Review: Ghost brought their elaborate gothic spectacle to a packed Place Bell

Ghost
Place Bell
December 7, 2018

Review: Eric Brisson
Photos: Eva Blue

Friday night Laval welcomed Cardinal Copia (Tobias Forge) and his Nameless Ghouls to Place Bell. Ghost was in town to perform a spectacle, and that they did. For more than two and half hours they entertained the crowd with a very well-curated setlist including a 15-minute intermission since there was no opener — it was all Ghost, and you know what they say: “If You Have Ghosts, You Have Everything.”

The show started like their Grammy nominated album Prequelle, with “Ashes,” and “Rats,” which was just outstanding, and was enough to get the crowd hooked for the rest of the evening. This was a wild treat for any Ghost fan because they played everything! The 26-song set was full of goodies, like “Cirice,” “Miasma,” with Papa Nihil rocking the sax, “Pro Memoria,” “Life Eternal,” and “He Is,” just to name a few. If you’ve never been to a Ghost show, you can expect great music, great performances and a bit of humour from their leading man. He didn’t disappoint, making us laugh throughout the set.

Cardinal Copia was at his best when he asked the crowd if they were ready to have their asses wobbled by a purely dark and heavy song, and obviously the crowd was ready. So with the crowd ready for an ass wobbling, he asked if we wanted our taints tickled. At this point I’m dying of laughter, and they performed “Mummy Dust” which was heavy AF and I have to admit my taint was tickled.

It was a great show, however not perfect, as half way through “If You Gave Ghosts,” he did a funny band intro, but dragged it on so long that all momentum was lost. They finally resumed the song, and then kicked it into high gear with “Dance Macabre,” and “Square Hammer,” finishing their set with “Monstrance Clock.”

From the impressive backdrop, excellent musicianship, a great front man, and a bit of pyro, most people didn’t even realize there was no video with their performance. It was a true spectacle, and I can’t wait to see what’s next for this band. If A Pale Tour Named Death hits your city don’t hesitate!