{"id":11072,"date":"2013-04-10T00:00:27","date_gmt":"2013-04-10T00:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=11072"},"modified":"2013-04-12T00:57:05","modified_gmt":"2013-04-12T00:57:05","slug":"album-review-ghost-infestissumam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/album-review-ghost-infestissumam\/","title":{"rendered":"GHOST – Infestissumam | Album \/ EP Reviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

GHOST
Infestissumam<\/strong><\/span>
\n\"\"
\nUniversal Republic (2013)<\/span>
Rating: 7\/10<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Where do I start? It seems that a majority of reviewers who\u2019ve joined the mysterious cult of the band known as Ghost are too afraid to give such a band a negative review, being that these occult-influenced Swedes are very much the \u201cin thing\u201d at the moment.<\/p>\n

I wasn\u2019t overly impressed by the band\u2019s 2010 debut album Opus Eponymous<\/em><\/a>, my opinion being that the combo, for all their esoteric nonsense, was merely style over substance. So I hoped and prayed to the dark lords of hell that Infestissumam<\/em> would prove me wrong, but again I\u2019m left scratching my head in frustration.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m of the view that these guys wouldn\u2019t have made such an impact if it weren\u2019t for their frequent visits to the local costume store \u2013 Papa Emeritus II and his Nameless Ghouls are clearly of the belief that every day is Halloween \u2013 and their brand of pop-sike just doesn\u2019t live up to the hype. I\u2019m guessing that this sound is new to many people, and this is why Ghost have made such an impact on the scene, but peel back the foggy veil and you\u2019ll find that Infestissumam<\/em> has a limited shelf life and wears thin very quickly.<\/p>\n

This time around the creepy combo aim for a darker approach, although a majority of tracks may disappoint the metalheads among you who may have been expecting a heavier affair. \u2018Per Aspera Ad Inferi\u2019 is probably the album\u2019s doomiest cut, and the chugging guitars allow easy access for the ears, given added 70s mysticism by the swirling organ and creaky musicianship that evokes images of obscure psychedelia that saturated the late 60s with its horror themes, but it soon becomes a predictable affair.<\/p>\n

There is nothing original about Ghost whatsoever, the band simply finding their niche within the stale rock \u2019n\u2019 roll circus at the moment which has become all too quickly drenched in occult rock imitation.<\/p>\n

Infestissumam<\/em> isn\u2019t all bad, and Ghost do shine \u2013 albeit dimly \u2013 on the tip-toe creepiness of album closer \u2018Monstrance Clock\u2019 with its Munsters<\/em>-style go-go beat and summery \u201cCome together\u201d<\/em> chants. As usual, the organ wheezes over proceedings, bathing the musty catacombs in a kaleidoscopic light.<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, \u2018Jigolo Har Megiddo\u2019 hops in on an upbeat plod that reminds me of The Kinks\u2019 1966 hit single \u2018Sunny Afternoon\u2019, before once again resorting to a watery doom-tinged pop rocker.<\/p>\n

The big numbers of the album include the spooky \u2018Year Zero\u2019 with its eerie chants that sound as if they\u2019ve been lifted from the local monastery. The track drifts into a poppy goth-laced echo, but there\u2019s nothing here that enables it to rise above Pet Shop Boys at their most experimental. Yes, I said Pet Shop Boys; just check out that infectious drum beat.<\/p>\n

\u2018Secular Haze\u2019 is equally accessible, emerging from its mansion on a carousel jig. This is a carnival of unearthly delights that rides high on a King Diamond-styled groove, only lacking the metal, evoking images of rainy Blue \u00d6yster Cult.<\/p>\n

The main problem however with Ghost is their inability to rise above the mediocre, and much of Infestissumam<\/em> is lacking in depth. Only the piano-led \u2018Ghuleh \/ Zombie Queen\u2019 with its vocal caress sends a chill \u2013 it\u2019s an epic seven-minute prog haze that finally gets going on a swingin\u2019 go-go beat. \u2018Body And Blood\u2019 is equally esoteric, but again has all the appeal of a Sunday afternoon spent standing outside a freezing cold church.<\/p>\n

Ghost are all too happy to celebrate the existence of almighty Satan with their psych-rock, but I\u2019m always left wanting more. The live experience is no doubt more rewarding, but how long these guys can keep up the theatre is something that remains to be seen, because despite the hype and gothic intentions, little of this transfers well to record.<\/p>\n

Infestissumam<\/em> offers us ten tracks, but it\u2019s going to take a lot more than a handful of satanic sermons to drag me in. Papa Emeritus II and his clan of hooded ghouls are probably going to end up being pretty successful, but their true effects are something akin to a spring evening \u2013 mild at best. I\u2019m sure they won\u2019t lose any sleep over my review, but I\u2019ll stick to The Vampires Of Dartmoore\u2019s Dracula\u2019s Music Cabinet<\/em> (1969), Lucifer\u2019s Black Mass<\/em> (1971) and Bram Stoker\u2019s Heavy Rock Spectacular<\/em> (1972) for ghoulish sincerity.<\/p>\n

Neil Arnold<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

GHOSTInfestissumam Universal Republic (2013)Rating: 7\/10 Where do I start? It seems that a majority of reviewers who\u2019ve joined the mysterious cult of the band known as Ghost are too afraid to give such a band a negative review, being that these occult-influenced Swedes are very much the \u201cin thing\u201d at the moment. I wasn\u2019t overly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[375],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ghost"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11072"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11072\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11109,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11072\/revisions\/11109"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}