Welcome to the real 'Castlevania', bitch!
As of late, I have found it more and more difficult to be impressed by anything coming out of the Metal scene. I find that most Metal bands has become a bogged down, regurgitated shell of its former self (some bands are doing pretty well, most notably Skeletonwitch, Red Fang, and Between The Buried and Me; there are others but that’s not the point).
Yeah, I understand it’s hard to be innovative in a genre where seemingly everything has been done before. But I can’t help but feeling these bands aren’t trying, but just replaying and reissuing a sound that was popular and new 30 years ago. Oh, you added some cool movie quotes before your shitty Metalcore breakdown? Cool guys.
Then, in 2010, a band out of Sweden (yeah I know, fucking Sweden) reinvigorated some much needed creativity into the genre. That band was Ghost.
(Above: ABBA.) Yeah, this was the last popular band out of Sweden. METAL DANCING QUEEN.
I mean, these guys were just a breath of fresh air (well maybe not fresh air, more like, a breath of fresh souls being tormented and tortured at the ninth gate of hell for all eternity air, but you get the picture.)
With their unique sound, unholy lyrics and satanic high priest attire, Ghost’s, “Opus Eponymous,” reminded all the metalheads out there you can pay homage to the great bands before you without becoming carbon copy.
Cover: In Heavy Metal, album covers are key to gathering a decent following. Do you think Metallica’s “Master of Puppets” would have had the same effect if it had a picture of Geppetto controlling Pinocchio instead of a graveyard all being puppeteered by some evil demi-god? How about if Iron Maiden’s mascot Eddie was all “Glam-Rocked out” looking like a lady-man? Would they have sold as many records? Highly unlikely.
The cover of “Opus Eponymous” features Papa Emeritus (the lead singer and only band member with a name) hovering over a dark, medieval castle in his full satanic Cardinal regalia. Obviously, Ghost took heed from their predecessors and made one of the more evil looking album covers of the last couple decades. It’s just too bad no one buys records anymore, because if they did Ghost’s popularity would be at least twice the size that it is now.
Sound:Papa Emertius and his Nameless Ghouls offered a sound on “Opus Enonymous” that is simply hard to describe. Musically,
I HATE BLUE BALLS!
they offer up a 70’s metal sound to the likes of Black Sabbath or even Blue Oyster Cult. However, the soft tone of Emeritus’s vocals almost forces the listener to think twice about any comparison they could make. At points in this album his voice just seems weak like King Diamond without a range. But as I listened to this album more and more, his docile tone added a certain creepy factor to their overall sound.
The only real grip I have with this album is that during some songs, especially the tracks, “ Con Clavi Con Dio,” “Prime Mover,” and “Stand By Him,” you get this feeling that tune is about to get to it’s heaviest point and really start to rip, but then it just ends giving the listener what I like to call “Metal blue balls”. Maybe that was intended outcome (you know, don’t blow your load all on one song) but it just always felt like they were on the brink of a really heavy sound but always fell short.
Lyrics: The first four lines on the second track, “Con Clavi Con Dio” tell the listener exactly what they are in for on the rest of the record.
“Lucifer
We Are Here
For Your Praise
Evil One”
I mean, really though. I could go through each song, tell you each satanic horror story that Papa Emeritus croons to the us on this album, but I don’t want to ruin it for you. It would be like seeing a really good horror movie (“House of The Devil” and “Pontypool” are just a couple suggestions, go ahead and take them, they’re free) and spoiling the ending for all your friends afterward.
So, if you like to hear, sing, think about, or masterbate to (what have you) thoughts of Beelzebub, then this record is for you.
Impact: The impact of Ghost is a simple one. They brought the dark lord back to where he needs to be; the heavy metal community. From their creative stage presence and look (there hasn’t been stage make-up this scary since Slipknot), to their unmatched sound a vocal style; I can only presume Ghost will be influencing young Satanists for years to come.
Horrifying.
Authors note: Hey, I know this is way less in-depth than my usual posts, but I figured I’d take it easy on you guys this week. If you want more rants and ramblings about music and/or the cataclysmic disaster that I call my life; follow me on twitter @bigradmachine (shameless self-promotion! *insert Ric Flair “WOOO!” here*).
WHEELIN', DEALIN' SOCIAL MEDIA USIN' FOOL! WOOO!