Coming at you with a special weekend edition of the Daily ‘Bang, because this one couldn’t wait, folks. Just a couple of days after teasing, then formally announcing their third album, Meliora, Swedish occult rockers Ghost—if you expect me to add the “B.C.” here, then please leave now and never return—have released the album’s first single, “Cirice”! Click on through and give it a listen: 

First things first, really digging that Silence of the Lambs-inspired single artwork. As for the music? Pretty solid, actually! It’s a thick, catchy-as-all-hell, mid-tempo trudge that’s not afraid to show off its sinister side. (And that guitar solo? Drools. All the drools.)

One of the biggest issues with the band’s last album, Infestissumam, was that it almost felt too comfortable; instead of building on their debut, they threw its darkest, most haunting elements off to the side and went full-gimmick. (You never go full-gimmick.) “Cirice” is a step back in the right direction. It may not totally kick your comfort to the curb, but it definitely re-ups the band’s ominous side. And it’s a total ear worm, to boot.

Meliora comes out August 21. In the meantime, the band has made “Cirice” available for free download. So what’re you waiting for?

Keep it heavy,
Dan