“Darkness at the Heart of My Love” by Ghost
This is a song in which the addressee is apparently someone who the vocalist has strong feelings for. For instance, he confirms his ever-present support of her. He also tells her, amidst the uncertainties of life, “that love is all you need”, piously espousing said emotion as being a prerequisite for proper survival.
Additionally he vows to ‘set her free’, so on and so forth. So it is clear that the vocalist is presenting himself as someone who possesses the answers to life’s problems, so to speak. And to note, we’re using female pronouns to describe the addressee solely in the name of readability.
Then concerning the title, the way the statement reads in full, as illustrated in the chorus, is as “there’s a darkness at the heart of my love”. Such a statement would imply that even though the vocalist ‘loves’ the addressee, there is some type of evil, if you will, embedded within that sentiment.
So to fully understand what’s going on here, we must rely on Tobias Forge’s explanation of the track. And as explained, the implication is that he’s taking on the role of some type of religious leader, life coach or however you want to put it, who comes off as a promoter and practitioner of righteousness.
Moreover he claims to be someone who actually has the addressee’s best interests in mind. This would be why he is advertising himself as someone who will hold her down throughout. But in general, the goal of said individual is to use this shtick for his own selfish purposes which, going back to Tobias’s explanation, would be “for cash and power”. Or put more bluntly, all of the above is his way of conning the addressee.
Takeaway
So if we really wanted to simplify the matter, we could say that this song is criticizing the likes of pastors, priests and politicians. And that is because it is such professionals who tend to take money and other types of support from people not only in the name having our best interests in mind but also under the proclaimed premise of being upright individuals themselves.
Facts about “Darkness at the Heart of My Love”
Tobias Forge wrote this song with Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare. The latter two, who are also from Sweden, are regular songwriting partners who contributed heavily to “Impera”, the album that this track is derived from.
And the project was made public by Loma Vista Records on 11 March 2022, with the release of “Darkness at the Heart of My Love” also being supported by Spinefarm Records.
“Darkness at the Heart of My Love” was not released as one of Impera’s singles as of the album’s date of release. The album was preceded by the following singles:
this song is laced with cult leader manipulation in wanting to “guide us always” everyone fell for it all over again, just like cirice
Totally agree….Manipulation of the heart and affections, yet making it clear that a “darkness” exists. Offering the world but with a kernel of accepting a seductive dark side. Very inviting and attractive………
Its a nice song. It should be a single over Twenties.
It’s about Jesus/God and how theism creates believers by promising eternal life, which is not true. We all die into nothingness and all the love in the world won’t change that. Hence, the darkness.
Well, the thing is that we don’t know if there will be Eternal life after we die or are taken… and we don’t know in what form it will manifest… So, if it were to be true, three things could happen… one, we die, lights turns out, we are no more. Two, our synapses are taken, and translated to a higher form of existence which is nice and good, or three, we are translated to an existence of pain in hell. Just a thought. Cheers!
i Have heard comparisons o He Is and get that more and more each time I listen to it!
The great thing about TF is that, as a songwriter, he can, and does, wrap many meanings and explanations into one track. Not only could this be applied to religious leaders, it could be applied to “The Human Condition” in general. For someone going through a painful relationship, romantically or on a more familial basis, you can find an explanation of what you’re feeling in this, as well as someone, whom again, is going through a rough patch in a relationship, or even just coming to the understanding that in their situation that the relationship is not over, but, all the while, even after decades, you always knew what you were getting into, or what you were doing, consciously or subconsciously. Then there’s the “Luciferian” side, where Ghost shines. Whether it be used In relation to the thinking of John Dee or or Alistair Crowley, this song could have the interpretation of the path of what Man does to Man. You could always just go for the straight “Satanic Song”, but that’s a Christian cop out, in my opinion. Knowing that TF did give an explanation about the general idea does not rule out any of the other meanings and interpretations. Great songwriting/lyricists are usually trying to write something that can reach everyone, that no matter the intent behind the song, it’s crafted to mean something personal to you. The melody line adds tension and release at just the right places, and the beginning with laughing children and the lines of Summer’s end is a universal theme that freedom is almost over, Winter is coming when hardship abounds. Then, there’s the other side of “A Song is just a Song.” Most real song crafters, they have things to say, but it’s slightly obscure to not be so personal that the listener can’t identify with it. As a songwriter and a fiction author, these things are always subtlety nudging at the tail of my consciousness when I write. What TF does makes for ageless music. Any great songwriter will tell you that.
