Prequelle

Prequelle
Studio album from Ghost
Publication (s)	June 1, 2018
Label (s)	Spinefarm Records
Genre (s)	Heavy metal
Title (number)	10
running time	41 min 43 s
occupation	Singing : Cardinal Copia Guitar : A Nameless Ghoul Guitar: A Nameless Ghoul Bass : A Nameless Ghoul Keyboard : A Nameless Ghoul Drums : A Nameless Ghoul
production	Tom Dalgety
Studio (s)	Artery Studios, Stockholm Westlake Studios, Hollywood
chronology Popestar (2016) Prequelle -

Prequelle ( French. : History ) is the fourth studio album of the Swedish heavy metal - band Ghost . The album was released on June 1, 2018 via Spinefarm Records and reached number one on the Swedish album charts. It is the first album since the identities of the musicians became known. In Sweden the album was awarded a platinum record . Ghost received two Grammy Awards 2019 nominations for the album .

Emergence

Singer Tobias Forge already had the first ideas for the album when the band went into the studio with the recordings for the previous album Meliora, which was released in 2015 . Forge told music producer Klas Åhlund that he had ideas for a futuristic album and a medieval album and that Åhlund could decide which one to produce. Åhlund opted for the futuristic album. Tobias Forge aimed for an album with Prequelle that Meliora could not be for various reasons. As a balance to two songs he described as "ambitious" Forge wanted to write songs that "get straight to the point". As an example, he cited the song Dance Macabre , which Forge described as straightforward and catchy. The instrumental Spöksonat used on the album Meliora was originally part of a song intended for Prequelle .

As with every new Ghost album, Tobias Forge uses a new pseudonym . Forge Papa Emeritus III has been called himself since the album Meliora . At a concert in Gothenburg on September 30, 2017, he was dragged from the stage by two men. A short time later, a person entered the stage who introduced himself to the audience in Italian as Papa Emeritus Zero . He announced that the party was over and that the Middle Ages were now beginning. A video was released on April 6, 2018 introducing new singer Cardinal Copia . The Papa Emeritus Zero acts as a mentor for Cardinal Copia .

Klas Åhlund was originally supposed to also produce Prequelle , but that didn't work out due to scheduling reasons. Finally, Prequelle the Englishman produced Tom Dalgety, who previously among other Opeth has worked and for the Ghost Popestar - EP produced. The recordings took place in Artery Studios in Stockholm and Westlake Studios in Hollywood . The percussion was recorded according Forge by a good friend who is on the other releases Opus Eponymous and Meliora could be heard. According to producer Tom Dalgety, the drummer is Ludvig Kennberg. Most of the other music was recorded by Tobias Forge. Salem Al Fakir played the piano and keyboard . Ten songs were recorded for the album, two of which are instrumentals . In addition, cover versions of the songs It's a Sin by the Pet Shop Boys and Avalanche by Leonard Cohen were recorded.

Numerous guest musicians can be heard on the album. The voice at the intro Ashes belongs to Tobias Forge's daughter. On the first instrumental Miasma , Gavin Fitzjohn plays the saxophone and Steve Moore from the band Zombi plays the analog synthesizer . Mikael Åkerfeldt from the band Opeth played the acoustic guitar on the second instrumental Helvetesfönster . Other background vocals came from Christopher May, Deryn Edwards and Vincent Pontare . The album was mixed by Andy Wallace . The album cover was designed by Zbigniew M. Bielak and, according to Tobias Forge, pays homage to the cover motif of Sepultura- EP Bestial Devastation .

For the song Council one was music video rotated. A video for the song Dance Macabre was published on Instagram . You can hear the song during the video, but see prominent musicians like Kirk Hammett from Metallica or Phil Anselmo (ex- Pantera ). In October 2018 an official music video was released for Dance Macabre and in December 2018 for Faith .

background

Track list
Ashes - 1:21 Council - 4:21 Faith - 4:29 See the Light - 4:05 Miasm - 5:17 Dance Macabre - 3:39 Pro Memoria - 5:39 Witch Image - 3:30 Helvetesfönster - 5:55 Life Eternal - 3:27

For Tobias Forge, the album loosely deals with the concept of death and damnation . The song Rats is about the plague , particularly the Black Death , which claimed an estimated 25 million lives in Europe between 1346 and 1353 . According to legend , merchant ships brought the plague from the Crimea to the port of Messina . Rats carrying the pathogen left the ships and caused the plague to break out. According to Tobias Forge, Prequelle would be the first positive album ever written about the plague.

Furthermore, the Rats is about how humanity has developed back to medieval times and a bullying behavior over the last ten years through social media . There are many people out there who love to destroy other people, according to Forge.

