What makes Ghost such an exciting entity is the unpredictable nature of the band. When Tobias Forge killed off the Papa Emeritus figures and brought in the Cardinal Copia character as the frontman in 2018, it was a shock to fans and the mastermind has now expressed that in an "alternative future," he may just kick back, play guitar and let someone else do the singing.

Forge is the creative force behind the band's music and in his original vision, it was his intention to only play guitar. "The time that I have spent sort of in the background, I also, in 2006 and onwards, when Ghost began to appear in my head, my intention was to just play guitar," he said when radio station 101 WKQX asked him about the different kind of onstage pressure that comes with playing an instrument rather than fronting the band. "I wanted to write everything and I wanted do back-up vocals. I just wanted to be the guitar player. That's always been in my head — I am a guitar player."

Despite writing Ghost's material, Forge does not play an instrument onstage and was asked if he'd like to play guitar in Ghost. "In a way. It's not weird, because now, obviously, I'm conditioned into being the singer guy," he replied, adding, "but if I had my way and definitely in an alternative future, if whatever happens, I could definitely picture myself sort of getting someone else to sing and [I] just play guitar."

"I love playing those songs myself," the frontman continued, going on to lament the fact that he does not stay on top of playing as much as he'd like. "Obviously, I don't do it very often, and if I'm just given a guitar, I have to refresh my memory and, of course, the more time I spend jumping around doing other things, the less I play guitar, which is a little bit of a cycle where every time I come home, I play a little bit more, and then I go on the road and I play a little bit less. And then as soon as I go in the studio again, I have to really, really, really get my chops up again."

For now, at least, its Forge's intent to have Cardinal Copia sing on the next Ghost record.

Ghost will be back on the road in North America in September on a co-headlining tour with Nothing More. See the list of dates below.

Ghost + Nothing More North American Tour Dates

Sep. 13 - Bakersfield, Calif. @ Rabobank Theatre
Sep. 14 - Reno, Nev. @ Reno Events Center
Sep. 16 - Portland, Ore. @ Theater of the Clouds at Moda Center
Sep. 17 - Kennewick, Wash. @ Toyota Center
Sep. 19 - Seattle, Wash. @ WaMu Theatre
Sep. 20 - Vancouver, British Columbia @ Pacific Auditorium
Sep. 21 - Penticton, British Columbia @ So. Okanagan Events Centre
Sep. 23 - Edmonton, Alberta @ Rogers Place
Sep. 24 - Calgary, Alberta @ The Corral
Sep. 26 - Spokane, Wash. @ Spokane Arena
Sep. 27 - Boise, Idaho @ Taco Bell Arena
Sep. 28 - West Valley City, Utah @ Maverik Center*
Sep. 30 - Loveland, Colo. @ Budweiser Events Center at The Ranch
Oct. 01 - Colorado Springs, Colo. @ Broadmoor World Arena
Oct. 03 - Sioux Falls, S.D. @ Denny Sanford Premier Center
Oct. 04 - Fargo, N.D. @ Scheels Arena*
Oct. 05 - Minneapolis, Minn. @ The Armory
Oct. 07 - Green Bay, Wis. @ Resch Center
Oct. 08 - Moline, Ill. @ TaxSlayer Centre
Oct. 10 - Youngstown, Ohio @ Covelli Centre
Oct. 11 - Huntington, W. Va. @ Big Sandy Superstore Arena
Oct. 12 - Manchester, Tenn. @ Exit 111 Festival
Oct. 14 - Grand Rapids, Mich. @ DeltaPlex Arena
Oct. 15 - Toledo, Ohio @ Huntington Center
Oct. 17 - Hamilton, Ontario @ FirstOntario Centre
Oct. 18 - Ottawa, Ontario @ Richcraft Tire Center
Oct. 19 - Portland, Maine @ Cross Insurance Arena
Oct. 21 - Worcester, Mass. @ DCU Center
Oct. 22 - Syracuse, N.Y. @ The Oncenter
Oct. 24 - Hershey, Pa. @ GIANT Center
Oct. 25 - Trenton, N.J. @ Cure Insurance Arena
Oct. 26 - Glens Falls, N.Y. @ Cool Insuring Arena
* without Nothing More

Every Ghost Song Ranked

 

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