#the myth doesn't match perfectly of course

[thatswhatsushesaid]

shitpost dispatches from the xiyao horrors (manmade) - orpheus and eurydice edition

had some Thoughts percolating for a while abt how so much of the final conversation between lxc and jgy during the guanyin temple confrontation reads like jgy slowly following lxc out of the underworld one painful, gut-wrenching question and answer at a time.

anyway go listen to anaïs mitchell's doubt comes in from the original hadestown album, it hurts.

[slavghoul]

Hi slavghoul! First of all, I'm a big fan of yours, always a pleasure to read you. You talked earlier this day about some reviewer talking about "Darkness at the heart of my love", which review or interview is that? I can't find it. Thanks <3

Thank you kindly! :))) Yes I haven't posted it yet. It is also from Sweden Rock. A very good review too - 9/10. The nitty gritty, that is, the song descriptions, are towards the middle of the text.

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Tobias Forge is undeniably a skilled communicator. Ghost is all about grand gestures, gigantic megalomania and a confidence that only a madman can match. It's easy to lose your breath even before the music takes over. Or as Papa Emeritus IV sings in the brilliant Watcher In The Sky - "Communication is key". Yes, no question about it. The key to skilful storytelling is to build the myth of yourself so that everyone gets the joke. With that attitude, you can get as far as you want.

In the book "The Rule Of Empires: Those Who Built Them, Those Who Endured Them, And Why They Always Fall", author Timothy Parsons, professor of history at St Louis University, takes the approach of exploring how ordinary people experienced imperial rule. Narratively, of course, there is an endless stream of inspiration to be drawn from the subject. I've read bits and pieces of the book and opinions differ among those who have experienced and endured a life ruled from the top by the high and mighty. The satisfaction of seeing them plunged into the abyss is undeniably there.

Creating an album in that context doesn't just mean looking back in history. Our present is tainted by stubborn powers that squirm with childishness at the slightest insult. It's an ongoing contest about who is perceived as the biggest, best and most beautiful. The book has been an inspiration for Tobias Forge's latest reincarnation of his satanic pope and his minions - Nameless Ghouls.

In Sweden Rock Magazine, of course, Papa Emeritus IV is the behemoth - bigger than all the world's leaders. Just check out the cover of this magazine. It's panache from head to toe. Or why not analyse the cover of the new album "Impera"? The papal statue has proportions on a par with the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower. Looking to the left, the surrounding buildings seem minimalist by comparison. Delusions of grandeur - check.

So, after the ravages of Black Death on 2018's "Prequelle", it's time to put back the papal robes and run through the historical ruins of the empires. And it is an absolutely fantastic journey that, after the tired consequences of the pandemic, can now finally be experienced. There's virtually not a trace here of the trite gestures found in the song disappointments "Kiss The Go-Goat" and "Mary On A Cross", released on the single "Seven Inches Of Satanic Panic" in 2019. It feels amazingly good that they were just parentheses. The problem with them was that they lacked context. They were loosely woven compositions without a whole to lean on. Ghost is an album band and needs a setting. And with one, the result is as transformative as it is unusual. Music, production, cover and performance - absolute world class.

First comes “Kaisarion” and right away we are transposed back to the 80s. "Spillways" continues with a tinkling piano, soaring guitars and of course a melody to hang tons of weight on. It's easy to get sucked into the volatile arrangements. The first single "Call Me Little Sunshine" quickly materialized into a pitch-black mid-tempo song to be loved straight through. The little gritty guitar interludes are magical in their simplicity.

In the context of empires crumbling like houses of cards, "Hunter's Moon" can be seen as the black sheep of the album. But put the song, part of the soundtrack to the 2021 film "Halloween Kills," in the sick context of Michael Myers, and it perfectly fits the cock-of-the-walk attitude as well. Again, a song that stands with at least half its body in the 80s.

It's about here that things get really hot in Tobias Forge's empire factory. The aforementioned "Watcher In The Sky" is a hit of gigantic proportions. Chugging guitars and a chorus well worthy of someone with world domination as a goal. Right on the mark. "Twenties" is an odd bird that breaks off the beat and tone quite considerably - a bit like "Cirice" does on "Meliora" (2015). Variety is good for you.

"Darkness At The Heart Of My Love" is the album’s big ballad that will hug you until you're a puddle of tears on the floor, then the Van Halen pastiche "Griftwood” recharges your batteries. Join us for another trip back to the decade most of us adore anyway.

If you're still down on the floor, it's time to get up and fuel up for the grand finale. In 'Respite On The Spitalfields', Forge is firing on all cylinders. The song is to Ghost what "Still Of The Night" is to Whitesnake. Sultry and utterly wonderful. As the guitars ride out in the song's final seconds, several planets align just right. Like I said, world class and an impressive nine. Second in a row, too.

/Original Swedish text by Jonathan Strandlund