Ghost's Tobias Forge talks characteristics he looks for in bandmates

Ghost has seen a few lineup changes during their lengthy career, and while the group has seen some new faces (uhm, kind of) that doesn’t mean there aren’t some key requirements to joining the band.

Read more: Ghost frontman hints at new EP, concert film

The band’s frontman, Cardinal Copia aka Tobias Forge, recently sat with The Albuquerque Journal (per the PRP), where he explained that the  ‘Nameless Ghouls‘ of the group are carefully picked.

Explaining to the source that there are a few things he looks for in his Ghouls, and from what we’ve gathered, it seems like he looks for an appreciation of the old school style with a knowledge of some pretty important genres and bands.

Check out his statement below:

“You need to have certain metal chops,” Forge said. “If you are a guitar player in this band, it’s very old school, it’s very much old rock style. I am an old school guitar player. I’m not an ’80s-’90s sort of shredder who plays a million notes a minute. I am way more ’60s-’70s kind of style, and I write very ’60s-’70s.

If you come in like a typical modern drummer who is used to playing only with tricks and double kick and, like, big, big, big, fast roles but you can’t play a swinging shuffle, then you can’t play in Ghost whatsoever. You need to have spent your time from playing Top 40 pop rock in order to know how to play a song like ‘Ritual,’ a song like ‘Absolution’ or ‘Idolatrine.’ You need to know your classic drumming and your classic guitar.

You can’t have people in the band who’s like only metal, either, but if you don’t know metal, you can’t play Ghost anyway because there are elements in my guitar playing that are very, very, very based on me having played death metal, like ’80s death metal, so you would have to play a Slayer riff as well. You need to be sort of equally familiar with Jimi Hendrix and Deep Purple as you are with the more extreme forms of metal, generally. So it’s not for everyone.”

In other Ghost news: 

Following the release of last summer’s fourth studio album, Prequelle, Forge hinted that the band are working on new music, which may or may not be coming out next year.

“My intention is not to release just another EP of covers,” says the Ghost frontman formerly known as Papa Emeritus. “There might be something else coming out next year, maybe, that might have been recorded already, that won’t be covers.”

Additionally, it was reported that the lawsuit against Ghost‘s frontman by four former members of the band has been dismissed by a Swedish court, according to reports.

Back in April of last year (2017), it was reported that four previous Ghost members filed a lawsuit against Forge for “missing wages and allowances for several years.”

The trial completed Wednesday (October 17), where a 108-page report was released that dismissed the case, and ordered the four former members to pay the legal fees Forge acquired from the case.

As reported by Blabbermouth, Forge was paid by the former member’s $146,000 in legal fees.

Check out Ghost’s upcoming tour dates, down below, and let us know what your thoughts on the ‘Nameless Ghouls‘ needed traits are in the comments below!

Dates:

11/06 – Omaha, NE @ Orpheum Theater
11/08 – Albuquerque, NM @ Kiva Auditorium
11/09 – El Paso, TX @ Abraham Chavez Theatre
11/10 – Phoenix, AZ @ Comerica Theatre
11/12 – San Diego, CA @ Spreckels Theatre
11/13 – Sacramento, CA @ Sacramento Community Ctr
11/15 – San Jose, CA @ City National Civic Center
11/16 – Inglewood, CA @ The Forum
11/17 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Joint
11/19 – Midland, TX @ Wagner Noel Performing Arts Center
11/20 – Austin, TX @ Bass Concert Hall
11/21 – New Orleans, LA @ Orpheum Theatre
11/23 – Orlando, FL @ Walt Disney Theater
11/24 – Miami Beach, FL @ The Fillmore
11/25 – Clearwater, FL @ Ruth Eckerd Hall

11/27 – Charleston, SC @ N. Charleston Performing Arts Ctr
11/29 – Mobile, AL @ Saenger Theatre
11/30 – Atlanta, GA @ Roxy Theatre
12/01 – Jacksonville, FL @ Florida Theatre
12/02 – Charlotte, NC @ Ovens Auditorium
12/04 – Richmond, VA @ Dominion Energy Center
12/05 – Wilkes-Barre, PA @ FM Kirby Center
12/07 – Laval, QC @ Place Bell
12/08 – Toronto, ON @ Sony Centre
12/10 – Baltimore, MD @ The Hippodrome
12/11 – Upper Darby, PA @ Tower Theater
12/13 – Albany, NY @ Palace Theatre
12/14 – Boston, MA @ Wang Theatre
12/15 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center