mask – The Diary of The Deranged Writer

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!

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 LXVII: Tetsuo Kurata’s “Kamen Rider Black”

It’s Saturday night and I’m still happy from last night because, for the second time, I met one of my childhood heroes, Mr. Tetsuo Kurata, the actor who played Kotaro Minami/Robert Akizuki in the tokusatsu series Kamen Rider Black. This time, I met him at an exclusive dinner in his restaurant Steak House Kurata at Parqal.

The dinner slash meet-and-greet last night was more memorable for me than the first time I met Mr. Kurata because of one key moment: I almost got speechless when Mr. Kurata, his son Kotaro, and Ms. Anne of TokuSpirits approached me while I ate my salad. I had a short message prepared on my phone, but I was so shocked when the man himself was in front of me that I forgot my message. But I got it together seconds later and thanked him for making my childhood awesome. Also, my photos with him this time looked better than my first photo with him. (Too bad I forgot my mask for this though so I can post a photo on my Instagram.) I will always remember this night.

Because of this epic milestone, my Song of the Moment is Kamen Rider Black’s opening song—and Mr. Kurata himself sang it. And I’m listening to the theme song while I’m enjoying my Jack and Coke Zero.

The opening of Kamen Rider Black.

Again, I say to Mr. Tetsuo Kurata, thank you for making my childhood awesome. And thank you, Steak House Kurata and TokuSpirits, for making the exclusive dinner possible. Thank you so much!

(I will try to make a proper post about the event next time because I’m so tipsy as hell right now.)

10-Minute Warning CXLVIII

OK. What can I share here in under 10 minutes?

I have 2 reasons to celebrate tonight with a glass of ice-cold Jack and Coke Zero. Firstly, it’s finally the weekend, and if you have been following The Diary, you know that this is how I kick off my break from the work week.

And what’s the 2nd reason? Remember my post about the 1st Deadpool & Wolverine teaser – the post where I mentioned I wanted a Deadpool half-shell mask for so long? After finding a local supplier, ordering the mask from the supplier, and almost 2 months of waiting, I finally got the mask! Well… almost. I got the package this afternoon and I have not opened the box yet. Why? As much as I want to open the box right away, I want to blog about my unboxing and review of the Deadpool half-shell mask, and I must carefully plan and document the whole process. Wish me luck on that!

And that’s all I can share for now. Happy weekend, everyone!