CR - Ghost -12/5/18

When I was scrolling through Instagram back in June, my best friend and I couldn't believe what we were seeing. While the headline of the post started off with the typical "A Message From The Clergy" it was what followed that heading that put us in shock. It read: "We wish to inform you A PALE TOUR NAMED DEATH will be haunting the lands of North America". Sure, another tour so what? Casually scrolling through the dates in search of the nearest date, my jaw suddenly dropped. I screamed like a little school girl...

Ghost was coming to Wilkes-Barre, PA.

I ended up double checking the post and then triple checking it, this simply had to be a typo. I ran to the F.M Kirby Center's website and there it was "Just Announced: Ghost".

My friend and I couldn't believe that this was actually happening. This excitement probably doesn't make any sense to many people and I explain this excitement in my blog post "Thank You Kirby Center". To sum things up quickly, for such a small market to bring in a huge band like this, I simply couldn't believe it. We are talking about a band that won a Grammy last year and was just recently nominated for another Grammy in 2018 for "Best Metal Album of the Year".

Being that this tour was announced in June, it meant many months of anticipation and excitement. When December finally rolled around, we simply couldn't wait any longer! My friend and I were beyond excited to finally see their show live. We have watched countless hours of videos from their concerts, read reviews, and what everyone was saying is that Ghost is a must see. Which now I can confirm as well.

Why are they must see live?

The better question is why aren't they?

Cardinal Copia and the Nameless Ghouls

Ghost is a Metal Band reigning from Sweden. Aside from the outstanding catalog of tracks that they have, they are a very spooky and mystical band in the sense that nobody knows much about them. This is something that Ghost prides themselves on and is part of the massive appeal. The lead singer, known as "Cardinal Copia" is the "ring leader" so to speak and he is then backed up by seven"Nameless Ghouls" who all dress the same. Nobody knows who anyone is behind the masks. Hence, being "nameless". This "unknown" about them is something that appeals to many fans of the band because it leaves the opportunity for your mind imagine.

Tobias Forge out of costume (iheartradio interview)

Unfortunately, we do know the mastermind behind the band now because of a recent lawsuit against the band. Former band members exposed the lead singer, Tobias Forge, due to "payment issues". The case has been thrown out by the court since. Despite now knowing who is behind the band, there is still many things that we do not know about Tobias Forge himself and the new band members. Since this lawsuit, Tobias Forge has become more open and now even does interviews out of costume. He still makes sure that his face is covered up and is not seen though. He does this by wearing dark tinted glasses, hats, etc. Which can be seen in an recent interview with iheartradio.

There is so many different things that could be talked about in terms of this band and what they offer. To keep things short and get on with the concert review, the best thing I can suggest is to check these guys out and do your own research. It truly is fun and exciting to research them and with a little imagination, its hard not to get behind the band.

In terms of the concert, I heard only but amazing things about what I was about to witness. Since the band is full of theatrics, this carries directly into the show and it ties in beautifully with the music. Unlike many bands these days, Ghost tours solo and therefore actually performs two whole sets which is unheard of anymore.

Promptly right as the clock struck 8pm, the concert hall went pitch black and Ghost's spooky intro "Ashes" started to play. The crowd erupted. Everyone jumped off their feet and immediately started chanting. For those of you that do not know, "Ashes" is the intro track on their latest album and it flows right into their main single "Rats", which is what they did for the concert as well. The moment that Cardinal Copia came out on stage and started singing the first verse of "Rats" you would swear they were giving out free money. Everyone went crazy getting their first glimpses of the band.

All eight band members

One of the things that I really appreciated about the concert was just how truly talented this group is. Too often anymore, artists will get up on stage and barley sing their own lyrics, etc. What you hear on a record is exactly what you get out of them in a live concert and that really says a lot. Their music is very complex with many things going on at once. This implies that doesn't the band have to be pretty big then too? The answer is yes. The band had eight members out on stage, each playing a different instrument or in Cardinal Copia's case, vocals. I also admired how well rehearsed this group was because I can only imagine how difficult it must be for eight different people to be on the same page. Their timing with everything they did was flawless.

After being on stage for about an hour and fifteen minutes, the band ran off stage and there was a fifteen minute intermission break before "Act Two" started.

In the first set, Ghost played songs that included: "Rats" , "Ritual" , Con Clavi Con Dio" , and "Cirice". This meant that many of my favorite tracks were bound to come in Act Two so I was very excited for the band to come back out.

When the intermission was over, Cardinal Copia came out and announced that one of his "fellow Ghouls was plagued by an injury" and would not be able to perform from out on stage for the second act. What he did say though was that he was fine and that he was back stage sitting down to perform the second act. The rumor that was swirling around online after the show was that this performer must have been having shoulder troubles. Despite being down their lead guitarist, Ghost did a great job of acting in a professional manner. They addressed the issue and went on with the show as normal, even though it was a little weird not seeing the lead guitarist shred the guitar solos.

The second act was the "stronger" act in my opinion which makes sense because the band really did go out on a high note setting the setlist up the way they did. The second act included "From The Pinnacle to the Pit" , "Spirit" , "He Is" , "Mummy Dust" and my two favorites, "Dance Macabre" and "Square Hammer".

For the encore, Ghost went out performing their typical closer, "Monstrance Clock".

If you noticed in the previous image in this article, all eight band members were out on stage at the end of the show. Which implies that yes, when the show was over, the injured lead guitarist did come out on stage to take a bow. Everyone made sure to give him a standing ovation and applaud his efforts to still perform while hurt.

Walking away from this concert, I was completely blown away by what I just witnessed. Many of the shows that I go to are either Pop Punk, Soft Rock, or Hip Hop/Rap. This technically was my first true "Rock Concert" and I loved it. Another thing that I think is worth mentioning is just how comical Cardinal Copia was. It was not something I was expecting but there were numerous times where the crowd let out a big laugh.

Between the awesome guitar solos, a saxophone solo, piano solos and even a keytar solo, (yes, you read that right) I had a phenomenal experience. As I mentioned earlier, if you are big into rock and metal, Ghost is a must-see concert. While this may have been my first "ritual", it certainly won't be the last time I see Ghost.

Photos I took at the concert can be found below!