LIVE: GHOST – October 15, 2019

Venue: Huntington Center

City: Toledo, OH

Date: October 15, 2019

Review and Photographs by: Todd “Toddstar” Jolicoeur (www.toddstarphotography.com)

Ghost is a band that I have made every effort to see when they come through the area.  I totally dig their music, the show is a spectacle to see, and the banter from the various figureheads of the band is always amusing.  For the first time in their career, the band put Toledo, OH on their tour route and the show landed at Huntington Center.  With a lot of music at their fingertips, Cardinal Copia and his band of Ghouls were here to please.  With prerecorded music to tide over the crowd while the stage preparations were wrapping up, you could feel the anticipation in the air.  The lights went out and the band took to the blue light draped stage.  As the Ghouls dug into set opener “Ashes,” the crowd reacted with baited breath for Copia to make his entrance, which he did along with the song “Rats'”  The frontman and band worked seamlessly together to play this killer track with precision and power.  Next up was a cool one-two punch of “Absolution” and “Faith,” which happens to be one of the songs I go back to time and time again.  The audience was into the show and the songs, with parts of songs seeming more like a sing-a-long than a concert.  The band pulled songs off of each of their full length releases and even dropped a couple other songs into the set, including two newly released tracks, including “Mary on a Cross.”  Two great tracks from the bands Meloria release fell together in the set – “Devil Church” and “Cirice.”  Other fan favorites made an aural appearance when the tandem track “Ghuleh/Zombie Queen” and the hard to pronounce “Helvetesfönster” were played.  The second half of the set could have been pulled from the workout playlist in my phone with the amazing “From the Pinnacle to the Pit” was followed up by two songs from the bands first release, which still gets regular spins in my car, “Ritual” and “Satan Prayer.”  Another standout is “Year Zero” which seemed to have more punch and depth to it live than it does on the recorded version.  After cool renditions of “He Is” and “Mummy Dust,” the trio of songs that closed the show did so with energy, style, and sent everyone into the night with a smile and a slight headache from the headbanging.  I couldn’t wait to hear “Kiss the Go-Goat,” the other ‘new’ track that hit the set, as well as the killer song “Dance Macabre.”  My favorite track closed out the evening, with the contagiously good “Square Hammer” finishing up the bands allocated time on Toledo.  Be sure to check these guys out if the last few dates of the tour are anywhere near you.  You’ll be sorry you missed it!

Ghost Setlist: Ashes – Rats – Absolution – Faith – Mary on a Cross – Devil Church – Cirice – Miasma – Ghuleh/Zombie Queen – Helvetesfönster – Spirit – From the Pinnacle to the Pit – Ritual – Satan Prayer – Year Zero – He Is – Mummy Dust – Kiss the Go-Goat – Dance Macabre – Square Hammer

[Show as slideshow]

FULL SET OF GHOST SHOW PHOTOS HERE:

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Category: Live Reviews, Photo Galleries