Ghost’s Tobias Forge talks new covers EP ‘Phantomime’: “It casts a glimpse as to where I want to go”

nme.com:

Ghost have shared a cover of Genesis‘ ‘Jesus He Knows Me’, announced a covers EP and spoken to NME about new music, the future, and being inspired by personality politicians like Trump.Following the release of their rendition of Genesis’ 1992 hit ‘Jesus He Knows Me’ over Easter, yesterday (Sunday, April 9) the band followed up with the news of a new five-track EP, ‘Phantomime’ – featuring more re-imagined songs from Iron Maiden, Tina Turner, Television, and The Stranglers.As frontman Tobias Forge told NME, ‘Phantomime’ could “cast a glimpse as to where I want to go with the band now”.“That doesn’t mean that all of a sudden we’re going to sound like Television!” he said. “It just means that there are practical things in there that have inspired me to record this EP in a slightly different way than I have done previously.”Speaking about his decision to put ‘Jesus He Knows Me’ as the lead single for ‘Phantomime’, Forge believed the “song is more relevant today than it probably was in 1992”.

He also flagged a shift in politics and culture in the West that seemingly seeks to wind the clock back to “Mediaeval times” as influencing his creative choices on the EP.“A few years ago, maybe 10 years ago, it almost felt like this song – these other songs too – were a little bit dated lyrically,” he said of the cover. “That’s because they were!

You know, this band – these guys in Genesis – were singing about early ’90s ladies; about televangelists!”“All that stuff, it felt dated a few years ago.