Listen to Ghost’s riff-heavy new single ‘Lachryma’

Ghost have shared a new rock anthem called ‘Lachryma’. Check it out below.

• READ MORE: Tobias Forge on new material and the future of Ghost: “If fans need the lore to like the band, that element will be over quite soon”

Shared today (April 11), the track marks the latest single to be shared from the band’s forthcoming album ‘Skeletá’ – following on from the lead single ‘Satanized’, which arrived last month.

Capturing the same theatrical rock sound that Tobias Forge and co. have become recognised for in recent years, the latest offering sees the band channel an ’80s-inspired sound, alongside their signature combination of menacing imagery and upbeat riffs.

“In the middle of the night, it feeds/ In the middle of the night, it eats you/ Everybody knows, everywhere I go/ I can never run and I cannot hide,” the frontman sings, building up to the huge, defiant chorus. “I’m done crying over someone like you”.

Check out the song below, as well as the new music video that sees Papa V Perpetua’s first full performance as the newly anti-christened frontman.

As for the record as a whole, ‘Skeletá’ is set to be Ghost’s sixth studio album and the follow-up to 2022’s ‘Impera’.

This time around, Forge is expected to take a step away from the outward-looking themes – including ‘Impera’s exploration of falling empires and ‘Prequelle’s reflection on the plague – and instead see the band’s founder connect with motifs of identity and emotion.

Comprising 10 songs, a new description describes the record as being “a singular collection of timeless, universal sentiments, all filtered through a prism of a uniquely personal point of view”. It is set to arrive on April 25 via Loma Vista, and you can visit here to pre-order.

Recently, Tobias Forge spoke to NME as part of the In Conversation series, and explained what he means when he says the LP has an inward-looking approach. “ I’m not a great salesman, but it’s 10 songs of hopefully healing joy,” he said. “The previous record was written as part of a socially-reflective bigger picture. It was about shining a light on society. So when making a new record, I wasn’t enthused by the idea of writing a follow-up or ‘Impera 2’ — I wanted it to be something else.

“I’ve always tried to do something different from the previous one, so this time, I wanted to make a record that was based on introspection.”

He then went on to explain why Ghost are “living proof” that rock isn’t dead, reveal how he has taken inspiration from Black Sabbath, and suggest to NME that the band’s signature lore may be coming to an end in the future.

“I think that there might be an end to the storytelling because it’s not productive to have this endless soap opera. If fans need the lore in order to like the band, then that element will probably be over quite soon,” he said of the latter.

“If there is a way where the music can be enough and remains enjoyable, though, I am just as needy as any other artist in the sense of milestones that I want to achieve. There are still places that I want to play and still things I want to do that will be another feather in my hat. I am very lucky that I’ve been able to achieve many of those things, but there are still levels of success that I want.”

You can watch that interview in full via the video above.

The latest single comes as Ghost are hitting the road as part of a new run of UK and European tour dates. UK dates continue this month and include a show at London’s O2 arena. Check out a full list of dates here and visit here to purchase tickets.

Papa “V” Perpetua will also be appearing as part of the line-up for Black Sabbath’s final ever show in Villa Park, Birmingham on July 5.

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