Ghost recently finished their Re-Imperatour on October 7th, and along with the end of the tour, they announced the end of the Impera era. So, with five studio albums and four EPs under their belt, what is Ghost’s best album?
To start, I will not be ranking “[MESSAGE FROM THE CLERGY]” or “Seven Inches of Satanic Panic” because the former is just a re-release of old songs, and the latter is only two songs so it is not fair to rank.
#8 “Phantomime” (2023)
Favorite Song: “Jesus He Knows Me”
Least Favorite Song: “See No Evil”
I want to preface this by saying that I do not think any of these albums are bad at all. With that being said, I just think that “Phantomime” does not really do anything special. All the songs on this EP are certainly good and I can listen to them whenever I want. I just think that the covers they did were a bit lacking. “Jesus He Knows Me” shines well above the rest of the songs.
#7 “Infestissumam” (2013)
Favorite Song: “Ghuleh / Zombie Queen”
Least Favorite Song: “La Mantra Mori”
“Infestissumam” is a hard album to gage for me. I think a lot of the songs are fundamentally good songs, however, I feel like the messages of the songs do not really vibe with me, partially just because of how in-your-face the songs are. On the other Ghost albums, I feel like most songs are up to the interpretation of the listener, and I really like that aspect of the band. Another problem I have with “Infestissumam” is that the songs that are bad really sink down the album for me compared to upcoming albums on this list where even the bad songs do not take away from the overall listening experience.
#6 “Opus Eponymous” (2010)
Favorite Song: “Stand by Him”
Least Favorite Song: “Prime Mover”
Ghost’s debut album is a solid one. The one thing holding it back from being higher is the lack of content. I understand that a debut album probably is not going to be the longest album in the world, however, with the quality of songs on this album I hoped for more. “Opus Eponymous” has two of the staple Ghost songs “Ritual” and “Con Clavi Con Dio” which are still today played at their concerts. This album does stand the test of time, but with the lack of content, and some songs just not hitting for me, “Opus Eponymous” lands at six.
#5 “If You Have Ghost” (2013)
Favorite Song: “If You Have Ghosts”
Least Favorite Song: “I’m a Marionette”
The first EP to be released by the band does great with their selection of covers. “If You Have Ghosts” is one of my favorite Ghost songs of all time. Almost all the covers on this EP are amazing and really bring the Ghost vibe into the songs they cover.
#4 “Popestar” (2016)
Favorite Song: “Square Hammer”
Least Favorite Song: “I Believe”
It pains me that I cannot put “Popestar” any higher because of how good this EP is. Every song is an absolute banger and they all just fit the vibe of Ghost so well. You can dance, you can cry, you can feel so many emotions just from this short EP. The songs all flow into each other and it is a great listen.
#3 “Meliora” (2015)
Favorite Song: “Absolution”
Least Favorite Song: “Spirit”
This is definitely a hot take, considering that “Meliora” is Ghost’s most critically acclaimed album. I just think that “Meliora” does not quite do enough to propel it above the top two. Meliora’s shortcomings lie in the fact that I do not think “Spirit” is a very good song, and the overuse of transition songs. Other than that the album is perfect. “Meliora” features Ghost’s most critically successful song in “Cirice” and other amazing fan favorites like “Mummy Dust” and “He Is.” If it was not for its flaws, “Meliora” would be number one, but that just goes to show how good the top two albums are.
#2 “Impera” (2022)
Favorite Song: “Kaisarion”
Least Favorite Song: “Griftwood”
Ghost’s most recent album sits at number two for me. It is so close to being a perfect album. There’s not a single bad song on “Impera,” but like all Ghost albums my biggest problem is the transition songs. I used to not like this album that much, but the more I listened to it, the more I loved it. It has that Ghost vibe while still managing to do something completely different from previous albums. All the songs on “Impera” never fail to instill something in me that not all the Ghost albums can. From songs like “Spillways,” to songs like “Darkness at the Heart of My Love,” each song brings something new to the table each time I listen.
#1 Prequelle (2018)
Favorite Song: Rats
Least Favorite Song: None
“Prequelle” is far and beyond the best album. It did what “Impera” does better, and it did it first. Every song (besides the interludes) is flawless. This was Ghost’s first album after some of the original members of the band left and formed their own band to spite Tobias Forge, the creator and lead singer of Ghost. You can just feel the energy that is put into the song from Forge after having his former friends spite him. Every song just oozes blood, sweat, and tears and it makes every song phenomenal. Forge was also going through personal dealings during the making of this album and you can just feel that extra effort through the songs as well.
With the end of the “Impera” era of Ghost, us fans wait excitedly for what will come next. Ghost is slated to release a new album at the begining of 2024. Will we see a new Papa? Will we have a new front man? Or will everything stay the same? With the unpredictability of Ghost I wait in anticipation for what comes next for the band.
