Impera
Studio album by
Ghost
Released11 March 2022 (2022-03-11)
RecordedApril 2020 – July 2021
StudioCapitol (Hollywood)
Atlantis Metronome (Stockholm)
Apmamman (Stockholm)
Genre
Length46:21
LabelLoma Vista
ProducerKlas Åhlund
Ghost chronology
Seven Inches of Satanic Panic
(2019)		 Impera
(2022)		 Phantomime
(2023)
Singles from Impera
  1. "Hunter's Moon"
    Released: 30 September 2021
  2. "Call Me Little Sunshine"
    Released: 20 January 2022
  3. "Twenties"
    Released: 2 March 2022
  4. "Spillways"
    Released: 27 July 2022

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 with a version being a part of the film's closing credits; the second single, "Call Me Little Sunshine", was released on 20 January 2022 and the third, "Twenties", was released on 2 March 2022.

The theme of Impera mainly focuses on "the rise and fall of empires". Multiple outside songwriters assisted with the album, including pop producers Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare, Kent lead singer Joakim Berg and The Cardigans guitarist Peter Svensson.[1] The album received widespread critical acclaim.

Background and release

In a 2021 interview with radio station KLAQ, frontman Tobias Forge stated that he came up with the concept of Impera in 2013 after reading the book The Rule of Empires: Those Who Built Them, Those Who Endured Them, and Why They Always Fall by Timothy Parsons.[2] He came across the book in an independent bookstore called Left Bank Books, situated in Seattle's Pike Place Market. When asked about that chance discovery, he explained: "I'm interested in history and culture, and how empires are built up, and how and why they always fall apart. Right there and then, I knew that at some point, 'I'm going to make an imperial record.'"[3]

In June 2019, Forge stated that the band would be touring the United States in September and October in support of their fourth album Prequelle before returning to Europe. The band then entered the studio in January 2020 to begin working on their fifth album, and planned to release it by late summer that year. However, Forge stated that they would wait until after the U.S. presidential election to release the album, concerning the event would draw public's attention the most.[4]

In March 2020, during their final show supporting their 2018 album Prequelle in Mexico City, Cardinal Copia, the singer of the band, was transformed into Papa Emeritus IV. He would remain the frontman for their fifth album.[5]

The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the release of the album, and in October 2020, Forge revealed that the album was intended to be released in the winter.[6] It was further delayed, however.

On 30 September 2021, the band released a single, "Hunter's Moon" for the 2021 slasher film Halloween Kills with a different version of the song being played in the closing credits.[7][8] On 20 January 2022, the band announced their fifth studio album, Impera, was finally set to release on 11 March 2022, and released what would be the second single, "Call Me Little Sunshine", as "Hunter's Moon" will also appear on the album.[8][9][10][11][12] On 2 March 2022, the band released the next single from the album, "Twenties".[13] On 27 July 2022, the band released a music video for the album's fourth single, "Spillways".[14]

A download of the studio version of the song "Kaisarion" was made available with a preorder of a special edition CD of Impera.[15]

Recording

While it was originally planned for the band to record the album in 2020 and release it in early 2021,[4] the band ended up waiting until January 2021 to enter the studio and record the album.[16] Recording lasted six weeks and mixing/mastering took two to three weeks.[16] The album was produced by Klas Åhlund and mixed by Andy Wallace,[2][12] who also did the same for the band's 2015 album, Meliora.[17]

Music and themes

Musically, Impera has been described as hard rock,[18] arena rock,[19] glam metal,[20] heavy metal,[18] and pop rock.[21] The album's sound has been described as 1980s-style pop and rock[22] and has been compared to ABBA, Boston, Dio, Bon Jovi, and Def Leppard.[23] The album is themed mainly on "the rise and fall of empires".[2][11] It is described to take place hundreds of years forward from the 14th century Europe Black Plague era of Ghost's previous album, Prequelle.[2]

The cover art by Zbigniew Bielak is a reference to a photograph of English occultist Aleister Crowley.[9][10]

Promotion

In January 2022, the band kicked off a North American co-headline tour with Volbeat called the Imperatour.[12][24] During the first show in Reno, the band performed "Kaisarion", the second song of the album, for the first time,[25] as well as introduced new steampunk-inspired costumes for the Nameless Ghouls.[26] They also headlined the UK and European legs of the tour that started in April 2022.[12][27][28]

The band appeared on U.S. chat show Jimmy Kimmel Live! on 17 March 2022, where they performed the single "Call Me Little Sunshine".[29]

