"Ritual" is one of the first songs that Ghost ever recorded as a band, given that a demo version of it appeared on the band's 2009 demo tape. Forge's somewhat nasally vocals (which remind me a great deal of R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe) narrate a Satanic ritual as participants attempt to appease Satan to usher in the coming of the Antichrist. This is a highlight on Opus Eponymous for me because I love its energy. It has somewhat of a punk rock sound to it, and its chorus, in which Papa Emeritus I (Forge's first fictitious character to front the band) sings, "This chapel of ritual smells of dead human sacrifices from the altar," is very catchy. My favorite part of the song is the guitar solo heard starting at around the 3:54 mark which reminds me of the opening of one of my favorite R.E.M. songs, "Leave." Opus Eponymous then offers up (see what I did there?) "Elizabeth," another highlight for me. I love this one not only because of its sound (especially its beautiful and melodic chorus in which Papa dares a somewhat higher register than usual on this album) but also because of its lyrical content - tackling a deeply disturbing but also fascinating event from history - Elizabeth Bishop's legendary murders. The Countess Elizabeth Bathory was a noblewoman living in Hungary in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and is one of the most notorious serial killers in history, having killed hundreds of young girls. (The number, in fact, is estimated to be around 650.) She brutally tortured and killed hundreds of young girls, and it is believed (although not proven) that she bathed in and drank their blood to remain young. (She has gone on to inspire several horror villains such as that in the film Stay Alive and Lady Gaga's Countess Elizabeth in American Horror Story: Hotel.) This song makes it clear that Ghost's Satanic lyrics are merely all in good fun and are being shared simply to tell a story. In the bridge of the song, Papa Emeritus I declares in a growling tone over a thumping beat, "Her pact with Satan, her despisal of mankind, her acts of cruelty, and her lust for blood makes her one of us." This, to me, makes it clear that Ghost isn't expecting to be taken seriously because (a) there is no evidence to the best of my knowledge that Bathory worshipped Satan and (b) most Satanism, as Forge has explained in interviews himself, is not about doing evil deeds and making blood sacrifices. This is a story and, dare I say, maybe even a parody. Forge has said in an interview that he had planned a music video for this song (which he loves because it features one of his favorite guitar riffs of any Ghost song) but that the video was unfortunately never made, and I deeply lament that.
Prior to Ghost forming and releasing Opus Eponymous in 2010, frontman Tobias Forge had been involved in several other bands such as Repugnant and Subvision. (I really love Subvisions's song "Necropolis.") It was in these days when Ghost was first conceived, and it was ultimately because of the song "Stand by Him," which would, of course, eventually find a home on Opus Eponymous. Forge came up with the song's guitar riff, and it then took off from there. This is another song that tackles Satanic themes (as, like I said, pretty much all of this album does) but in an exaggerated and ridiculous way, once again making it clear to me that Ghost is using these themes to tell a story. (Marilyn Manson did something somewhat similar on his second, third, and fourth albums - a trilogy of concept albums intended to chronicle the Antichrist ushering in the apocalypse.) I say that because "Stand by Him" is the second time on the album that the band uses historical inaccuracies and falsehoods to represent a false concept of modern day Satanism. While Elizabeth Bathory was in fact a real person who did in fact torture and kill hundreds of girls, it is, as I said, unlikely that she was a Satanist, and her having bathed in and drank blood because she believed that it would keep her young is unproven. On "Stand by Him" (a somewhat anachronistic metal song as it features a very heavy guitar riff but a somewhat poppy melody reminiscent of songs from the '60s), the band touches upon the antiquated idea of witchcraft - that witches gain their powers due to making exchanges and pacts with Satan. This, during historical times such as the Salem Witch Trials, is what many Puritan Christians believed to be true - that some people (especially women although not always) were witches because of having sold their souls to the Devil. None of the people actually accused and/or executed for suspected witchcraft, however, were actually witches. It was nothing more than religious hysteria as well as political and social gain. (If you wanted someone's land, for example, all that you had to do was accuse them of being a witch, and if convicted, their entire family would lose all rights to their property.) "All witchcraft comes from carnal lust," Papa Emeritus recites from the Malleus Maleficarum, "which is, in women, insatiable." This is a highly sexist and misogynist viewpoint, and if you watch Tobias Forge in interviews, it's easy to tell that he is a progressive individual who wouldn't actually believe that. It's clear to me that this is satirical and is making fun of what oppressive religion believed and believes Satanism to be.