“With Facebook , Instagram and Twitter , the medieval mentality is back. All you have to do is shout “ witch !” And people start throwing stones. Having the ability to say whatever you want to say anonymously is an empowerment that most people cannot handle. "

- Tobias Forge

See the Light is a song that addresses situations of being surrounded by enemies. The song Pro Memoria deals with the expression memento mori , which is meant to remind people of their mortality. Dance Macabre deals with the wedding of the Black Death. While many people died, the pubs and brothels partied as if there was no tomorrow. The song Life Eternal deals with Eternal Life and the desire for everlasting love, especially towards one's own children. The text asks whether someone given the chance to live forever would take advantage of it.

reception

Chart positions Explanation of the data

Albums

Prequelle   SE 1 06/08/2018 (32 weeks)   DE 2 06/08/2018 (12 weeks)   AT 6th June 15, 2018 (5 weeks)   CH 2 06/10/2018 (6 weeks)   UK 10 06/14/2018 (2 weeks)   US 3 June 16, 2018 (4 weeks)

Singles

Advice   SE 83 April 20, 2018 (2 weeks) Dance Macabre   SE 68 06/08/2018 (2 weeks) Faith   SE 100 06/08/2018 (1 week)

Reviews

The German magazine Rock Hard selected Prequelle as album of the month. For Boris Kaiser, Ghost are “currently the best and most important rock band in the world”. The band has "reached a dizzying level musically that works on all levels". Prequelle "never looks like a product, but breathes and lives, is inspired, makes you happy and moves to tears in its ever-present melancholy ". Kaiser awarded ten out of ten points. For Matthias Weckmann from the German magazine Metal Hammer , Prequelle proves once again how "tasteful, compositionally clever and addicting rock and heavy metal can still sound in 2018". The album was "breathtakingly well designed and composed", for which Weckmann awarded seven out of seven points. His colleague Frank Thiessies, on the other hand, criticized Prequelle for not being able to “take the desired next development step towards the ultimate hit all-round hit”. Apart from the intro and the two instrumentals, there are seven songs left that “offer too much melodic mediocrity”. Thiessies awarded four out of seven points. Markus Bellmann from the online magazine Plattentests.de asked himself whatever Tobias Forge had thrown in during songwriting or whether he had just listened to ABBA in a loop, “it turns every single damn song into a masterclass catchy tune”. Bellmann awarded eight out of ten points. Jonas Erbas from metal.de described Prequelle as a "melancholy, gloomy rock opera, which is almost perfectly staged from beginning to end". However, the band “turned away from their heavy metal roots and (...) developed in a more straightforward, melodic and, above all, more poppy direction.” Erbas awarded nine out of ten possible points.

Chart placements

Prequelle entered the Swedish album charts and was the third album to top the list after Infestissumam and Meliora . In Germany and Switzerland the album came in second and the United States reached Prequelle third. In addition, the album was able to place itself at the top of the German vinyl charts for a month . In the USA alone, sales in the first week after the release amounted to around 66,000 units, including around 61,000 album sales in the classic sense. The singles Rats , Dance Macabre and Faith were ranked 83, 68 and 100 on the Swedish single charts.

Awards

In June 2018 the album received a gold record in Sweden and a platinum record in July 2020. More than 40,000 units of the album were sold in Sweden alone.

At the Grammy Awards 2019 Prequelle was nominated in the category Best Rock Album and the song Rats in the category Best Rock Song . At the Swedish Grammis Music Award , the album received a nomination in the hard rock / metal category , but the award went to the band Tribulation . At the Metal Hammer Awards 2018, Ghost was nominated in the category Best International Band and Prequelle in the category Best Album . However, the prizes went to the bands Arch Enemy and Powerwolf . At the Bandit Rock Awards 2019 , Ghost was recognized as the best Swedish band and Prequelle as the best Swedish album. With the Kerrang! Awards 2019 Prequelle was awarded in the category Best Album . Ghost was also nominated for Best International Live Band , but the award went to Metallica.

The German online magazine Metal.de placed Prequelle topped the 25 best albums of the year 2018. The US online magazine Loudwire led Prequelle second place in the 30 best metal albums of the year 2018 that the song Rats third place in the top 30 metal songs of the year 2018 and Dance Macabre at number five of the 40 best hard rock song of the year 2018. the German magazine Visions led Prequelle on their list of 50 albums of the year 2018 in fifth place and the music video for Dance Macabre among the 20 best music videos of the year . In addition, Prequelle magazine tops its list of the 55 best Swedish rock albums published in 2019.