Commercial performance

Impera debuted at number one in five countries, including in the band's native country Sweden, and charted in the top 40 of multiple charts worldwide.[30]

In the United States, Impera debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, behind Lil Durk's 7220, selling 70,000 units in its first week, of which 62,500 were physical album sales. It is Ghost's highest charting album in the U.S., surpassing Prequelle's position of number three, as well as earning the largest physical album sales week of 2022 in the U.S.[31] It also charted at number 2 in the UK, becoming Ghost's highest charting album there, behind Rex Orange County's Who Cares?[32]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10[33]
Metacritic84/100[34]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[23]
Blabbermouth.net8/10[35]
Classic Rock[36]
Exclaim!7/10[37]
Kerrang!4/5[38]
Metal Hammer[19]
Metal Injection9/10[39]
Metal Sucks[40]
NME[21]
PopMatters8/10[18]

Impera received critical acclaim upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 84, which indicates "universal acclaim", based on 8 reviews.[34]

Thom Jurek of AllMusic was positive towards the album stating, "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."[23] Dom Lawson of Blabbermouth.net called the album the "most spectacular and hook-filled heavy(ish) metal albums in recent memory."[35] According to Mark Beaumont of Classic Rock, "Ghost swap Medieval demons for modern-day counterparts..." and compared the album to Green Day's American Idiot.[36]

Manus Hopkins of Exclaim! called the album "more thematically interesting and more musically complex album than its predecessor" but was less positive towards the band's departure from themes of devil-worshiping and a more evil image.[37] James Hickie of Kerrang! stated that "Impera is among Ghost's very best and sure to push them even closer to those heavenly heights."[38] According to Dave Everley of Metal Hammer, "Ghost have turned in a modern metal classic with an arena rock heart. It turns out the devil doesn't have all the best tunes. Tobias Forge does."[19]

Jordan Blum of Metal Injection considered the album to be "a tad more accessible and light compared to their first two or three albums—prioritizing welcoming rock over weird metal in most cases—but that's hardly a flaw considering how unified and exciting it is."[39] Metal Sucks compared the album to Avatar and King Diamond and called it "theatrical, catchy, and evil in the most approachable way."[40] James McMahon of NME called the twelve tracks on the album "a truly delicious pop-rock proposition."[21] Adrien Begrand of PopMatters considered the lyrics on the song "Twenties" to be too blunt and bring the song "close to a cartoon level."[18] However, Begrand praised the album's "smart riffs and melodies" and considers the album to be what "establishes them as a commercial hard rock force."[18]

Accolades

Accolades for Impera
Publication List Rank
Metal Hammer Top 50 Albums of 2022
Revolver 25 Best Albums of 2022
AMAs Favourite Rock Album
–[43]
Kerrang! The 50 Best Albums of 2022

Track listing

Impera track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Imperium"Tobias Forge1:40
2."Kaisarion"Forge, Joakim Berg5:02
3."Spillways"Forge, Salem Al Fakir, Vincent Pontare3:16
4."Call Me Little Sunshine"Forge, Max Grahn4:44
5."Hunter's Moon"Forge, Grahn3:16
6."Watcher in the Sky"Forge, Al Fakir, Pontare5:48
7."Dominion"Forge, Al Fakir, Pontare1:22
8."Twenties"Forge, Al Fakir, Pontare3:46
9."Darkness at the Heart of My Love"Forge, Al Fakir, Pontare4:58
10."Griftwood"Forge, Peter Svensson, Klas Åhlund5:16
11."Bite of Passage"Forge0:31
12."Respite on the Spitalfields"Forge, Berg6:42
Total length:46:21
Bandcamp digital edition bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."Hunter's Moon" (Film Version)Forge, Grahn3:10
Total length:49:31

Personnel

Credits for Impera adapted from liner notes.[45]

Ghost

Additional personnel

  • Fredrik Åkesson – guitars[46]
  • Hux Nettermalm – drums
  • Martin Hederos – piano, organ
  • Alva Åkesson – choir (8)
  • Elvira Nettermalm – choir (8)
  • Inez Johansson – choir (8)
  • Lita Åhlund – choir (8)
  • Minou Forge – choir (8)
  • Olivia Boman – choir (8)
  • Anna Mosten – choir (9, 12)
  • Estherlivia – choir (9, 12)
  • Ida Gratte – choir (9, 12)
  • Ida Johansson – choir (9, 12)
  • Jade Ell – choir (9, 12)
  • Johanna Eriksson Sanmark – choir (9, 12)

