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Archive for the ‘Ghost’ Category

Ghost: Re-Imperatour (Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, Camden, NJ, August 25, 2023)

Posted in Amon Amarth, Camden, NJ, Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, Ghost, Ghost B.C. on August 26, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: August 25, 2023] Ghost

My son and I have now seen Ghost 4 times in about 4 years.  Interestingly, these previous three times have all been based around their last album, last year’s Impera.  My son is rather tickled that he has a short from the Pre-Imperatour, the Imperatour and the Re-Imperatour.

It’s fairly ballsy to tour the same album three times in a year and a half. But in this time their fan base seems to have grown quite a lot.

The Freedom Mortgage Pavilion seats around 25,000 people.  I know it didn’t sell out, but I have to assume there were at least 10,000 people there.   Which is pretty awesome, and makes Papa Emeritus IV very happy.

The set is largely the same as it has been for each part of the tour, with the stained glass windows in the back and the tiered risers.  The Nameless Ghouls were out in force.  And it felt like there might be a few more of them than usual.

LIke thre previous two shows, the opening music was classical.  Klara stjärnor (Jan Johansson song) and Miserere Mei, Deus (Gregorio Allegri song) before the strains of “Imperium” wafted from behind the giant curtain at the front of the stage.

The curtain came down and Papa strolled out as “Kaisarion” played.  And like each show before, it was followed immediately by “Rats.”

Even though I have seen this particular opening, I never get tired of it.  The crowd is nuts, the band is on fire, there’s lights and explosions and everyone is singing “RATS!” at the top of their lungs.

I was pleased that the setlist wasn’t exactly the same as the previous tour, as it mixed in with the Pre-Imperatour as well. (more…)

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Amon Amarth (Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, Camden, NJ, August 25, 2023) [GHOST]

Posted in Amon Amarth, BB&T Pavillion, Camden, NJ, Freedom Mortgage Pavilion, Ghost, Ghost B.C. on August 25, 2023| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: August 25, 2023] Amon Amarth

I saw Amon Amarth open for Slayer back in 2019.  At that time I didn’t know them, but I really enjoyed their show–they were melodic and the singer was kind of growly, but he was understandable, and that makes a big difference.

I didn’t realize it had been so long since I had seen them and I kind of expected the same basic show.  But since 2019, they have put out a new album (and have a brand new single out as well).

So while they did play six of the same songs as last time, the order was different and their stage show was HUGE!

Last time they had a ship on stage that they climbed all over.  This time, there was a giant mask on stage and two massive statues of warriors on either side of the stage.

The band sounded huge.  I have now seen them twice in the same venue and would like to see them with a better sound system. (more…)

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Ghost: Imperatour (Cure Insurance Arena, Trenton, NJ, September 9, 2022)

Posted in Bruce Springsteen, Cure Insurance Arena, Ghost, Mastodon, Set in New Jersey!, Spiritbox, Trenton, NJ on September 11, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 9, 2019] Ghost 

This was my third time seeing Ghost.  In four years!  They never fail to put on a spectacular show.

Each time I’ve taken C. with me and these last two he brought his friend with him.  This time, though, the boys sat in the seats straight back but on a slight rise (they had a great view) and I went to the floor to get as close to the action I could.  The usually toss stuff out to the audience after the show, but I was not in the right place.

There were tons of people in full cosplay, and they looked amazing.

It took a while for Ghost to come out.  They have a huge stage change up, so it’s understandable.  I happened to run into someone I knew there and his son (Hi Gary) which was crazy (although not really as he has seen Ghost like 6 times).

They play taped music as the band sets up.  It’s usually a kind of Gregorian chant.  Soon the stage was revealed in all of its multi-tiered, stained-glass glory.  The music segued into a tape of “Imperium” before the Nameless Ghouls ran out on stage followed soon after by Papa. (more…)

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Mastodon (Cure Insurance Arena, Trenton, NJ, September 9, 2022) [GHOST]

Posted in Cure Insurance Arena, Ghost, Mastodon, Set in New Jersey!, Spiritbox, Trenton, NJ on September 10, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 9, 2019] Mastodon

This was my third time seeing Mastodon.  I have enjoyed them each time but I didn’t think I’d be seeing them again.  So it was a treat that they opened for Ghost.