Next on the Opus Eponymous tracklisting is "Satan Prayer," a song that is lyrically exactly what you would expect from its title. Genius explains that the prayer in the song is a reversal of the Nicene Creed (which the band makes clear in the song's chorus when Papa sings that the song's prayer is "our anti-Nicene creed"). The Nicene Creed is a statement held to be the ultimate statement by which Catholics live, and Ghost, as previously stated, reverses the statement so that it is a prayer to Satan rather than Jesus Christ or God. Ghost frequently does this in its music - bastardizes and/or reverses Christian text, and this, to me, is evidence that the Satanic lyrics and imagery used throughout the band's music and performances is done more so to make fun of religious fanaticism than it is to actually worship Satan. "Satan Prayer" is a low point on the album for me, doing little to stand out as it follows the standard Opus Eponymous formula - heavy guitar and a swift drum beat - but with a flat melody that honestly does little to interest me. (Ghost, as I have said before, has quickly become one of my favorite bands of all time, but even with favorite bands and artists, there are typically songs of theirs that I don't much care for, and this is definitely one when it comes to Ghost.) That standard formula is another reason, in fact, why Opus Eponymous is my least favorite Ghost album so far. While the rest of the albums (especially Prequelle) meander in style more frequently, Opus Eponymous sticks to a relatively singular sound. "Death Knell" and "Prime Mover" are both songs that were included on the aforementioned 2009 demo tape. "Death Knell" - a progressive rock track with Papa seeming to punctuate and carefully enunciate each word, especially in the first verse - is another track worshipping the glory of Satan, and "Prime Mover" - a somewhat more upbeat rock song that has a bit of a punk flavor to it - is essentially about a mortal woman carrying the son of Satan, who would, of course, be the Antichrist. There is also a theory amongst Ghost fans that the current Ghost frontman - Cardinal Copia - is the son of Papa Nihil and Sister Imperator, and Genius points out that this song could be supportive of that theory. (If you are not familiar with Ghost lore, then none of that likely made any sense to you. I talked about Nihil in my review of Seven Inches of Satanic Panic, and I will try to explain the complex lore and mythology as best as I can as I progress through the band's discography.)
I would have to check the running times of Ghost's other albums to be absolutely certain, but I am fairly confident that Opus Eponymous is Ghost's shortest album thus far. With only nine tracks (the first of which is a rather short instrumental opening), it runs at only just under thirty-five minutes in length. (It is, in fact, almost exactly the same length - save about half of a minute - as Lady Gaga's album The Fame Monster, even though that is generally considered to be an EP. Anyone who knows me well knows that that is a bone that I often pick as The Fame Monster is 100% a full-length album to me through and through, but I digress, as I am getting way off topic. This is supposed to be about Ghost, not Lady Gaga.) Opus Eponymous closes with another instrumental piece titled "Genesis," another highlight on the album. Genesis is, of course, a Biblical word that refers to the creation of the universe at the very beginning of the Christian Bible ("In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth..." I am sure that most, if not all, of us are at least vaguely familiar with that.) Generally speaking, however, the word refers to something's origin or formation. With it following "Prime Mover" and its lyrical content, it could therefore be interpreted as signaling the birth of the Antichrist. Some Ghost fans even believe the albums thus far to have done something similar as those aforementioned Marilyn Manson albums have done - chronicle the birth and rise of the Antichrist who eventually brings about the end of the world. The band's most recent album Prequelle, in fact, even features a plethora of apocalyptic themes in its lyrics. "Genesis" sounds exactly like a psychedelic and progressive rock track that you might hear from a late '60s or early '70s band, and it has a fun and playful energy to it, with rapidly strumming guitar and a thumping beat. As I said, it is definitely a highlight on the album, along with "Ritual" and "Elizabeth," but Opus Eponymous is, as I also stated already, probably my least favorite Ghost album to date (although I love how the album pays homage to the iconic Salem's Lot movie poster). As I progress through reviewing the band's discography, I will make note of which one is my favorite. (It is also worth noting that the Japanese edition of the album contains a bonus track - an interesting cover of The Beatles' classic hit "Here Comes the Sun." The song is slower and darker than the Beatles' sunny version and is fueled primarily by church organ. Japan always gets the good stuff. It isn't fair.)
No comments:
Post a Comment