Technical

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Impera
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Sweden (GLF)[78] Gold 15,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for Impera
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various 11 March 2022 Loma Vista [79]

References

  1. ↑ DiVita, Joe (23 March 2022). "Who Are the Six Outside Writers Credited on Ghost's 'Impera' Album?". Loudwire. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Ghost's Tobias Forge Reveals Concept For Band's Upcoming Album". Blabbermouth.net. 30 October 2021. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  3. ↑ Daly, Joe (8 April 2022). "From the Devil to Def Leppard: how Ghost made the best album of 2022 so far". Metal Hammer. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  4. 1 2 Obeirne, Oran (16 June 2019). "Feature Interview: Ghost – "I would say by early 2021, you can expect the next chapter of the Ghost story." Tobias Forge". overdrive. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  5. ↑ Skinner, Tom (4 March 2020). "Ghost introduce new character Papa Emeritus IV at final 'Prequelle' show". NME. Archived from the original on 20 May 2020. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  6. ↑ Neilstein, Vince (8 October 2020). "Ghost: New Album Coming This Winter". MetalSucks. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  7. ↑ "Ghost Is Back With First New Single In Two Years, 'Hunter's Moon'". Blabbermouth.net. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  8. 1 2 Shutler, Ali (20 January 2022). "Ghost announce new album 'Impera', share hopeful single 'Call me Little Sunshine'". NME. Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  9. 1 2 "Ghost Debut New Song "Call Me Little Sunshine," Announce Upcoming Album 'Impera'". Revolver Magazine. 20 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  10. 1 2 Owen, Matt (20 January 2022). "Ghost announce 5th studio album, Impera, debut haunting new single, Call Me Little Sunshine". Guitar World. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  11. 1 2 "Ghost Reveal Details For New Album "Impera", Premiere "Call Me Little Sunshine" Music Video". The PRP. 19 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Stickler, Jon (20 January 2022). "Ghost Set March Release For Fifth Album 'Impera', Share New Track Call Me Little Sunshine". stereoboard.com. Archived from the original on 22 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  13. ↑ Rhombus, Emperor (2 March 2022). "Ghost Release Surprisingly Chuggy New Single "Twenties"". MetalSucks. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  14. ↑ Wilson-Taylor, James (28 February 2023). "Ghost Unveil New Music Video For 'Spillways'". Rock Sound. Archived from the original on 2 August 2022. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  15. ↑ "IMPERA 2022 Arena Tour Edition CD with Exclusive Tour Poster & Instant Download of "Kaisarion"". Loma Vista - a recording company. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  16. 1 2 "Ghost To Enter Studio In January; New Album Tentatively Due In Late 2021". Blabbermouth.net. 21 October 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  17. ↑ "Ghost: 'Meliora' Cover Artwork, Track Listing Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. 20 January 2022. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 Begrand, Adrien (11 March 2022). "Ghost's 'Impera' Is a Morbidly Exhilarating Soundtrack to Dark Times". PopMatters. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  19. 1 2 3 Everley, Dave (6 March 2022). "Ghost's Impera album is the 80s arena rock banger to end 80s arena rock bangers". Metal Hammer. Retrieved 6 March 2022 – via Loudersound.
  20. ↑ Daly, Joe (10 March 2022). "Every Ghost album ranked from worst to best". Metal Hammer. Retrieved 17 March 2022 – via Loudersound.
  21. 1 2 3 McMahon, James (10 March 2022). "Ghost – 'Impera' review: Swedish metallers go bigger than ever". NME. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  22. ↑ Nesbitt, William (13 March 2022). "Ghost – 'Impera' – Album Review". The Rock Pit. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  23. 1 2 3 Jurek, Thom. "Impera - Ghost". Allmusic. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  24. ↑ Childers, Chad (20 September 2021). "Ghost + Volbeat Announce 2022 U.S. Co-Headline Tour Dates". Loudwire. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  25. ↑ "Ghost Debuts New Song 'Kaisarion' At First Show Of U.S. Tour With Volbeat (Video)". Blabbermouth.net. 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  26. ↑ Ruskell, Nick (26 January 2022). "Ghost: "You have to destroy to rebuild, but that doesn't mean you have to level everything into gravel"". Kerrang!. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  27. ↑ Skinner, Tom (23 November 2021). "Ghost announce UK and European tour for 2022". NME. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  28. ↑ Johnson, Laura (23 November 2021). "Ghost To Bring Imperatour To UK And Europe In Spring 2022". stereoboard.com. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  29. ↑ Alderslade, Merlin (17 March 2022). "Watch Ghost perform Call Me Little Sunshine on Jimmy Kimmel Live". loudersound.com. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  30. ↑ "Ghost Tops Charts Across The World With New Album 'Impera'". www.ultimate-guitar.com. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  31. ↑ Childers, Chad (21 March 2022). "Ghost's 'Impera' Logs Biggest Album Sales Week of 2022, Places Second on Billboard 200 Album Chart". Loudwire. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  32. ↑ Alderslade, Merlin (18 March 2022). "Confirmed: Impera is Ghost's highest ever charting album in the UK". loudersound. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  33. ↑ "Impera by Ghost reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  34. 1 2 "Impera by Ghost Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  35. 1 2 Lawson, Dom (8 March 2022). "CD Reviews - Impera Ghost". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  36. 1 2 Beaumont, Mark (10 March 2022). "Ghost's Impera: large doses of schlock but marginally more meaty". Classic Rock. Retrieved 11 March 2022 – via Loudersound.
