01: Ghost - IMPERA
2022 – Loma Vista
And here we kick off Album Month 2022 with an album I have listened to
A LOT since its release earlier this year. Typically I try to listen to albums I
don’t fully know (or know at all) when I do an album month, but I love this one
so much I could not not feature it. So why not start with it?
In a nutshell: This album is a modernized version of my childhood music listenings. And I LOVE it!
[Just to note: Although I’m virtually going song by song here, I will not be doing that in general for this or any other album month. I just really love this album. lol]
From the very opening to the end of the final fadeout, I am transported to my bedroom when I was moving toward and/starting my teen years. All the time spent making mixtapes and covers for them, using my headphones to hear the end of the fadeouts to know where to stop my tape… I may have to revisit the mixtape thing in another article, but that was where this album brought me. And to all the hours I spent practicing my singing to Lita Ford and all the hair metal bands I got into back those days. Ah! The nostalgia…
At the same time, this album felt so fresh, so different from what a lot of bands are doing. It even took me a few listens to truly get lost in it, it was so not what I was expecting. (What was I expecting? I’ not entirely sure. I knew it would progress from Prequelle–another fantastic offering–but I know I wasn’t expecting full on arena rock. lol) Where was I… Yes… I am aware that there are a lot of old school bands still doing stuff, but I feel so much of it is just the band on repeat, not bringing anything really new to their sound. Ghost, even with their general musical formula, went in new directions while still keeping the energy and feel of what the fans have come to expect from them. Then they tie in the hair metal nostalgia and bring it up a few levels. *applause* Some fans don’t care for this or the previous Ghost album, feeling them to be too commercial or a sell out move, but I do not feel that way at all. With all things considered, the music, the story was always moving this way, and I can’t imagine that Tobias Forge would be happy doing the same thing over and over without any growth or bringing his many varied influences into it. Some bands and musicians are happy with keeping the status quo, and others are not. Tobias Forge is one that is not.
Anyhoo…
After the instrumental opening “Imperium” (which will reintroduce itself into the album later on), “Kaisarion” surprises you with a screaming Tobias, which threw me for a loop at first listen. (I mean, wow! I didn’t know he could do that! lol) The song is great, with high energy and strong guitar lines and riffs. Definitely a good opener. However, I have grown to adore the following track, “Spillways”, far and above it. So many songs on this album beg for sing-a-longs, and I LOVE singing along to this one. It gets stuck in my head often and I am not at all mad about that. It’s becoming my absolute favorite of the entire album.
The lead single, “Call Me Little Sunshine” didn’t grab me when I first heard it ahead of the album release, but then one day it just clicked and I love it now. It’s not in my top 5, but it’s a great, moody track that flows well into “Hunter’s Moon”, another great track which was also featured in the film ‘Halloween Kills’, the most recent installment of the Halloween franchise (no, I have not seen it; gore horror is not my thing). Of the two (which I also heard a lot ahead of album release), “Hunter’s Moon” edges “Sunshine” out. I love the way they brought the film narrative in, with that sinister feel yet disturbing way of hinting that, despite his vile, psychopathic acts, he is a human underneath it. It’s creepy but so fucking awesome.
And then comes the big rocking, sing-a-long song meant to be played live: “Watcher In The Sky”. This was the song that truly embedded the ‘childhood making mixtapes and listening to tunes’ feeling. The fade out is loooong, as some have complained, but it made me the happiest, taking me back to the old 80s rock albums that had fade outs aplenty. So many songs on this album bring that feel and beg for people to sing it, it really brings me joy. I miss music like that… “Watcher” was my favorite in the early times listening to IMPERA, and is still in my top 5. Throw those arms up and sing that chorus, folks!
After the instrumental intro, “Dominion”, we come to one of the most polarizing songs in Ghost fandom: “Twenties”. Is it reggaeton? Why are there horns? What is with that weird chorus vocal and campy lyrics? So on and so on. “Why, Ghost? WHYYYYY????”, so many cry. Me? I love it! It’s easily the standout track of the album, with all the elements I mentioned and its heavy roll underneath it all. A former president here in the US that people liken to resemble a Cheeto was part of the inspiration of this song, hence the campy feel and lyrics. I think it was a genius way to represent this aspect of the narrative Ghost is building with the album, bridging the 1920s and 2020s and all they hold (search the web for that stuff; I’m not rehashing what hundreds of articles and interviews already have talked about, mmm’kay?). I personally think it’s a fun, stellar track worth multiple listens.
