequelle Forge is known as Cardinal Copia delivers an outstanding Hard Rock Album that so far for myself is the album to beat now. Will it stand? Find out when I post later this year at Mikey’s site!

Back to the present though and Prequelle featuring 10 songs clocking in at 41  minutes is perfect! Not to long..not to short! The songs take you on a journey that begins with a little Girls voice singing the children’s nursery rhyme of  Ring around a Poise in a creepy kind of like atmospheric vibe.

Rats begins the surge and once those opening straight forward drums lock in I’m hooked! Rats is a well written dose of straight ahead rock in which Forge knows his bread and butter and this track hits you from all side’s. Real catchy chorus. Sizzling Riffs and Forge knows how to write a catchy hook. Rats sets the bar high…

Faith features huge sounding guitars and the solo on Faith is phenomenal. Second tune in and things are cooking in Ghost’s kitchen. See The Light changes gears and shows a more chill side of what Forge is doing and not pigeon holing himself into one style of Rock.

Miasma is a 5 minute plus instrumental that has snippets of Prog/Rock and a Sax solo that just wails. Expanding musical horizons and this is a great track even though Forge gets 5 minutes off with the mic!

I think Scott in his review called Dance Macabre or maybe the whole Ghost album “MUPPETRY” haha.  Dance Macabre is basically a head on collision of ABBA and Ghost! Basically  this track is fluffy rock mashed up with a solid dose of Satan. This song is pretty slick actually…

Pro Memoria has Ghost going on about Lucifer in a ballad type setting that ramps up as the drums drive forward with some real cool guttering as well. Witch Image picks up the pace and like many of these tracks has a ton of cool percussion.  The second musical only number of Prequelle is Helvetesfönster which has a different direction than Miasma. Surprising that 10 minutes of the 41 minutes of this album is just music only. But for some funky reason it works!

Life Enteral is a fitting end to the album. Nothing to heavy here folks on this track but still a bit of a kick especially in the chorus. Good tune to end the album on!

It’s always a hoot that at this time in my life when I can actually get  into a new band. I am not a hardcore Fan Boy of Ghost as I own this one and the live release before it.

Ghost though have basically taken or should I say Tobias has written an album that features a ton of throwback Rock in it sonically and the production as well is kept simple. Not over done and the guitars are mixed with a bit of edge.

I guess for me this album is what I would call Satanic Ear Candy!