Ghost returned to Louisville, KY after a 7 year absence and I’m already counting the days until next time

When Sweden’s own occult band of papal rockers, Ghost, made it known that Louisville would be a stop on their Skeletour, the World Tour promoting the band’s 2025 record Skeleta, I and just shy of roughly 13,000 others cleared our Friday night schedules on July 25th. 

Descending upon the KFC Yum! Center was one of the most devout makeup-clad, costumed fanbases this side of KISS and Mötley Crüe. It didn’t matter whether these fans had attended a “ritual”, what Ghost calls their shows, before now or not — Many a first-timer could have you fooled into thinking they’d been seeing the band for over a decade now. Even in 95 degree heat, this legion, comprising both dead or very much still alive characters from across The Clergy, were buzzing with excitement. This was to be Ghost’s first appearance in Louisville since 2018’s A Pale Tour Named Death where they played 2 back-to-back sets in the gorgeously appropriate Louisville Palace with a 26 song selection. This was eager anticipation. 

Come 8 PM, following music that would fit a proper mass, the lights in the arena shut off, leaving a darkness that wasn’t permeated by any smart phones or electronic devices. This gave way to a bright beacon of white light, uncharacteristically holy in its appearance. The light shined through a strategically tattered curtain as the familiar masked chrome face of Papa V Perpetua, technically the 7th of his kind, could be seen on two screens, each on one side of the stage. The curtain remained until the first chorus then dropped to the sound of a cacophony of thrilled screams revealing our spooky ensemble in front of massive background screens. This showstopping opening number was Peacefield, the first track off Skeleta. Ghost, with their 9 piece setup of vocals, guitars and keyboards, sounded absolutely engulfing. If ever a band embodied what an arena show in the 80s must have sounded like, it’s this one. Every ingredient is there: Def Leppard-esque stacked vocal harmonies, bombastic guitar solos, a kick drum that feels like a shotgun to the chest and a charismatic personality with multiple wardrobe changes as lead vocalist. Ghost were made for this setting. 

Following Peacefield was the gothic-tinged defiant lamentations of second new single, Lachryma with appropriate skeletal, bat-winged outfits adorning the Nameless Ghouls. Skeleta had a strong showing with 4 songs appearing prominently in the set. Lead single Satanized elicited the biggest cheers of the night and Umbra featured enough cowbell to rile an entire farm. However, it was 2014 breakout smash hit Meliora that had the largest shadow cast on the setlist. Spirit led the way with an unplanned instrumental version of Majesty while poor Perpetua hung elevated over the back of the stage flailing his arms with a dead mic not lowering the energy whatsoever a little later on. Even with this one lead vocal technical difficulty and quiet, occasionally silent lead guitar throughout the night, there was no stopping the immediacy of the Grammy-winning Cirice following up brief interlude Devil Church or the hypnotic power hymn of He Is. Ghost didn’t forget their denim jacket-wearing heavy metal purists either, with the likes of Mummy Dust crushing any doubters and blowing a shower of Mummy Bucks directly into their faces. 

The night had one big surprise in the form of Stand By Him’s inclusion being the sole representative of Opus Eponymous. Per Aspera ad Inferi got heads banging while setlist mainstay Year Zero exploded into the night with pyromanic glee. Infestissumam’s selections for the evening wouldn’t have been complete without the anthemic Monstrance Clock and its ability to get the crowd to “Come together, together as one”. Curiously, the more recent Impera only brought balladry in the form of Darkness In The Heart of My Love with none of its lead singles making the cut. 

At one point in the set, the digital stain-glassed windows behind the band blew out, collapsing the virtual cathedral they were standing in and giving way to a volcanic landscape. Amidst the familiar religious imagery of crosses, gowns and rosaries, the lava flow provided a necessary juxtaposition of fiery doom. The production on the circular stage definitely felt next-level for Ghost. The evening wasn’t complete without the hit maker that was Prequelle and it’s clear this album still means so much to the current Ghost sound. Whether the band dipped into the late 80s shred of Rats, the gargantuan stomp of Faith or the lustful sleaze of Dance Macabre, the crowd ate up every note. The 3 songs that surprised me most this night were all “recorded” in the 60s. Seven Inches of Satanic Panic is to thank for Ghost’s surge in popularity in the 2020s and that’s due to sleeper hit Mary On A Cross. However, Kiss The Go-Goat was one of the most energetic songs of the night, as silly as it is with its talk of “Magical mystery” leaving little to the imagination as far as its influences. This enthusiasm also goes for The Future Is A Foreign Land, the end credits song debuted in last year’s Rite Here, Rite Now, the highest grossing hard rock concert film of all time. 

Yes, Ghost’s stamp on pop culture can be felt quite prominently right now. And as the last keys rang out from the towering spectacle of Square Hammer as the finale of a 3 song encore, I had little doubt in my mind that Ghost have definitely leveled up since my last encounter with them. The words “Larger than life” came to mind the moment the band’s colossal chords rang out through the arena. Through it all, the crowd sang every word so loudly that at times the lead vocals were impressively exceeded in volume. Kentucky clearly loves this band. I can only hope with all the remarks of rodeos, physicals being given in the parking lot and ripping the audience a new you-know-what throughout the set from Perpetua that Ghost had just as much fun as we all did. 

Setlist:

Peacefield

Lachryma

Spirit

Per Aspera ad Inferi

Faith

Majesty (Instrumental with lead vocals shut off by accident)

The Future Is A Foreign Land

Devil Church

Cirice

Darkness At The Heart of My Love

Satanized

Stand By Him

Umbra

Year Zero

He Is

Rats

Kiss The Go-Goat

Mummy Dust

Monstrance Clock

Encore:

Mary On A Cross

Dance Macabre

Square Hammer