I hadn’t really listened to their new album that much, so I didn’t really know what to expect.  Plus, in an opening slot, they wouldn’t get that many songs.  And I see that each show has their sets getting shorter and shorter.

The biggest surprise was the addition of a keyboard player.  Joao Noguiera stood on the same riser as the drums and had a lot of hair and a top hat (yes, like Slash).  He added a lot of atmospherics and sounds while the other guys were tuning.  But Mastodon is such a force, I’m not sure he was needed.

So they played five songs from the new album.  And then six songs that I’d seen them play before.  Most of those they’ve played at each show.

There were great visuals behind them–a huge screen showing videos.

“Pain with an Anchor” was sung by drummer Brann Dailor, who has the most melodic delivery of the band.  He and singer Troy Sanders share a lot of lead vocal duties on the new album.  And I love Dailor’s colorful drum set.  (more…)

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Spiritbox (Cure Insurance Arena, Trenton, NJ, September 9, 2022) [GHOST]

Posted in Cure Insurance Arena, Ghost, Mastodon, Set in New Jersey!, Spiritbox, Trenton, NJ on September 9, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: September 9, 2019] Spiritbox

We arrived pretty early for this show.  Early enough to get merch before the first band went on.

My son and his friend had seats (straight back and a few rows up–they said the view was perfect), but I wanted standing room on the floor.  And just as I walked down the steps to the floor, the lights went dark and I walked pretty close to the stage.

Then Spiritbox came out.  I didn’t know them at all.  But their story is

Spiritbox is a Canadian heavy metal band from Victoria, British Columbia. Husband and wife duo guitarist Mike Stringer and vocalist Courtney LaPlante established Spiritbox in 2017. The band’s full lineup comprises LaPlante, Stringer and drummer Zev Rose; former As I Lay Dying bassist Josh Gilbert currently performs live with the band.

The band plays pretty loud and abrasive guitars, but there’s all kinds of electronic effects and interesting quiet/loud elements going on.  Courtney LaPlante can growl/ scream very impressively, but she also has a pretty singing voice, adding even more to the diversity.

It’s like they combined some of the best elements of various new heavy metal sounds into a composite that sounds familiar but unique at the same time. (more…)

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Ghost: Pre-Imperatour (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, February 10, 2022)

Posted in Ghost, Ghost B.C., Newark, NJ, Prudential Center, Set in New Jersey!, Twin Temple, Volbeat on February 12, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 10, 2022] Ghost

C. and I saw Ghost a couple of years ago and the show was amazing. I knew I’d want to see them again.  We sat close to the stage but kind off to the side.  It was actually an amazing view and we were really close to one of the risers that the guitarist and singer came to.

But for this show i got us floor seats (just behind the pit).  The seats were close but not quite as satisfying.  We did get an amazing view of the set, but it felt just far enough to not be really in it.  And, having seats meant that we couldn’t move away from the tall people in front of us.  (Plus, if we were in the pit we would have had a pretty good chance of getting one of the seemingly endless amount of picks and drumsticks they doled out).

But that’s beside the point, because the performance was great.  The curtain dropped and the amazing stage was revealed.  Stained glass windows of the former Papas, the stairs and platforms and the Nameless Ghouls playing.

This tour was ostensibly to promote the new album.  But Ghost’s new album isn’t out yet.  And, since they were co-headlining it meant that their set was cut short (who exactly does a co-headline tour benefit?  Not the fans.). But that also meant that this was like a greatest hits show.

After playing a new song “Kaisarion,” he began the first of man sing-alongs with “Rats.”

I was delighted with how “funny” the show was last time.  Because they had less stage time, this show did away with some of the fun.  Lead singer Papa Emeritus does some wardrobe changes and the Nameless Ghouls places some instrumental songs to keep us occupied while Papa is backstage.

Last time, the two lead guitarist Ghouls had a showdown.  This time, there was a much briefer contest.  But it was still funny, with the Ghouls pantomiming on stage.  At one point one of the Ghouls played a high note that squealed into feedback.  One of the other Ghouls had to run over and make it stop in what looked like a possible usurpation of lead guitar status.  And it was very amusingly when Papa shoved away the guitarists when they would be where he wanted to stand.

