Ghost

For this final entry, I would like to share with all of you one of my favorite bands with special energy and great performance for this month: Ghost. Ghost is a hard rock/heavy metal band formed in 2008 in Linköping, Sweden. In 2010 they released their first demo which contains the single "Elizabeth"; later they released their debut album "Opus Eponymous" which has received positive reviews and with it, they have become known in different parts of the world.

Ghost is easily recognizable by their eccentric live performance. Five of the six band members dress virtually identically and cover their faces with masks. They are called Nameless Ghouls and represent each of the five elements: fire, water, air, earth, and ether (also known as quintessence), and wear their respective alchemical symbols on their costumes.

The most notable member of the band is the vocalist, who wears a prosthetic face with a skull pattern, looking like what could be described as a "demonic Antipope." Each album cycle has brought a change in the band's appearance. The group's vocalist embodies the band's "mascot", a satanic priest known as Papa Emeritus. There have been four different characters taking the name Papa Emeritus. The first welcomed the second Papa Emeritus on December 12, 2012, in Linköping. On June 3, 2015, Papa Emeritus II welcomed his younger brother as the new Papa Emeritus in Linköping after being "fired" for failing to fulfill his duty to overthrow governments and churches. 

Papa Emeritus II and Papa Emeritus III were stated to be only 3 months apart in age. On September 30, 2017, during a concert in Gothenburg, Papa Emeritus III was dragged off stage by two men, who then escorted a new character, Papa Emeritus 0, onto the stage to introduce the band's next chapter. Copia is currently Papa Emeritus IV. Officially named at the final concert of the Prequelle album tour, "A Pale Tour Named Death", on March 3, 2020, in Mexico City.

Ghost´s music has been categorized into various genres, although critics usually classify it as heavy metal, doom metal, hard rock, and less commonly as progressive rock and psychedelic rock. Their lyrics are unabashedly Satanic; one Ghoul said, "the first album is about the coming arrival of the Devil, speaking very much in biblical terms, something like the Church saying Judgment Day is coming. Infestissumam is about the presence of the Devil and the Antichrist." However, the band has said several times that their image is all tongue in cheek, citing that "We don't have an agenda. We're an entertainment band." Infestissumam also deals with "how people refer to a deity or a God, issues like submissiveness and superstition, the horrors of being religious."

Now that you already read the story of this band, you can enjoy a special playlist with my top ten songs of this amazing band:

10. He is (Meliora, 2015)

9. Con Clavi con Dio (Ceremony and Devotion, 2017)

8. Ritual (Opus Eponymous, 2010)

7. Witch Image (Prequelle, 2018)

6. Elizabeth (Opus Eponymous, 2010)

5. I´m a Marionette (Infestissumam, 2013)

4. Waiting for the Night (Infestissumam, 2013)

3. Jigolo Har Meggido (Infestissumam, 2013)

2. Nocturnal Me (Meliora, 2015)

1. Prime Mover (Opus Eponymous, 2010)