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Wherever I am, whenever those two beats hit during the verses of Square Hammer, I fist pump. I can't not. Fuck, Swedish Satanic metal bands should not be this catchy. It defies logic.
 
LooseCannon said:
Swedish Satanic metal bands should not be this catchy.
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I hope you put the word "satanic" in there as bait :) Because there's nothing satanic about Ghost of course....They use the occult as a theme for their retro hard rock like Black Sabbath, and many other bands, used the occult as a theme back in the 70s....
 
SixesAlltheway said:
Because there's nothing satanic about Ghost of course....They use the occult as a theme for their retro hard rock/metal like Black Sabbath used the occult as a theme back in the 70s....
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Exactly, and as an actual Satanist I take offense at their existence. :p

Seriously though, I gotta side with Kerry King on this one fellas - the image is great, the music is not. :(
 
Diesel 11 said:
Seriously though, I gotta side with Kerry King on this one fellas - the image is great, the music is not. :(
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Yeah, no. The music is superb. It's as poppy as you can get without crossing that line, maybe. Besides, based on everything Kerry King has written since the first Bush was president, he doesn't know that much about metal, anyway.
 
Diesel 11 said:
Exactly, and as an actual Satanist I take offense at their existence. :p

Seriously though, I gotta side with Kerry King on this one fellas - the image is great, the music is not. :(
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My main problem, or whatever you want to call it, with Ghost is that they are just not that special. In the last 10-15 years there's been loads of bands doing the retro hard rock sound...and many better than Ghost. The only difference is that Ghost managed to break through, get a gimmick going with the masks and get some label support and tour with big bands.....But many people see them as innovators or like they are the only band doing this kind of music at the moment, which is just not true.
 
SixesAlltheway said:
The only difference is that Ghost managed to break through, get a gimmick going with the masks and get some label support and tour with big bands.
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The music wasn't that special to begin with - I agree. But I think that as a band they are getting better. There are parallels to another band I can think of with the gimmick, anyway. Gimmicks are important, because a lot of people connect to music on a scale other than what they hear. In fact, I'd argue most people connect to a music on a scale that is more than what they hear.
 
LooseCannon said:
The music wasn't that special to begin with - I agree. But I think that as a band they are getting better. There are parallels to another band I can think of with the gimmick, anyway. Gimmicks are important, because a lot of people connect to music on a scale other than what they hear. In fact, I'd argue most people connect to a music on a scale that is more than what they hear.
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I remember their first album was "just another good Swedish effort" to the, very busy, retro hard rock scene at the time. Sometimes, I do genuinely wonder, if some of the members in Ghost had connections already in the music business which would make it easier for them to establish connections that would otherwise take a newly started rock band YEARS to build. Anyways... Yes, gimmicks do seem important, metal has always been about gimmicks for sure...but lately more and more metal bands have been all about the gimmick, less about the metal. And I personally can't stand that. ;) Give me a metal band that writes songs about what makes sense to them and that just plays great metal....Without dressing like pirates or whatever! ;)
 
The way I see Ghost, I don't think they're exceptional or amazing, but it was a pleasant surprise to find that they were decent, with a handful of memorable tunes, on top of having a bit of a stage show. I really expected nothing from them both times I saw them live, and ended up enjoying both their performance and the music. They just grew on me.
 
SixesAlltheway said:
I remember their first album was "just another good Swedish effort" to the, very busy, retro hard rock scene at the time.
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Oh, absolutely. I agree that their first album isn't all that special. Meliora was a little more special, especially Cirice, which is still metal-by-the-numbers, but it is a very, very very good example of that type of music. Square Hammer is a really good sign though, because while it's not terribly unique, it is the kind of song that can draw a whole new generation of listeners towards the genre.

SixesAlltheway said:
Yes, gimmicks do seem important, metal has always been about gimmicks for sure...but lately more and more metal bands have been all about the gimmick, less about the metal.
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You know you're on an Iron Maiden forum, right?
 
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