They played a bunch of songs from Meliora, and older album.  They were catchy and the crowd was really into it.

The lighting was always great–conducive to whatever the songs were about.

After a new song “Hunter’s Moon,” they played some songs from Prequelle.

Some jackass had been calling out for “Year Zero” for much of the show.  As C. pointed out–it’s a popular song with a great sing along chorus–of course they’re going to play it.

There was a guy in front of us who was really really into the show–waving his arms and acting out lyrics (even the Nameless Ghouls weren’t doing that).  It’s a little disconcerting when you now some of the words.

There was even a brief keytar solo during the show! The band has added some Ghoulettes to round out the family, one of whom plays keys and tambourine.

They played a rocking “Mummy Dust” complete with confetti cannons.  Although for whatever reason, the confetti all blew off to the right side of the stage and never really made it past the pit.

And then Papa told us that they had three songs left.  Volbeat felt so endless, I couldn’t believe that Ghost was almost over.  They played a cover of  “Enter Sandman,” I guess they did the song for the Metallic covers album.  It sounded really good.

Then they ended with two of their biggest, catchiest sons, “Danse Macabre” and “Square Hammer.”

I had such a good time with them playing “Kiss the Go-Goat” last time, that I was sure they would encore with it.  But they didn’t.  There was no encore.  Sure the final band gets to do an encore!  But no.  And their set was only an hour and fifteen minutes.  While Volbeat played an hour and twenty.  Boo!

But man it was so much fun to see them again.  Like last time, they ended the show with an tapes recording on an Emmylou Harris song (which is weird).  They handed out picks and sticks and waved to people and were generally fun and delightful.

Clearly, next time we see them we need to get pit seats

Oh, and how cool is it that were playing at Devils stadium?

2022 2018
TAPE: Imperia ⇑ TAPE: Klara stjärnor (Jan Johansson song)
Kaisarion ⇑ TAPE: Miserere Mei, Deus (Gregorio Allegri song)
Rats Ashes
From the Pinnacle to the Pit ⊗ Rats
Mary on a Cross ⊕ Absolution ⊗
Devil Church ⊗ Faith
Cirice ⊗ Mary on a Cross ⊕
Hunter’s Moon ⇑ Devil Church [with extended jam] ⊗
Faith Cirice ⊗
Helvetesfönster Miasma
Year Zero ∞ Ghuleh/Zombie Queen ∞
Ritual € Helvetesfönster [partial]
Mummy Dust ⊗ Spirit ⊗
Enter Sandman (Metallica cover) From the Pinnacle to the Pit ⊗
Dance Macabre Ritual €
Square Hammer ♣ Satan Prayer €
TAPE:  Sorrow in the Wind (Emmylou Harris song) Year Zero ∞
TAPE: Spöksonat
He Is ⊗
Mummy Dust ⊗
Kiss the Go-Goat ⊕
Dance Macabre
encore
Square Hammer ♣
TAPE:  Sorrow in the Wind (Emmylou Harris song)

⇑ Impera (2022)
⊕ Kiss the Go-Goat EP (2019)
♣ Popestar EP (2016)
¶ Prequelle (2018)
⊗ Meliora (2015)
∞ Infestissumam (2013)
€ Opus Eponymous (2010)

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Volbeat (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, February 10, 2022) [GHOST]

Posted in Ghost, Ghost B.C., Newark, NJ, Prudential Center, Set in New Jersey!, Twin Temple, Volbeat on February 11, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 10, 2022] Volbeat

I hadn’t heard of Volbeat before this tour was announced.  Although I had to join their (free) fan club to get the pre-sale code because it seemed like Ghost’s didn’t go out as early.

I listened to a few Volbeat songs before the show but nothing really grabbed me.  I wasn’t quite sure what I didn’t like about them–they had a kind of “rock-n-roll” vibe which I don’t really care for.  Some of their songs were heavier than others, but it did nothing for me.

I assumed that live would be a different story.

And judging by the crowd, you’d think that was right.  The crowd went berserk for these guys.  And I… didn’t.

