Ghost - Prequelle (201 44.1-24
Country: Sweden
Genre: Heavy Metal
Format: FLAC (*tracks)
Quality: Lossless [44,1kHz/24 bit]
Time: 41:43
Full Size: 41:43


One can't help but see in Ghost and its multitasking omnipotent leader Tobias Forge the worthy successor of a shock rock so dear to Alice Cooper. More than just a band, it is a complete immersion in a show, in which everything is connected. But like with Cooper, nothing must be overlooked, especially not the music. Indeed, if the whole structure holds together, it is mostly thanks to a devilishly effective sound, for which nothing is left to chance in Forge's meticulous compositions. This is why Ghost succeeds where some rare and brave bands have failed in the past thirty years, like Demon, who tried a rather similar approach as early as 1983. They are often criticized for their lack of creativity, but how many bands really do manage to blend genres without it resulting in an unpalatable stew? With four albums and two EPs, Ghost has not only forged a style identifiable from the very first listen, but it also keeps on improving by thoughtfully and cleverly integrating increasingly varied ingredients to its sound. To the point of taking up the saxophone, or collaborating with a specialist (Gavin Fitzjohn on Miasma).

This Prequelle doesn't evoke Blue Öyster Cult as much as numerous bands that brought glory to the AOR genre (for album-oriented rock, which later became adult-oriented rock) in the United States, or hard FM on our side of the pond. Particularly these bands that had a hint of progressive about them, like Zebra, Triumph, Styx, or pop, like Cheap Trick, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, Toto, Winger, and at last a touch of pomp like Queen, Meat Loaf and Ambrosia. More than ever, Forge, a.k.a. Cardinal Copia, was able to shake things up and add a variety to his style, even if his talent for metal shows rather in quality than quantity. Except for the powerful and contagious Rats - which bears a striking resemblance to Ozzy in his The Ultimate Sin days −, the song Faith − which appears to be in the same vein as Dio's The Last in Line − and a Dance Macabre worthy of Scorpion (a song which evokes the Germans' Big City Nights), the album favours lighter, more melodic songs, even atmospheric - but not drowsy - instrumentals. Worth pointing out is this Helvetesfonster, quite similar to Steve Wilson and Mikael Åkerfeldt's project Storm Corrosion, and with good reason as they contributed stunning acoustic guitar parts. Ghost has even become an expert on finely carved ballads, as illustrated by an almost symphonic Pro Memoria. When Life Eternal, the other plainer ballad, ends, Prequelle leaves the impression of being cut short, which is not necessarily a bad thing. With ten tracks and over forty minutes of music, i.e. one less than Meliora, it falls on the good side of average. Some will argue that the album is missing one or two catchy tunes worthy of the unstoppable Square Hammer. But all in all, the final product will no doubt convert plenty of new followers and please the old-timers. © Jean-Pierre Sabouret/Qobuz






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