Ghost will be kicking off their Rats! On The Road tour on May 5 and frontman Tobias Forge, the mastermind behind the band and the vocalist on all the albums, tells Billboard the show will feature a bigger band.
Forge says he'll have backup singers to handle the harmonies on the road, as opposed to using backing tracks like they've been doing. He also alludes to having other musicians up on stage with the band to fill out the sound but doesn't specify what.
"We have a bigger band now in terms of personnel so it's way more live now. Before we were doing a little bit of the modern trickery, with backing tracks and stuff to make the whole sound a certain way. Now we're taking that away so we're a little more like a Springsteen or Guns N' Roses sort of band with backup singers and everything. It feels great. It's gonna be the best version yet — but there's still a lot to come after that."
Forge also touches on the ongoing lawsuit leveled at him from former bandmates, claiming he never paid them properly or credited them where credit was due. He says the lawsuit is "just growing pains, and all of this shit has been the result of things going well, not the opposite."
He adds he feels optimistic about the lawsuit and the future and doesn't really care that much that his identity is known. Which makes sense, considering Forge dedicated an entire radio special to talking about Ghost from the perspective of Tobias Forge after his identity was revealed.
"I've always tried to point out that there is a great difference between being anonymous and being unmasked, and I still will put a lot of effort into preserving the latter. The thing that I tried to achieve originally and what I've been trying to maintain is the sense of theater rather than a classic kind of rock n' roll (presentation). My idea is Ghost is basically a theater show that you could come and see, like Hamilton, and you don't have to worry too much about the real stories. I guess I've become a little bit more of a normal rock artist, but now it's my job to do my darndest to preserve the aesthetic and the theatrical qualities, and I'm going to do my absolute best to do that."
Get the Rats! On The Road dates below and be sure to catch Ghost at one of their arena dates. Ghost's new album Prequelle is out June 1.
May 05 – Riverside, Calif. @ RMA
May 06 – Tucson, Ariz. @ Tucson Music Hall
May 08 – Houston, Texas @ Revention
May 10 – Chattanooga, Tenn. @ Tivoli
May 11 – Cincinnati, Ohio @ The Taft Theatre
May 12 – Detroit, Mich. @ The Fillmore
May 13 – Columbus, Ohio @ Express Live
May 15 – Port Chester, N.Y. @ The Capitol Theatre
May 16 – Syracuse, N.Y. @ Crouse Hinds Theater
May 18 – Pittsburgh, Pa. @ Benedum Center
May 19 – Philadelphia, Pa. @ WMMR BBQ
May 20 – Washington, D.C. @ Warner Theatre
May 22 – Asheville, N.C. @ Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
May 23 – Nashville, Tenn. @ Tennessee PAC
May 25 – St. Louis, Mo. @ Peabody Opera House
May 26 – Pryor, Okla. @ Rocklahoma
May 27 – Memphis, Tenn. @ Cannon Center
May 29 – Ft. Wayne, Ind. @ The Clyde Theater
May 31 – Milwaukee, Wis. @ Riverside Theater
June 01 – St. Paul, Minn. @ The Palace Theater