There’s so much that I should like about this band.  They’re from Denmark, which is exotic and fun.  The lead singer is funny and charismatic and he had a terrific voice.  The guitarist is from New York (he really looked nothing like the rest of the band) and he was tremendous–doing some amazing solos.

The rhythm section was always on.

And yet, it did nothing for me.  I felt like the singer’s voice, while great, never worked with the music.  And the solos were impressive but not very interesting,  It felt like something was missing–four great parts in need of something interesting to bring it all together.

Their backing videos and such were pretty great.  They changed for most songs and were fun to watch.  For a few songs they even had narrative videos that were fun to watch.  The video screens also did a fun thing where they mirror-imaged one of the guys to be on either side of the person in the middle screen.  And I really liked that the lead singer had microphones all over the stage, so he sang from different parts at different times–very democratic.

It’s possible I didn’t like them as much because the dudes in front of me were tall and filmed nearly everything so I could hardly see anything at all (hence watching the videos).

And yet there was nothing about them that I hated.  I just felt completed blah by them.  I couldn’t wait for their set to be over.  I almost never feel this way.  But shockingly, they actually played for a few minutes longer than Ghost (the headliner) did.

Strangely enough, or perhaps not, my son felt exactly the same way–Just meh.  Just nothing from them.

But the crowd was so into it and I genuinely worried that concerts had lost magic for me.  Ghost brought it back, thankfully.

The people in the row behind us were really noisy when they sat down and then were very quiet.  When Volbeat was done, we learned that someone in the row behind us peed on the stranger next to him.  I don’t have any details and I can’t quite imagine exactly how this all happened.  But it sounds like it was a deliberate act?  Did he take it out and point at them?  Did he just pee his pants?  I have no idea.  Apparently the victims were allowed to move to a better location.  But It was far more memorable than Volbeat.  (And fortunately, none of us got anything wet).

Not entirely true.  We all enjoyed his little Johnny Cash cover (he started “Ring of Fire” and then said that he had ripped off Johnny for the old song “Sad Man’s Tongue,” but I have no recollection of that song.

I see that they have a Rockabilly vibe going on and I really don’t like rockabilly, so maybe that’s it.  They also seemed to be kind of Satanic, but not really.  Even just looking at their album titles kind of annoys me.

SETLIST

  1. Seal the Deal $
  2. Pelvis on Fire ®
  3. Temple of Ekur Ø
  4. Lola Montez ⊗
  5. Ring of Fire (Johnny Cash excerpt) / Sad Man’s Tongue ¥
  6. Becoming Ø
  7. Last Day Under the Sun ®
  8. Wait a Minute My Girl Ø
  9. Black Rose $
  10. Shotgun Blues Ø
  11. The Devil’s Bleeding Crown $
  12. The Devil Rages On Ø
  13. Doc Holliday ⊗
  14. The Sacred Stones Ø
  15. Die to Live ®
  16. Still Counting ♦

Ø Servant of the Mind (2021)
® Rewind, Replay, Rebound (2019)
$ Seal the Deal & Let’s Boogie (2016)
⊗ Outlaw Gentlemen and Shady Ladies (2013)
♦ Guitar Gangsters & Cadillac Blood (2008)
¥ Rock the Rebel/Metal the Devil (2007)

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Twin Temple (Prudential Center, Newark, NJ, February 10, 2022) [GHOST]

Posted in Ghost, Ghost B.C., Newark, NJ, Prudential Center, Set in New Jersey!, Twin Temple, Volbeat on February 10, 2022| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: February 10, 2022] Twin Temple

I was really intrigued to see Twin Temple because I’d heard about them through….NPR? I’m not sure, but I remember hearing about this satanic doo-wop group.

I don’t really like the music as I don’t like doo-wop, but I was all in for the spectacle.  And wow, what a spectacle.

The band came out of stage: drums, bass, keys and a big old tenor sax.  After riffing for a bit, the two main persons in the band came out on stage in their full satanic regalia.

Their bio states:

The band was started on Halloween (a Witch’s Sabbath) in 2016 when a destruction ritual was performed, and Alexandra and Zachary James stepped into their power as Twin Temple, energetically killing all their previous incarnations up until that point. 

