0 Comments

Trick or Treat is back with Ghosted, an album filled their signature power metal and humor as they pay homage to all sorts of creepiness.

From their early days as a Helloween tribute band, the Italian band Trick or Treat has put together quite a long career that goes back to 2003 and now includes nine albums from Evil Needs Candy Too (2006) to the last studio album Creepy Symphonies (2022) and a live album A Creep Night Live (2023).  Along the way, the band’s credibility in power metal has been firmly established with them sharing the stage with Helloween and Stratovarius and their collection of guest musicians that include Michael Kiske (Helloween), Tommy Johansson (Sabaton, Majestica) as well as live songs featuring Chiara Tricario (Moonlight Haze) and Michael Luppi (Whitesnake).  For Ghosted, the band has enlisted two gues vocalists, Christopher Bowes (Alestorm) on “Return to Monkey Island” and Adrienne Cowan (Seven Spires, Kamelot) for “Bloodmoon”.

The campy spookiness starts from the very beginning of this album and carries through to the end with “Lost in the Haunted House” being the perfect intro to set the stage. “Craven Road” begins with a great riff and some keyboards to set a creepy feel much like what you’d expect in a B horror movie.  The verse sections are fast with the rhythm section of new drummer Dario Capacci and bassist Leone Villani Conti providing a solid foundation for the guitars and great vocals from Alessandro Conti who’s voice has amazing range and fullness.  The two guitars trading solos is a great part of the song and both show some restraint so they fit perfectly in the song.

“Bloodmoon” starts out keyboard heavy in sound but then an intro guitar solo takes over as one would hope to hear in power metal.   The song gallops along with some of the verse sections carried by drums and bass only and the group vocals on the chorus parts are really strong. The song marks the first appearance of a guest vocalist with Adrienne Cowan sharing vocal duties and working really well with Alessandro Conti.  For me the song goes a bit off the rails at one point but then redeems itself with a well-placed guitar solo.  The interplay between Conti and Cowan’s vocals really make the song as both have amazing range and strength.

“Ghosted” begins with a guitar riff that sound very familiar and the song structure follows that of many late 80’s metal bands especially in the verse section with a thumping bass and drum being moving the verse along to be joined by shorter bursts from the guitars. The song itself describes being “ghosted” on social media going to another level with a parallel universe and is a fun concept.  Catchiness abounds on this track as it does throughout the album.  Being a big fan of late 80’s hair metal bands, there is a lot here that seems like it was from “back in the day” but it’s been refreshed so doesn’t sound dated. I think that is part of why Trick or Treat is so enjoyable for me… certain elements trigger some old memories but is still new.

“Dance with the Dancing Clown” goes a bit over the top and almost reminds me of what you’d hear from a metal musical about Halloween.  Pop elements abound in this track but the metal guitars are never too far away to keep it on track and the interplay between the guitars and keyboards are brilliant in this fun song. The opening guitar riffs on “Polybius” instantly sound familiar and having the song arrangement set to showcase Conti’s strong vocals is a genius touch as is the very cheesy sounding keyboard section toward the end that seems like it was done tongue in cheek or at least with a knowing wink toward the audience.

“Evil Dead Never Sleeps” opens up with a darker, more ominous sounding guitar riff backed by Capacci’s pounding drums but when the second guitar and keyboards come in the song takes on a brighter feel.  The backing vocals really shine in this track as does the drum work.  This brings me to the excellent production on the album.  All the instruments and vocals are perfectly mixed for their contributions all being clear and not overshadowed by the vocals as is relatively common.

“Return to Monkey Island” is a bit of a change as it picks up a strong pirate metal vibe which does make great use of guest vocalist Christopher Bowes (Alestorm).  Much like “Diggy Diggy Hole” by Wind Rose, I envision “Return to Monkey Island” becoming a fan favorite and never leaving the live set list where audience participation will be huge.  As fun and insanely catchy as it is, there is some great guitar work in the song as well, which only adds to its appeal.

“Bitter Dreams” closes out the album and at near 8 minutes long is by far the longest track on the album.  A quiet opening showcasing Conti’s vocals and a slower pace really differentiate the song as it seems like it’s headed for power ballad territory…but then it picks up pace with the full band coming in for some faster sections broken up by a mid-tempo chorus again featuring great use of backing vocals.  Later in the song is an extended section of double bass drum work that leads into the guitar solos before the song breaks down and closes as quietly as it began. Given the length, the song does seem to transcend time a bit and doesn’t feel overly long.

Trick or Treat Ghosted will be on many top album lists at the end of the year, plain and simple. While performances are exceptionally strong, the band never seems to take themselves too seriously and the album conveys a sense of fun from start to finish. This is one of those albums it’s hard to find fault with and if melodic power metal at all appeals to you, you will want this.

Rating: 9/10

Written by John Jackson

Tracklist

  1. Lost in the Haunted House
  2. Craven Road
  3. Bloodmoon (feat. Adrienne Cowan)
  4. Ghosted
  5. Dance with the Dancing Clown
  6. Polybius
  7. Evil Dead Never Sleeps
  8. Return to Monkey Island (feat. Christopher Bowes)
  9. Make a Difference
  10. The 13th
  11. Bitter Dreams

Band Members
Alessandro Conti – Vocals
Leone Villani Conti – Bass
Guido Benedetti – Guitars
Luca Venturelli – Guitars
Dario Capacci – Drums

Release Date: 25 April 2025

Record Label: Scarlet Records

Social Media: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Spotify / Twitter

Video for “Ghosted”

Video for “Dance with the Dancing Clown”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts