Ghost w/ All Them Witches & Tribulation

Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff - 17/11/2019

Welcome to heaven, or is it hell?

The decor of the Motorpoint Arena stage is gothic and dark, the perfect setting for the first support provided by Tribulation and their brand of blackened gothic rock, a short but sweet set that contains songs such as ‘The Lament’ & ‘Nightbound’ from their excellent latest release ‘Down Below’.

Next to take the stage are All Them Witches, playing a heavy bluesy psychedelic rock that produced a sound far heavier than one might predict from the trio. Songs such as ‘3-5-7’ from the album Sleeping Through The War & latest single ‘1x1’ were particular highlights. Their style slightly out of place on the bill, but highly enjoyable none the less. The crowd head-banging slowly as the riffs resonate throughout the venue, their set ending to healthy applause before attention turned to the night’s headliner.

Cardinal Copia - Wacken Open Air 2018 - Andreas Lawen, Fotandi [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]

For those of you that are unaware, Ghost are something of a phenomenon, creating a special brand of occult rock that has slowly evolved into a musical juggernaut, taking the band to venues that befit their new arena style rock. Their influences are many but none do it quite as well as Ghost in today’s music climate, led by the talented Tobias Forge he takes on the guise of a satanic pope, changing at each album cycle, current album Prequelle having the band helmed by the cool and confident Cardinal Copia.

The stage is transformed into a church, of Satan I might add, this is a show that celebrates individuality in the name of the prince of darkness, a pantomime hero in the universe Ghost have created, one that gives the band their identity and their charm.

Now on album 4, Cardinal Copia leads his band of Nameless Ghouls as they treat us to a setlist perfect for the arena environment. Lead single ‘Rats’ from their latest album Prequelle gets everybody in the mood, as if they needed any encouragement. There's a certain magnetism Ghost have that had the crowd eating out of the Cardinal’s hand as soon as he took the stage.

The hits kept coming as the band took us on a trip through their discography, anthemic sing a long choruses and riffs aplenty from the likes of ‘Absolution’, ‘Faith’ & ‘Cirice’ before we are captivated by the instrumental ‘Miasma’ complete with saxophone solo, sending the congregation wild.

Scattered through the performance the Cardinal perfectly executes several costume changes as well as skits that play to his character. Coupled with the various pyrotechnics and confetti cannons add to the spectacle, a complete show.

An encore of sorts takes place as the dear Cardinal attempts to leave the stage, sensing the crowd are not yet ready to leave, launches into fan favourite ‘Square Hammer’, the final chapter in a performance of the highest standard.

As far as live acts go, Ghost are flag bearers of modern rock music and seem to revel in that responsibility. I have heard stories of their live show, I left with a tale of my own to tell, about the time the devil came to Cardiff and blew us all away.

Mike Chapman