“The Darkness At the Heart of My Love” is such a wonderful, soulful ballad with sinister undertones… It’s honestly pretty gorgeous and I could listen to it over and over and over… It’s a ‘raise your lighters’ type of song that would set the arena sprinklers off for sure. (So don’t accidentally set your house on fire when you listen. That would make Tobias sad and it will ruin your stuff.) It’s definitely in my top 5 along with the following track, “Griftwood”, which is about the second in command from the aforementioned former president (I don’t care to have their names on my blog). The entire song is so good, so catchy, so well written I have to give kudos. And the “holy mother’ bridge… *chef’s kiss* Beautiful. It is a fantastic track to add to the Ghost pantheon.
And then comes the big rocking, sing-a-long song meant to be played live: “Watcher In The Sky”. This was the song that truly embedded the ‘childhood making mixtapes and listening to tunes’ feeling. The fade out is loooong, as some have complained, but it made me the happiest, taking me back to the old 80s rock albums that had fade outs aplenty. So many songs on this album bring that feel and beg for people to sing it, it really brings me joy. I miss music like that… “Watcher” was my favorite in the early times listening to IMPERA, and is still in my top 5. Throw those arms up and sing that chorus, folks!
After the instrumental intro, “Dominion”, we come to one of the most polarizing songs in Ghost fandom: “Twenties”. Is it reggaeton? Why are there horns? What is with that weird chorus vocal and campy lyrics? So on and so on. “Why, Ghost? WHYYYYY????”, so many cry. Me? I love it! It’s easily the standout track of the album, with all the elements I mentioned and its heavy roll underneath it all. A former president here in the US that people liken to resemble a Cheeto was part of the inspiration of this song, hence the campy feel and lyrics. I think it was a genius way to represent this aspect of the narrative Ghost is building with the album, bridging the 1920s and 2020s and all they hold (search the web for that stuff; I’m not rehashing what hundreds of articles and interviews already have talked about, mmm’kay?). I personally think it’s a fun, stellar track worth multiple listens.
“The Darkness At the Heart of My Love” is such a wonderful, soulful ballad with sinister undertones… It’s honestly pretty gorgeous and I could listen to it over and over and over… It’s a ‘raise your lighters’ type of song that would set the arena sprinklers off for sure. (So don’t accidentally set your house on fire when you listen. That would make Tobias sad and it will ruin your stuff.) It’s definitely in my top 5 along with the following track, “Griftwood”, which is about the second in command from the aforementioned former president (I don’t care to have their names on my blog). The entire song is so good, so catchy, so well written I have to give kudos. And the “holy mother’ bridge… *chef’s kiss* Beautiful. It is a fantastic track to add to the Ghost pantheon.
And finally, we return to the beginning with the intro “Bite of Passage '' into “Respite On the Spitalfields”. I think this is a perfect way to end the album, bringing it full circle yet hinting toward the future. Haunting qualities, heavy underbellies in parts, and somehow an almost hopeful feel. This song kinda hits me in the heart similarly to “Darkness..”, and I love the ending so very much. It’s the perfect way to wrap it up and make you want to start the whole album over (after you sat in silence for a moment to take it all in, of course).
Everyone’s got their views on IMPERA, disputing why songs are better than others, why it is or isn’t “too commercial’, etc etc, and that’s to be expected. Music is a subjective thing for people, after all. So I know people could argue with me on my views or whatever, and that’s cool. I just adore this album and really, really want to hear it live. (Here’s hoping that chance will come to me!) It just lifts me up, has me rocking, singing, and smiling, and I am totally here for that.
~*~
Perhaps I’ve piqued your interest? Give it a listen, give it a purchase if you like it, and check out what else the band’s got going on at the links below.
Everyone’s got their views on IMPERA, disputing why songs are better than others, why it is or isn’t “too commercial’, etc etc, and that’s to be expected. Music is a subjective thing for people, after all. So I know people could argue with me on my views or whatever, and that’s cool. I just adore this album and really, really want to hear it live. (Here’s hoping that chance will come to me!) It just lifts me up, has me rocking, singing, and smiling, and I am totally here for that.
~*~
Perhaps I’ve piqued your interest? Give it a listen, give it a purchase if you like it, and check out what else the band’s got going on at the links below.
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