And while a lot of “Satanic” metal bands begin and end their worship of Satan on stage, the same can’t be said for Twin Temple. Both their music and their practice of Satanism, on and off the stage, are rooted in the ideals of free will and giving space to those who are often not allowed any.

So no, Twin Temple doesn’t drink the blood of virgins or kill babies to sacrifice on the full moon. They are challenging notions about what it means to free the oppressed, fight back against dated and binary ways of thinking, and doing it all while hailing the dark lord himself.

So the duo came out on stage–Alexandra in her huge beehive hairdo and Zachary with his tiny mustache–and proceeded to do some rituals.

(more…)

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Danko Jones–I’ve Got Something to Say: 10 Years of Rock and Roll Ramblings (2017)

Posted in Ace Frehley, Adele, Alice Cooper, Amon Amarth, Away, Black Sabbath, Blackmore's Night, Bono, Burning Guitars, Can, Candlemass, Captain Canada, Chrome, Close-Up Magazine, Cop Shoot Cop, Cult of Luna, Danko Jones, Death Angel, Deep Purple, Dio, Doug Hennig, Duff McKagan, Dungeons & Dragons, Earth, Emperor, Eraldo Carugati, Essays, Etiquette, Fiona Smyth, Foo Fighters, Fu Manchu, Funkadelic, Gary Dumm, Gene Simmons, Ghost, Ghost B.C., Hella, Hellacopters, Helmet, Hockey, Ian Gillan, Iron Maiden, Jeff Buckley, John Coltrane, Johnny Cash, Killdozer, Kiss, Lemmy, Lemmy Kilmister, Leonard Cohen, Manowar, Marben, Mary Fleener, Mötley Crüe, Metallica, Motorhead, Mule, Mutes, Nation of Ulysses, Neil Peart, Neil Young, Opeth, OutKast, Ozzy Osbourne, Paul Stanley, Peter Bagge, Peter Criss, Peter Pan Speedrock, R.E.M., Ramones, Ravi Shankar, Richard Comely, Ritchie Blackmore, Rock Hard, Rock Star, Royal Trux, Rush, Sacrifice, Saxon, Shakti, Slayer, Slint, Tad, The Backyard Babies, The Beatles, The Huffington Post, The Melvins, The Rolling Stones, Thin Lizzy, Thrill of a Lifetime, Turbonegro, Unsane, Valient Himself, Vision, Whitney Houston, Wu-Tang Clan on November 14, 2019| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: DANKO JONES-Garage Rock! A Collection of Lost Songs From 1996-1998 (2014).

Danko Jones has released nine albums an a bunch of EPs.  Back in 2014 he released this collection of songs that he wrote and recorded before his first proper single (1998).

This is a collection of raw songs, but the essential elements of Danko are in place. Mostly fast guitars, simple, catchy riffs and Danko’s gruff voice, filled with braggadocio.  With a cover by Peter Bagge!

He describes it:

Back in the 90’s,the Garage Rock scene, as I knew it, was a warts-and-all approach that favoured low-fi recordings and rudimentary playing over any modicum of musical prowess in order to glean some Rock N’ Roll essence. However, once a band got better at their instruments, songwriting and stage performance, the inevitable crossroads would eventually appear. Deliberately continuing to play against their growing skill would only evolve into a pose. There were a lot of bands who did exactly this in order to sustain scenester favour. We did the opposite.

What you hold in your hands is a document of what we were and where we came from. We didn’t know how to write songs and could barely play but we wanted to be near to the music we loved so badly. We ate, slept and drank this music. We still do. That’s why we have never had to reunite because we’ve never broken up. After 18 years, we’ve stayed the course, got tough when the going did and, above all else, we have never stopped. This album is the proof.

The first two songs are the best quality, with the rest slowly deteriorating with more tape hiss.

