Ghost

Albums: Impera, Meliora

Having seen the Tobias Forge - Ghosts songwriter - on the covers of numerous music mags over the years I initially dismissed them based on the pantomine image. However, having had many of the music distribution channels force the album Imperala down my throat, I’ve come to realise the genius of this spectacle!

Lyrics sang by front man “Papa Emeratis” - the dark pope - are often a timeless tongue in cheek commentary of empires and the circularity of society and politics. The content is poetic, exceptionally perceptive and often humourous. There are degrees of politcis, while also speaking to the darkness of the marginalised as embodied in the music video “cirice”.

All in all their discography is pretty good and singles like “Call me Little Sunshine” are excellent. Theres some serious songwriting chops and a deep craft here; in particular “Spillways” is a stand out composition that comes to mind. There are some more subtle easter eggs of Sabbath, Van Halen and Ozzy riffs if you listen carefully to the arrangements as well - particularly on “Watcher in the Sky”. If the these classic rockers had a love child with Abba you’d probably get Ghost, ’cos damn the materials catchy!