Also, please don’t take my reply, paste it anywhere else and call it yours.
Awesome view. Very thorough and can only be perceived by a creative knowledgeable mind.
When he says “paint a pair of eyes, let’s watch as it dries..” what is he saying there exactly?
I think he’s saying lets create a personna, or let’s create a viewpoint.
As in, forget what your eyes tell you. You’ll need new eyes to see what I’m telling you. Let me paint you a picture that you want/need to see, to hand over what the painter wants.
But, what I prefer to hear is painting a brand new pair of eyes with new love. Seeing something together that can’t be seen without the other.
Here’s my short theory:
I think it’s about his kids. He has twins and they’re starting to grow up. I think the “darkness” he’s talking about is the evil his capable of committing to keep them safe and away from harm. Like when parents say, “I’d do anything to protect my child.”
Haha what a pretentious literary snob….as if you’re comment was good enough that anyone above a regard reading comprehension level, that includes Boglims btw, would “appropriate” it as their ish….”Daaayuh, differnt words means differnt thangs ta differnt folk….Daaayub, nobody use my profile pic to score chicks!!!” There’s a DORKNESS in the heart of that twat …it’s funny, it’s stupid…a DORKNESS in the heart to that doushe!!!
*your
Is the guitar in the background a cover of romance d’amour from dawn of the dead?
What does the part ‘Will you spill the wine to summon the divine’ mean exactly?
I take it to mean something to the effect of – Will you sacrifice something to gain the favor/attention of the powerful? Be that your time, money or attention/adoration. Spilling it ought to mean that you give it up forever as spilled wine is not something you can get any further use of. Moreover, spilled wine is arguably wasted so in other words – Will you waste your time, money and attention on people trying to sell you on an ideology, religion, philosophy etc.
I don’t know why precisely, but the song made me think of the way people consume celebrities or, specifically content creators online often as much as the content they produce. Or even just people that share things over social media in general. There’s also the unhealthy relationship that sometimes develops between the creator and their audience.
Hence “Darkness”.
The darkness being that the “love” you are given by your followers is not real in any meaningful sense (at least in my mind).
Sure, some of them might genuinely care for the person behind whatever they are sharing, but most just click that thumbs up, like, heart, or whatever the “I enjoyed this”-button looks like out of a cursory habit more than anything else. They also obviously don’t actually know the creator – even though some delude themselves into thinking they do. I guess the Darkness and Cold in this instance are that both sides of the relationship might view it as something that it is not. Many creators are also very inclusive, but if I might be allowed to be cynical here (as if I haven’t thus far ^_^) – They have a vested interest in attracting as many people as they can. Like any artist. It’s how they earn their living after all.
The creator has a Dark and Cold streak to their efforts at a certain point because it often becomes less about the joy of creating and more about paying the bills. I’m not putting a moral or ethical to anything there, at least not intentionally, by the way, just analyzing.
The fans have a Dark and Cold streak in their “love” for the creator in the sense that they might, on a surface level, shower the object of their admiration with love, but at the end of the day it is just that. Surface. A cold love without true substance, like a white spotlight masquerading as the sun. For the vast majority of them, the person is merely ones and zeros of data online whether that be in the form of pixels or sound.
The “Love is all you need” part fits this too since so much weight today, especially among younger people, is given to whether your social media activities attract likes, are shared, go viral etc.
Anyway, those were my thoughts, make of them what you will.
nothing wrong with that tbh i like the songs regardless of everything, yeah the band is satanic but it doesn’t matter really
can this song be about love? i don’t really like the meaning behind the song and when i first heard it, i thought it was about loving someone.. please don’t be mean