Infestissumam

by Ghost, Nameless Ghouls, Papa Emeritus II

Overview

Ghost's 2010 debut, the divisive Opus Eponymous, presented the heavy metal community with a conundrum. On the one hand, the willfully anonymous Swedish rockers were well versed in the dark pageantry of the genre, but while their fondness for the occult was indeed extreme, the music lacked the viscera of its unholy convictions. Released in 2013, Infestissumam, which translated from Latin means hostile, is just as apocalyptic and musically adventurous as its predecessor, offering up ten new Beelzebub-approved singalongs that reside somewhere between Gothenburg and Broadway. If anything, the album finds the band moving even further away from the genre, adopting a weirdly effective, psych-pop/progressive rock approach that alternates between winking and sinister, sounding almost like a parody of the longstanding Swedish black metal scene. Even if that's the case, Infestissumam can be a hell of a lot of fun, especially when it applies its gonzo Satanism with a hefty amount of opulence, as is the case on album highlights like "Per Aspera Ad Inferi" (the most inherently metal track), the vintage Deep Purple-esque "Idolatrine," and the magnificent, over the top "Year Zero," the latter of which sounds like the song most likely to replace "We Will Rock You" as the sports anthem of choice, in the event that the End Times occur and the sporting world is usurped by the undead. Whatever Ghost's intentions, they've definitely managed to carve out a niche within the increasingly fragmented world of heavy metal, and while purists may revile them for their insolence, it's their insubordination that ultimately earns them a place in the genre. ~ James Christopher Monger

Product Details

Release Date:	04/16/2013
Label:	Island
UPC:	0602537343737
Rank:	4700

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Infestissumam
2. Per Aspera Ad Inferi
3. Secular Haze [Album Version]
4. Jigolo Har Megiddo
5. Ghuleh/Zombie Queen

Disc 2

6. Year Zero
7. Body and Blood
8. Idolatrine
9. Depth of Satan's Eyes
10. Monstrance Clock

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Ghost   Primary Artist
Papa Emeritus II   Primary Artist
Nameless Ghouls   Primary Artist
David Campbell   Conductor
St. Trident Tenors of Tinseltown   Vocals

Technical Credits

Ted Jensen   Mastering Engineer
Benny Andersson   Composer
Bjoern Ulvaeus   Composer
Nick Rasculinecz   Mixing,Producer
Paul Fig   Engineer
Niels Nielsen   Engineer
David Campbell   Score
Erik Danielsson   Design,Reproduction
Brian Bumbery   Publicity
Nathan Yarborough   Second Engineer
Micke Eriksson   Photography
A Ghoul Writer   Composer,Lyricist
Simon Soederberg   Engineer
Nicholas Johansson   A&R
Niklas Bergloef   Engineer
Nameless Ghouls   Composer
Anna Maslowicz   Publicity
Zbignew Bielak II   Artwork
Another Ghoul Writer   Composer