The Underground Band Tobias Forge First Wanted Ghost to Look Like

With their ornate papal getups, Ghost are easily one of the most recognizable hard rock or metal bands of the past 20 years. But what underground band inspired their macabre, over-the-top aesthetic?

Frontman Tobias Forge revealed some of his early inspirations in a recent Qobuz interview tied to the release of Ghost’s sixth album, Skeleta, which arrived on Friday. You can watch the full interview below.

While certain landmark metal releases such as Metallica‘s ‘Black Album’ and Iron Maiden‘s Live After Death were unsurprising inclusions, Forge also spent some time discussing a lesser-known Italian metal band called Death SS.

What Did Tobias Forge Say About Death SS?

Formed in 1977 by lead singer Steve Sylvester, Death SS released their debut full-length, … In Death of Steve Sylvester, in 1988. To understand the group’s influence on Ghost, look no further than the cover of their 1991 album Heavy Demons, which features all five band members in grisly skull and animal masks.

death ss album cover

Metalmaster Records

“Death SS was an influence on Ghost. It still is,” Forge said. “I’m still a fan and my image of what they were, and maybe also what I sometimes envisioned that they could be, was a little bit of a lead motive when it came to my idea of what Ghost was going to be when I was writing the first record.”

He continued: “When I spoke about Ghost to others, I was like, ‘Yeah, I’m writing these songs that are … metal, but it’s supposed to be, imagine Demon or Angel Witch, that sort of New Wave of British Heavy Metal, but with sort of grown man AOR vocals. It’s a little bit of divorce rock, but with evil undertones.’ But I wanted the band to look like Death SS.”

Forge explained that Death SS’s influence on Ghost was partly aspirational. “So basically, I wanted it to sound the way I was hoping that Death SS was gonna sound,” he said. “When you listen to a lot of the Death SS records, it has way more of almost a thrashy feel. They’re not as melodic and operatic and grandiose as I think I want them to sound.”

Death SS, “Heavy Demons”

The frontman also cited Italian-Slovenian art-rock band Devil Doll when describing the musical and aesthetic hybrid he envisioned for Ghost. “In my head, I’ve always wanted a band looking like Death SS, [but] I want them to sound like Devil Doll,” he said. “That’s one of my other favorite Italian horror rock bands. So I wanted there to be a mix. So Death SS, really cool band. Really cool image. Been around forever. And Steve Sylvester, the singer there, is a wonderful, wonderful guy.”