With the legal Sturm und Drang that’s gone on within the ranks of Ghost over the last year or so, I’ve got to admit that I was concerned that my knowing with 100% certainty that Tobias Forge was the primary creative force behind the band would somehow taint my objectivity about the next release, musically and aesthetically. Maybe it’s my childlike—or childish—sense of wonder, but the relative mystery attached to the band made the concept of Ghost kind of special, probably because we’re living at a time when anonymity is a difficult thing to maintain. As it turns out, Prequelle, Ghost’s fourth studio LP, doesn’t have a problem transcending those circumstances, as it sets the band on a path that almost seems to pick up where their 2016 hit “Square Hammer” left off.

With Prequelle being Ghost’s fourth full-length LP, it needed to be big and alive. Their last studio LP, Meliora, managed to take Ghost’s presence to its greatest heights at that time, particularly where the anthemic Queen-like grandiosity of some of the compositions were concerned. As the early release of the album’s opening track, “Rats,” demonstrated, the relied upon elements that’ve helped define Ghost as a creative force are still in tact on Prequelle. As “Rats” segues into “Faith,” the album opens with an accentuated touch of heavy metal influence, setting a true and solid tone for the rest of the record. As it plays on, tracks like “See the Light” and “Pro Memoria” hold on to similar layering of sonic textures that build into some of the ambitious compositions found on their previous releases. Those layers and textures are intensified in the album’s two integral instrumental pieces, “Miasma” and “Helvetesfonster”; the former maintains a steady galvanizing crescendo that includes some synth solo wizardry and an unexpected saxophone solo that’s right on the money—a few firsts for Ghost all in one place. As a fan of big fucking rock songs, it’s a grand surprise to hear them continue the expansion of their sonic presence by introducing some catching, overt elements of hook-laden AOR into the heady mix, a la Styx or FM, in songs like “Dance Macabre” and “Witch Image.”

Ghost’s creative process is obviously more intensive and incredibly involved than a couple of guys spit-balling riffs that work together so that the band can go kick some asses with it every night. It takes a certain kind of creative mind to consistently present pieces that convey a vision in such a cohesive and coherent way. So if for no other reason, commendation and respect are deserved for the effective realization of such extensively complex visions time after time. Prequelle delivers what is their most thoughtfully rounded collection of songs so far. The not-so-subtle intricacies of cuts like “See the Light,” “Pro Memoria,” or the instrumentals—“Miasma” and “Helvetesfonster”—can always be expected to dazzle the eardrums. It’s the subtleties of the kind of straightforward riff attacks found on tracks like “Rats,” “Dance Macabre,” and “Witch Image” that give this album its extra bits of its hard rock and heavy metal power. These are the areas that tend to have the catchy hooks that lodge themselves deep inside the brain for hours, or even days, after.

I’m not really sure if this album is going to speak to those people who’ve already written Ghost off for preposterously trivial reasons unrelated to their songwriting or musical prowess. Prequelle is an unabashedly Ghost album from top to bottom. Just to be clear, that is indeed a good thing. Their sound continues to grow outward, steadily getting bigger. On Prequelle a lot of the new elements contribute more power to the mix, fortifying their sound from the inside. Where Meliora really opened Ghost up to their widest audience up to that point, Prequelle has the real potential of breaking them through to the ‘other side’, as it were. As of the date of this post, Ghost has announced their first headlining dates at the arena level. More are bound to follow shortly after and Prequelle is the album that’ll serve Ghost up to the masses. But what will that mean for their children who’ve ridden the tides along with them all the years past? Could the answer be found amidst the swathing, triumphant atmosphere of the album’s closer, “Life Eternal,” where Cardinal Copia sings, “This the moment of just letting go…”? Anything’s possible, but Prequelle is probably Ghost’s most appealing records so far, it holds some of their most stellar work to date. Meliora put the world at large on notice that Ghost could be a real contender. Prequelle shows that it wasn’t just a fluke, taking fans on one of the best rides of 2018 with their realized staying power.

The promotion for Prequelle will certainly be daunting for the band, but we’re hoping that they might be willing to speak with us, as loyal fans, before the machine outgrows its foundations. Keep checking in for more Ghost coverage.

Buy ‘Prequelle’ now, here. Find Ghost on Facebook.