Category: Music

Song of the Moment LXXIV: Ghost’s “Satanized”

Tonight, as I drink my favorite Jack and Coke Zero to open the weekend, I’m listening to “Satanized”, the first single from Ghost’s upcoming album Skeletá. And let me tell you the reasons “Satanized” is my Song of the Moment.

If you have been reading The Diary for quite a long time, you should know that Ghost (a Swedish heavy metal/hard rock band with a Satanic theme) is one my favorite bands of all time. And last February 5, 2025, the legendary heavy metal band Black Sabbath announced their final concert, which will be held on July 5, 2025 at Villa Park, Birmingham, UK. One of the performers listed is Ghost’s newest vocalist, Papa V Perpetua.

In the first three album cycles, the vocalists took the name of “Papa Emeritus”—Papa Emeritus I for Opus Eponymous, Papa Emeritus II for Infestissumam, and Papa Emeritus III for Meliora. In the fourth album cycle (Prequelle), Cardinal Copia took over, and in the fifth (Impera), Cardinal Copia was promoted to Papa Emeritus IV. So, it was a breath of fresh air when it was announced that the newest Ghost frontman has a slightly different name, “Papa V Perpetua”. (“Perpetua” means “eternal”.)

Then last Wednesday, March 5, 2025, Ghost released the music video of “Satanized”. And in the video’s final scene, Papa V Perpetua and the Nameless Ghouls were finally revealed. I got goosebumps seeing the new look of Ghost—Papa V Perpetua in a magnificent purple-dominant robe and mitre with a cool half-skull mask/face paint combo, and the Nameless Ghouls in breathtaking skeleton-themed attire.

Side note: Papa V Perpetua somehow reminds me of Papa Emeritus III.

The music video of Ghost’s “Satanized”.

My excitement for the reinvigorated Ghost is one reason for “Satanized” being my Song of the Moment. The other reason is that “Satanized” intertwines lyrics about an untreatable demonic possession and a fight within oneself with the softer rock sound Ghost had developed during Prequelle and Impera, and I love every second of listening to it.

The new Ghost album, Skeletá, will be released on April 25, 2025.

Cheers to the weekend!

Ω

Header image: The music video of Ghost’s “Satanized”. Edited in Adobe Photoshop 2025.

Published on March 8, 2025 at 1:13am. Edits were made at 2:13am.

Song of the Moment LXXIII: Queen’s “Father to Son”

Today’s work tasks made my head spin because there were too many numbers to deal with. But I endured them all because, after work, I spent some quality time with my Father at my favorite cafe Satchmi. My Father had an espresso and, because their affogato is still unavailable, I had an iced mocha.

Whenever I’m alone with my Father, he always talks about how he grew up poor and how he gave his blood, sweat, and tears to achieve success. He also reminds me to be strong no matter how tough it gets. I have heard his stories before, but I keep listening because the entire family and I would not have a comfortable life if he did not work hard. I will always be thankful to my Father, and I’m trying my best to be as strong as he is.

Oh… Queen’s “Father to Son” was playing on my mind when I talked to my Father today. So tonight, it’s my Song of the Moment. (And have I mentioned that Queen is one of my top five favorite bands of all time? No? Now you know.)

Queen’s “Father to Son”.

Until the next post.

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Header image (left): Black Ice of Pexels. Header image (right): Vinícius Estevão of Pexels. Edited in Adobe Photoshop 2025. Uploaded on February 26, 2025.

Song of the Moment LXXI: Philip Glass’s “Metamorphosis: One” (Again)

Have you ever had a dream so happy that you wish the dream would never end? That’s the kind of dream that I had last Sunday, and I woke up feeling happy… and then my smile turned into a frown. It was only a dream.

“But Dewey, it was just a dream. Don’t worry about it.” That’s the thing: It was only a dream.

Since then, I have been struggling to bounce back. I had a hard time fixing my sleeping schedule. I had a hard time finishing my work tasks faster. I had a hard time basically being fine. If I were to add a piece of melancholic background music to my current predicament, it would be “Metamorphosis: One” by Philip Glass. It is one of my favorite sad songs ever.

Philip Glass’s “Metamorphosis One”.

And coincidentally, a year ago today, I also blogged about “Metamorphosis: One” as a Song of the Moment. I only found out after searching the old post. (If you click on the aforementioned link, there’s a spoiler warning if you have not seen “return 0”, the final episode of my all-time favorite series Person of Interest.)

Anyway, even if I’m sad, I will try to keep going. I have to.

Ω

Header image: Danila Perevoshchikov of Pexels. Edited in Adobe Photoshop 2025.

Published on February 19, 2025 at 11:07pm. Edits were made at 11:26pm.