Prequelle Exalted

On September 27, 2019, the album was re-released under the title Prequelle Exalted . This limited edition of 5,000 copies collector's edition includes the album on transparent orange vinyl with black smoke effect and a 60-page arena tour photo book in black alligator - leather is hand-tied. There is also an exclusive, die-cut Prequelle artwork with a twelve-page booklet containing new illustrations. There are also four live photo prints in the format 12 × 12 inches , a bonus 7 "vinyl with rare songs and a GHOST 7" vinyl adapter.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d} Lothar Gerber: Papa ante Portas . In: Metal Hammer , June 2018, page 48
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Wolfgang Liu Kuhn: The mask falls . In: Rock Hard , June 2018, page 14
3. ↑ ^{a b} Jens Mayer: The Revelation . In: Visions , issue 303, page 26
4. ↑ GHOST: PAPA EMERITUS III's Reign Comes To A Close With Dramatic Concert Finale. Blabbermouth.net , accessed May 25, 2018 . 
5. ↑ GHOST Introduces Its New Leader In Latest Video. Blabbermouth.net, accessed May 25, 2018 . 
6. ↑ Wolfgang Liu Kuhn: On ghost hunt . In: Rock Hard, June 2018, page 16
7. ↑ ^{a b} Johannes Paul Köhler: Seize the day, motherfucker! . In: Deaf Forever , No. 24, p. 23
8. ↑ GHOST Releases New Song 'Dance Macabre' Via Instagram Stories. Blabbermouth.net, accessed May 25, 2018 . 
9. ↑ ^{a b c} Steve Appelford: Ghost Mastermind Tobias Forge Reports From Studio in First "Unmasked" US Interview. Revolver , accessed May 24, 2018 . 
10. ↑ ^{a b c} James McMahon: Ghost interview: the masked metal band on their new “positive” record about The Plague. New Musical Express , accessed May 24, 2018 . 
11. ↑ Chart sources: SE DE AT CH US UK
12. ↑ Boris Kaiser: Ghost - Prequelle. Rock Hard, accessed July 1, 2018 . 
13. ^ Matthias Weckmann & Frank Thiessies: Ghost - Prequelle. Metal Hammer. Retrieved July 1, 2018 . 
14. ↑ Markus Bellmann: Ghost - Prequelle. Plattentests.de , accessed on May 26, 2018 . 
15. ↑ Ghost - Prequelle - The detailed review at metal.de. Retrieved February 22, 2019 . 
16. ↑ Ghost - Prequelle. officialcharts.de, accessed on April 12, 2019 . 
17. ↑ GHOST's 'Prequelle' Lands At No. 3 On BILLBOARD Chart. Blabbermouth.net, accessed June 12, 2018 . 
18. ↑ Joe Divita: GHOST, GRETA VAN FLEET + MORE NOMINATED FOR 61ST ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS. Loudwire, accessed December 7, 2018 . 
19. ↑ TRIBULATION Wins Swedish GRAMMIS Award For 'Down Below'. Blabbermouth.net, accessed February 9, 2019 . 
20. ↑ METAL HAMMER AWARDS 2018: These are the nominees! Metal Hammer. Retrieved July 26, 2018 . 
21. ↑ Jonas Lööw: Bandit Rock Awards 2019 - DAD avslutade galan med fullt set i högform. Rockbladet, accessed February 22, 2019 (se). 
22. ↑ wookubus: Metallica, Ghost, Architects, Etc. Among Winners For 2019 'Kerrang! Awards'. The PRP, accessed June 20, 2019 . 
23. ↑ Dominik Rothe: 1st place: GHOST - Prequelle. Metal.de, accessed on January 6, 2019 . 
24. ↑ Loudwire Staff: The 30 Best Metal Albums of 2018. Loudwire, accessed November 27, 2018 . 
25. ↑ Loudwire Staff: The 30 Best Metal Songs of 2018. Loudwire, accessed December 3, 2018 . 
26. ↑ Loudwire Staff: The 40 Best Hard Rock Songs of 2018. Loudwire, accessed December 3, 2018 . 
27. ↑ Online editorial team: Our 50 records of the year 2018: Place 25-1. Visions, accessed December 31, 2018 . 
28. ↑ Dennis Drögemüller: The 20 best music videos 2018. Visions, accessed on December 29, 2018 . 
29. ↑ various authors: export world champion . In: Visions , issue 312, page 57
30. ↑ Alexandra Michels: GHOST - "Prequelle Exalted" appears as a limited deluxe collector's edition. Rock Hard, accessed September 27, 2019 . 

Web links

• Prequelle at Allmusic (English)