  37. 1 2 Hopkins, Manus (11 March 2022). "Ghost Give Up Satan for Arena-Sized Ambition on 'Impera'". Exclaim!. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  38. 1 2 Hickie, James (9 March 2022). "The big review: Ghost – Impera". Kerrang!. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  39. 1 2 Blum, Jordan (7 March 2022). "Album Review: Ghost Impera". Metal Injection. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  40. 1 2 "Album Review: Ghost Impera". Metal Sucks. 9 March 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  41. ↑ Metal Hammer (9 December 2022). "These are Metal Hammer's Top 50 best albums of 2022". louder. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  42. ↑ "25 Best Albums of 2022". Revolver. 24 November 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  43. ↑ "2022 Winners". American Music Awards. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  44. ↑ "The 50 best albums of 2022". Kerrang!. 19 December 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  45. ↑ Impera (CD liner notes). Loma Vista Recordings. 2022. LVR02403. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  46. ↑ Laing, Rob (26 January 2022). "Ghost hired Opeth's Fredrik Åkesson to play guitar on their new album: "He's the sort of person who plays five hours every day"". MusicRadar. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  47. ↑ "ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart". Australian Recording Industry Association. 21 March 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  48. ↑ "Longplay Charts vom 22. März 2022". Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  49. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Ghost – Impera" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  50. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Ghost – Impera" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  51. ↑ "Ghost dupe 1 Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  52. ↑ "Hitlisten.NU – Album Top-40 Uge 11, 2022". Hitlisten. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  53. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Ghost – Impera" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  54. ↑ "Ghost: Impera" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  55. ↑ "Top Albums (Week 11, 2022)". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 21 March 2022.
  56. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Ghost – Impera" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  57. ↑ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2022. 11. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
  58. ↑ "Official Irish Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  59. ↑ "Album – Classifica settimanale WK 11 (dal 11.03.2022 al 17.03.2022)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  60. ↑ "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 21 March 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  61. ↑ "Album 2022 uke 11". VG-lista. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  62. ↑ "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 24 March 2022.
  63. ↑ "Portuguesecharts.com – Ghost – Impera". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  64. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  65. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Ghost – Impera". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  66. ↑ "Veckolista Album, vecka 11". Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  67. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Ghost – Impera". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  68. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  69. ↑ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  70. ↑ "Ghost dupe 1 Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  71. ↑ "Ghost dupe 1 Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  72. ↑ "Ghost dupe 1 Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  73. ↑ "Ghost dupe 1 Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  74. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 2022" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  75. ↑ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts 2022" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  76. ↑ "Årslista Album, 2022" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  77. ↑ "YEAR-END CHARTS: Top Album Sales (2022)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  78. ↑ "Sverigetopplistan – Ghost" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  79. ↑ Impera release formats:
    1. "Ghost - Impera Limited Edition Metallic Gold Cassette". Loma Vista | Official Store. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
    2. "Ghost - Impera Standard CD". Loma Vista | Official Store. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
    3. "Ghost - Impera Digital Album". Loma Vista | Official Store. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
    4. "Ghost - Impera Limited Edition Metallic Gold Colored Vinyl w/ Vinyl Slipmat & Booklet". Loma Vista | Official Store. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
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