"Call Me Little Sunshine" Released: 20 January 2022
"Twenties" Released: 2 March 2022
"Spillways" Released: 27 July 2022
Impera is the fifth studio album by the Swedishrock bandGhost. Released on 11 March 2022, it was produced byKlas Åhlund who also produced the band's 2015 album,Meliora. The release ofImpera was preceded by three singles: the first, "Hunter's Moon", was released on 30 September 2021 in support of the 2021slasher filmHalloween 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 ofImpera mainly focuses on "the rise and fall of empires". Multiple outside songwriters assisted with the album, including pop producersSalem Al Fakir andVincent Pontare,Kent lead singerJoakim Berg andThe Cardigans guitaristPeter Svensson.[1] The album received widespread critical acclaim.
In a 2021 interview with radio station KLAQ, frontmanTobias Forge stated that he came up with the concept ofImpera in 2013 after reading the bookThe 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'sPike 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 albumPrequelle 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 albumPrequelle inMexico City, Cardinal Copia, the singer of the band, was transformed into Papa Emeritus IV. He would remain the frontman for their fifth album.[5]
TheCOVID-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 2021slasher filmHalloween 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 ofImpera.[15]
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 byKlas Åhlund and mixed byAndy Wallace,[2][12] who also did the same for the band's 2015 album,Meliora.[17]
In January 2022, the band kicked off a North American co-headline tour withVolbeat called theImperatour.[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 showJimmy Kimmel Live! on 17 March 2022, where they performed the single "Call Me Little Sunshine".[29]
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 theBillboard 200 chart, behindLil Durk's7220, selling 70,000 units in its first week, of which 62,500 were physicalalbum sales. It is Ghost's highest charting album in the U.S., surpassingPrequelle'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, behindRex Orange County'sWho Cares?[32]
Impera received critical acclaim upon its release. AtMetacritic, 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 ofAllMusic 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 ofBlabbermouth.net called the album the "most spectacular and hook-filled heavy(ish) metal albums in recent memory."[35] According to Mark Beaumont ofClassic Rock, "Ghost swap Medieval demons for modern-day counterparts..." and compared the album toGreen Day'sAmerican Idiot.[36]
Manus Hopkins ofExclaim! 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 ofKerrang! 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 ofMetal 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 ofMetal 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 toAvatar andKing Diamond and called it "theatrical, catchy, and evil in the most approachable way."[40] James McMahon ofNME called the twelve tracks on the album "a truly delicious pop-rock proposition."[21] Adrien Begrand ofPopMatters 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]
[23]
[36]
