Ever since the magnificence known as Ghost arrived on the scene, comparisons to King Diamond and Mercyful Fate were immediate. Past the face paint, I never really saw it. I guess they were going for similar vibes, and both have clean vocals, but the similarities stop there.
King Diamond doesn't see the similarities either, and he was there the whole time. Asked by Musik Universe what he thought of Ghost and the comparisons, he responded:
"I've seen a video or two [from Ghost and]I think they have their own thing," King said. "They don't remind me of King Diamond or Mercyful Fate at all. I don't hear it. I mean, there's barely any guitar solos in Ghost. We can barely start a song before we have three guitar solos. [Laughs] There's not the complex riffing [in Ghost] that's going on. With Ghost, it's much more… I would compare them much more to BLUE ÖYSTER CULT, you know. They are very melodic, I think, [and] there's no falsetto singing at all. It doesn't remind me of King Diamond or Mercyful Fate at all, actually. I heard one riff that reminded me of a Mercyful Fate riff, but it had a whole different sound. It was not like I said, 'Oh, man, they're stealing [our ideas].' Not at all."
He continued: "I don't think that they should even want to be like us, even if they could, but I don't think anyone can be like that. But I think that they have very much their own thing, which is good. Who wants to sound like someone else? You wanna [have] your own [sound], if you can. And I think they have a very unique, old-fashioned sound. They sound old. They sound like Seventies style, which is what they want too, I'm sure.
"I see that they have said that they are inspired by us, but you can be inspired in many ways by putting on a certain show, or [drawing influences from] a certain time period.
"I am very inspired by the Seventies. My favorite singer is David Byron, who is not with us anymore, from URIAH HEEP; [he's] the absolute top vocalist of all time for me. Led Zeppelin is what made me buy my first electric guitar; the Jimmy Page guitar sound.
"Those people that say that [Ghost sounds like Mercyful Fate], I don't hear it. [When I listen to Ghost] I hear BLUE ÖYSTER CULT-style music. Where are all the [musical] complexities and the extreme progressive riffing and guitar solos or vocals that are all kinds of ways [which are present in Mercyful Fate's music]? [Ghost's songs are] much streamlined and melodic, you know. That's also why they're signed to a major label. They're streamlined and they appeal to a lot more people, because it's safer and all this stuff.
"I think they're doing a great job with what they do, but I don't think it's fair to them either to compare them to us. Just because they say that they like what we do — that's an honor to hear, of course. But that doesn't mean… Just 'cause you like what others do or you're inspired… You can be inspired on many levels. Like I said, I was inspired by the Jimmy Page guitar sound to get an electric guitar, but I never tried to sound like Led Zeppelin does. I mean, why should I do that? Same thing with my makeup. Yeah, I was inspired to use makeup from seeing… but not just Alice Cooper. I often mention Alice Cooper. I don't wanna sound like Alice Cooper or be confused with him at all, and I certainly don't think we are. But he also… someone else [did it] before him — Arthur Brown and others. And then he's developed it into certain things. But before I saw Alice Cooper live in '75, I had seen Genesis with Peter Gabriel in '74. [And that was] a huge inspiration for show production, seeing their show. It was amazing. So that was an even bigger inspiration, show-wise."
I agree completely with the King. If anything, Ghost sound more like Blue Oyster Cult and just because they are influenced and inspired by the King, it doesn't mean they sound like him.
What do you think? Does Ghost sound like Mercyful Fate?
