Impera
| Ghost
Impera
Impera is the fifth studio album by the Swedish rock band Ghost. Released on 11 March 2022, it was produced by Klas Åhlund who also produced the band's 2015 album, Meliora. The release of Impera was preceded by three singles: the first, "Hunter's Moon", was released on 30 September 2021 in support of the 2021 slasher film Halloween Kills and is featured as part of the film's soundtrack; the second single, "Call Me Little Sunshine", was released on 20 January 2022 and the third, "Twenties", was released on 2 March 2022. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Kerrang!
The truth, of course, is that all of these elements – the epic, the retro, the riffy, the lyrically iffy – are key ingredients of Ghost, and their better albums are those that give sufficient time and space to them all. For that reason and more, Impera is among Ghost’s very best and sure to push them even closer to those heavenly heights.
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Angry Metal Guy
Much of the criticism I see leveled at Ghost boils down to a simple statement: “they aren’t metal.” And my enduring response has always been: “who cares?” That isn’t to say this band or any band is immune to criticism; I wouldn’t be writing album reviews if I believed that. But criticism isn’t just about noting flaws; it also includes pointing out honest successes where you see them. And metal or not, IMPERA is a success. It’s not a perfect album, nor will it resonate with everyone, but an accessible, engaging occult rock record that explores the cyclical nature of empires by way of both hooks and heft is a record worth my time. Hopefully you’ll give it some of yours.
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Louder
large doses of schlock but marginally more meaty.
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NME
Stark social commentary and a procession of left-field collaborators make for a truly delicious pop-rock proposition.
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Blabbermouth
Admittedly, the result is one of the most spectacular and hook-filled heavy(ish) metal albums in recent memory, so even without the looming sense that Satan is watching, GHOST are still impossible to resist.
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The Rockpit
Impera strikes an enjoyable balance between the new and the familiar. Not everyone may be happy with that sound and the softening or selling out that they may think adopting these classic sounds implies. However, when bands never do anything new, they get bored. When a band gets bored with themselves that shows up in their music, and then we get bored with them, too. That’s how genres become stale and die. Love it, like it, or leave it, Impera never commits the mortal sin of being boring.
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PopMatters
GHOST’S ‘IMPERA’ IS A MORBIDLY EXHILARATING SOUNDTRACK TO DARK TIMES.
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MetalSucks
At the end of the day, Ghost will always be Ghost — passionate, flamboyant, and catchy, an icon of exuberance in a realm often dominated by tough-guy personas and overachieving masculinity. What has kept them going is exactly what has makes IMPERA such a success: taking what they’ve always done, and doing it better. For lovers of Ghost’s previous output, Impera is a must-have; for everyone else, this is an album so brimming with hubris, uncontrolled boldness, and sky-scraping anthems that it simply can’t be ignored. It’s good to be back in the ’80s.
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Sputnik Music
Overall, Impera is another solid development in Ghost’s seemingly unstoppable momentum with a mix of familiar tropes and brushed boundaries. As someone who prefers the heavier side of the band seen on Meliora and 2010’s Opus Eponymous, it’s great to see that energy come back through a noticeably lighter lens. This may also be their most eclectic album to date and its kitchen sink style will lead to different tracks standing out for different listeners. My only real complaint is the missing extravagance a track like “Year Zero” or “Dance Macabre” on here. May album six be the one that gets Ghost into the full-on disco doom I’ve been craving for nearly a decade.
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Metal Wani
With all the familiar elements of music that evoke the last four or five decades of music, would I argue that Ghost is an experience in hauntology? Metaphorically at least, with much of the music with the band dramatizing a darker future while sonically bringing back the past, this seems the case. As far as how the music feels, it does seem implied that Ghost uses the past to appropriate the ideas of the future. Maybe this is almost prophetic. ‘Impera’ by Ghost marvels at music and the extraordinary.
