Ghost

Formed in Linköping, Sweden, in the mid-2000s around musician Tobias Forge, Ghost crafts a heavy metal and hard rock universe with a pronounced theatrical bent, blending influences from doom, 1970s rock, and melodic pop. Ghost is distinguished by imagery inspired by religious ritual, featuring a vocalist who has successively embodied various incarnations of Papa Emeritus and later the character Cardinal Copia, surrounded by anonymous musicians known as the Nameless Ghouls. After making a strong impression on the European metal scene, the band released the album Opus Eponymous in 2010, followed by Infestissumam in 2013 — marketed as Ghost B.C. in certain territories — then Meliora in 2015, Prequelle in 2018, and Impera in 2022, while alternating EPs of cover songs with original compositions. In concert, Ghost translates its profane mass aesthetic into elaborate stage designs and regularly appears on major international stages and festival lineups, cementing a position at the crossroads of metal, classic rock, and contemporary pop.