1. “Who Got It?” a big fat bass sound with lots of mentioning of Danko Jones in the lyrics. [2 minutes]
2. “Make You Mine” is 90 seconds long.  With big loud chords and rumbling bass Danko says “one day I’m going to write a book and let everybody know how to do it.  Seems to me there a lot of people around who want to see if I can prove it.  I been a rock prodigy since the age of 20 and my proof… my proof is right now.”
3. “I’m Your Man” is a bit longer.  The quality isn’t as good but the raw bass sound is great.
4. “She’s Got A Bomb” is good early Danko strutting music.
5. “Rock And Roll Is Black And Blue.”  He would name an album this many years later.  This song is fast and raw and only 90 seconds long.
6. “Dirty Mind Too” This is a fast stomping one-two-three song that rocks for less than a minute.
7. I’m Drinking Alcohol? This is funny because later he says he doesn’t drink.  I don’t know what the words are but the music is great–rumbling bass and feedbacky guitars with lots of screaming.
8. “Love Travel Demo” and 9. “Bounce Demo” are decent demo recordings.  “Bounce” has what might be his first guitar solo.
10. Sexual Interlude” “ladies it’s time to take a chance on a real man.  I’m sick and tired of seeing you women selling yourselves short, going out with a lesser man.
11. “I Stand Accused” Unexpectedly he stands accused of “loving you to much.  If that’s a crime, then I’m guilty.”
12. “Best Good Looking Girl In Town” a fast chugging riff, “oh mama you sure look fine.”
13. “Payback” This one sounds really rough but it totally rocks.
14. “Lowdown” Danko gives the lowdown: “You want a bit of romance?  I got you an bouquet of Flowers and a box of chocolates.  Why you crying for?  That ain’t enough?  Me and the fellas wrote this song just for you.”
15. “One Night Stand” garage swinging sound: Danko is a one woman man and you’re just his type.
16. “Instrumental” is great.
17. “Move On” is a long, slow long bluesy track about love.

It’s not a great introduction to Danko, but if you like him, you won;t be disappointed by this early baby-Danko period.

[READ: August 10, 2019] I’ve Got Something to Say

In the introduction (after the foreword by Duff McKagan), Jones introduces himself not as a writer but as a hack.  He also acknowledges that having something to say doesn’t mean much.  He has too many opinions on music and needed to get them out or his insides would explode.  He acknowledges that obsessing over the minutiae of bands is a waste of time, “but goddammit, it’s a ton of fun.”

So this collection collects some of Danko’s writing over the last dozen or so years. He’s written for many publications, some regularly.  Most of these pieces are a couple of pages.  And pretty much all of them will have you laughing (if you enjoy opinionated music writers).

“Vibing for Thin Lizzy” [Rock Hard magazine, March 2015]
Danko says he was lured into rock music by the theatrics of KISS, Crue and WASP.  But then he really got into the music while his friends seemed to move on.  Thin Lizzy bridged the gap by providing substance without losing its sheen or bite.  And Phil Lynott was a mixed race bassist and singer who didn’t look like the quintessential rock star.  What more could Danko ask for? (more…)

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Ghost (Cure Insurance Arena, Trenton, NJ, October 25, 2019)

Posted in Blue Öyster Cult, Cure Insurance Arena, Emmylou Harris, Ghost, Gregorio Allegri, Jan Johansson, Set in New Jersey!, Slayer, Trenton, NJ on October 25, 2019| Leave a Comment »

[ATTENDED: October 25, 2019] Ghost

A few years ago Ghost had just popped on my radar when I saw that they were playing the Fillmore in Philly.  I didn’t go, but a friend of mine took his son and said the show was outstanding.

Before getting tickets for Starset, I had bought tickets for C. and I to see Ghost.  I had heard that their live shows were tremendous and I was pretty excited to bring him to a show like this.  When I looked for tickets, I knew we wouldn’t want GA Floor, but I didn’t know if we should go straight back or close to the stage on the side.  I chose close to the stage and I was pretty happy with the location although C. thought it would be better straight on.

I had no idea we’d be going to see two concerts in two nights.  But it was fun for him to compare the two styles of venue–club vs. arena.

Starset has a backstory and Ghost has a backstory too.  Ghost’s story is pretty fascinating.

But before getting to that I have to say that this show was spectacular.  Holy cow was it fun–the band was fantastic.  The stage set was incredible and Cardinal Copia was an amazing front man.

Now, onto the story of Ghost. (more…)

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