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Metal Riot
It’s all a very original album, chock full of bangers where everything feels like it belongs right here on this album. It’s “very nice, very evil” as Danhausen would say. Huge fan of this album. It’s definitely in my top 5 GHOST albums, but that’s kind of a given since it’s the 5th album, but all joking aside, I’ll rank it as my second favorite album. Tough to beat Opus Eponymous, ya know? That said, I must advise you not to pray for much of anything for the next few weeks, because instead of listening to prayers, Jesus will likely be listening to Impera, and I can’t blame him, because this album slaps like a motherfucker, so blast it at home and hope it doesn’t leave too many handprints across your ass!
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GBHBL
The jury is still out regarding this being the best Ghost album to date. That’s going to be hotly debated amongst fans, that’s for sure. One thing all will be able to agree on though, is that it’s one of their best.
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The Rockpit
I love how this band refuses to be formulaic and brings new evolution with each album, Impera takes the better elements of Prequelle and Meliora and evolves it to the next level, Impera is vibrant and grand. From start to finish an incredible album that takes you on a thrilling musical journey.
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Peanut Butter Pope
Impera is covered in occult-like ethos and half-spiritual intrigue, but most of us are likely to shrug at that supposed deep shit, simply asking to be entertained. Ghost’s latest is an entertaining modern stance on ‘70s album rock, pleasant in its own strange way.
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AllMusic
In quality it rises to the level of the band's "Dance Macabre." Finale "Respite on Spital Fields," about Jack the Ripper, offers an arrangement that touches on Alice Cooper, Rush, and vintage Nightwish. Impera is the most unabashed exercise in exultant pop/rock sheen Ghost has issued to date; it establishes an exquisite front in their own quest for global rock domination.
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Rue Morgue Records
After a decade and a bit shouting my allegiance to all things Ghost to all and sundry… my love and fandom has taken a bit of a dent in what was impenetrable armour of devotion once. It’s not that Impera is a bad album, it is far from being that, it is just lacking one or two more magic moments to truly make it a Ghost masterpiece. And after the amazing slew of music they have given us over the years… a masterpiece is what I was expecting. This is not it. Bummer!
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CJLO 1690AM
So I guess if I have to rate this record on the scale of Ghost records, I'd say we're at a solid mid tier. It's not as smooth as the Grey Goose that is Meliora, but I'd say it sits around a SKYY or a Stoli level; not quite reaching the popularity of Smirnoff, but always looking to try to take the spot, especially now that Russian vodkas are being banned at liquor stores. Oooh look, a topical reference!
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Sea of Tranquility
Despite the many references to so many other albums and bands, it's almost impossible to stop from falling head over heels for Impera. Tobias Forge is a very smart man, and he's delivering one winner of an album after another, and the general public is eating it all up, including yours truly. Is Impera going to overtake Meliora as the crown of the Ghost catalog? Time will tell, but for now, this is one hell of an album, and as I always say, great songs make a great album, and while this one might have a clunker or two, the rest are absolute gems. Play, replay, play, replay....you get the picture. Top shelf release of 2022!
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Medium
Ghost, and the “dad metal” aesthetic go together more horribly than white chocolate and pepperoni. The after effects of this, would be my deep disappointment.
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Sonic Perspectives
“Impera,” Ghost is not just taking down empires. It is building something new and positive. Thank God.
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Scene Point Blank
You don't have to love everything about Ghost, you don't even have to admit to yourself that there is some kind of draw towards them that you can't quite put your finger on but I can tell you now there is one Ghost song out there that will get stuck in your head! This will no doubt lead you onto more and more of their stuff and before you know it you're slapping on some black and white face paint and dressing up in a cassock to attend your first epic Ghost show! Admit it... this will happen!
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Ghost Cult Magazine
Flirtatiously progressive but comfortingly familiar, Impera slithers between creeping cynicism, leering malevolence and joyful exultation. Often surprising but never disappointing, Ghost’s new empire has risen.
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Stargazed Magazine
In conclusion, “Impera” starts of pretty OK, but doesn’t manage to keep my interest for more than a couple of songs. A bit to pompous, a bit to poppy and a bit to insipid… And don’t even get me started on that abomination called “Twenties”. Christ…
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Punktastic
Whether you love or hate them, you’d better get used to seeing them around – with an album as amazing as ‘Impera’ under their belt, they’re only going to get bigger and bigger.
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