hard rockjoe elliottdef leppardghost
16:53 Wednesday, 1 March 2023
Ghost recently released a new version of the Impera album track, "Spillways", featuring Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott. Save/add the single here.
Ghost frontman Tobias Forge and Joe Elliott spoke to NME about working together on their collaboration, as well as their morning spent together in an Irish pub.
"Spillways" originally featured on Ghost’s 2022 album Impera, but earlier this year the theatrical rockers released a reworked version featuring the Def Leppard icon. Speaking to NME, Elliott described it as “this big love-in.”
He has been a fan of Ghost since the release of 2015’s Meliora after being introduced to them by bandmate Phil Collen and really loved Impera. “I played the shit out of Ghost’s music on my [Planet Rock] radio show, and then we saw that they had been bigging us up in the press,” said Elliott.
Forge then revealed that a lot of Impera was actually inspired by Def Leppard. “I’ve always been a fan but with this album, I really looked at their songwriting,” he said. “I have always been in awe of several Def Leppard records, but especially the big ones like Pyromania and Hysteria. Not only are they great, but they achieved such commercial success that they’ve become a great example of how a lot of arguments in the pop world are wrong.”
Elliott agreed that the move to work with Ghost was “never a career thing”. “It wasn’t about either of our bands needing a lift because there’s certainly nothing wrong with either of our careers right now,” he said. “This was two fans getting together and working on a song for the love of it. That’s always been my favourite kind of project.”
Read more at NME.
Ghost announced the single with a "Message From The Clergy" and video, simply stating: "We wish to inform that some can show us all exactly what a Pope crawl is."
Watch the clip, as well as the official "Spillways" lyric video, below:
