Attention acolytes of the flock, though it might be the first day of April and a day that is of a particular of appeal to fools – This is NOT a hoax and the mighty Ghost will return to the shores of these United States to bring you “The Ultimate Tour Named Death”. Read on all about it below.
The Press Release:
With “Dance Macabre” becoming the band’s third #1 single at rock radio, Grammy award-winning artist Ghost announces a six-week North American headline tour that will see the Swedish rock band’s elaborate rock theatre presentation metamorphose into a full-on arena production. Produced by Live Nation and billed as the “Ultimate Tour Named Death,” the outing is due to kick off Friday, September 13 in at the Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield, CA, following Ghost’s special guest summer slot on Metallica’s 25-date “WorldWide” European Stadium Tour. A series of ticket presales begin tomorrow, April 2 at 10AM local time. Most tickets for the “Ultimate Tour Named Death” go on sale to the general public beginning this Friday, April 5 at 10AM local time. Log on to http://ghost-official.com for all pre-sales, VIP packages and ticketing details. Confirmed dates are below.
San Antonio’s three-time Grammy-nominated alt/rock band Nothing More, who earned three Top 10 singles from their most recent album The Stories We Tell Ourselves, will provide support for the tour.*
Ghost’s widely acclaimed live performances are known for raising an ungodly ruckus, and that will only be amplified as the band brings its stage production to arenas. Cardinal Copia and the seven Nameless Ghouls will perform for more than two hours on a striking stage set resembling a medieval cathedral with a backdrop of illuminated stained-glass windows that pay tribute to the three now-departed Papas. In addition to rich costumes, special effects, and a spectacular light show tailored-made for arenas, the Cardinal and the band will take advantage of a series of multi-level platforms and walkways to prowl around on while performing some of Ghost’s fan-favorite songs from the band’s albums and EPs catalogues. The set list will include favorites “Square Hammer,” “Cirice,” “Ashes,” “He Is,” “Year Zero,” “Rats,” “Mummy Dust,” “Life Eternal,” “Dance Macabre,” and many more.
Twenty-eighteen proved to be a transformative year for Ghost. The band’s album Prequelle debuted at #3 on Billboard’s 200 chart, was named Revolver’s #1 Album of the Year, earned a Grammy nomination in the category of “Best Rock Album,” and accumulated 400,000 album sales and 200-million streams since its June release. Prequelle’s first radio single, “Rats,” held the #1 spot on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart for a record-setting eight consecutive weeks and received a “Best Rock Song” Grammy nomination, and the most recent radio track, “Dance Macabre,” became the band’s third #1 song at rock radio, a position it held for three weeks. In addition, Loudwire named Ghost its “Artist of the Year.”
With more dates to be announced, the confirmed itinerary for the “Ultimate Tour Named Death” is as follows.
The Tour Dates:
9/13: Rabobank Theatre, Bakersfield, CA
9/14: Reno Events Center, Reno, NV
9/16: Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Portland, OR
9/17: Toyota Center, Kennewick, WA
9/19: WaMu Theatre, Seattle, WA
9/20: Pacific Auditorium, Vancouver, BC
9/21: So. Okanagan Events Center, Penticton, BC
9/24: The Corral, Calgary, AB
9/26: Spokane Arena, Spokane, WA
9/27: Taco Bell Arena, Boise, ID
9/28: Maverik Center, Salt Lake City, UT*
9/30: Budweiser Events Arena, Loveland, CO
10/1: Broadmoor World Arena, Colorado Springs, CO
10/3: Denny Sanford Premier Center, Sioux Falls, SD
10/4: Scheels Arena, Fargo, NC*
10/5: The Armory, Minneapolis, MN
10/7: Resch Center, Green Bay, WI
10/14: Deltaplex, Grand Rapids, MI
10/19: Cross Insurance Arena, Portland, ME
10/21: DCU Center, Worcester, MA
10/22: The Oncenter, Syracuse, NY
10/24: GIANT Center, Hershey, PA
10/25: Cure Insurance Arena, Trenton, NJ
10/26: Cool Insuring Arena, Glens Falls, NY
* Nothing More will not appear on this date
Ghost in concert • Photo credit: Ryan Chang
ABOUT GHOST:
The Swedish-born Tobias Forge, who has been referred to as “the Andrew Lloyd Webber of rock,” is Ghost’s creative force, singer, songwriter, musician, and architect of the elaborate storylines that are woven through the band’s four full-length studio albums, EPs, music videos, webisodes, and live shows, all of which advance the Ghost storyline. Forge grew up listening to a wide array of 70s and 80s rock – Alice Cooper, Journey, Kansas, Boston, Black Sabbath, Jefferson Starship, Iron Maiden, and Foreigner. He’s a hardcore music junkie; at home in Sweden, he has a most impressive collection of vinyl, cassettes, CDs, and VHS tapes, and when on tour, he regularly arranges for visits to local record haunts and ships back even more treasures. He plays guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and kazoo. Ghost’s current album, Prequelle, is loosely based on The Black Plague of 14th century Europe, a metaphor Forge hopes will apply to the societal ills of today.
Ghost’s music began as being much heavier, harder and “more metal,” but over the band’s recent history, their songs have evolved to embrace a catchier, rock/pop sound. Five of the band’s songs have hit Billboard’s Top 5 Rock chart – “Cirice” claimed the #4 spot in 2015, “From The Pinnacle to the Pit” went to #5 in 2016, and “Square Hammer” (2017), “Rats” (2018), and “Dance Macabre” (2018) all held the #1 spot on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart and on the Mediabase Active Rock chart. Ghost’s music retains its rock edge as well as its dark lyrical themes like The Black Plague, the Antichrist, the Inquisition, avarice, and the Apocalypse. Ghost has received two Grammy nominations: “Best Metal Performance” in 2016 for “Rats,” which they won, and “Best Rock Album” in 2019.
*** end of transmission ***
PiercingMetal Thoughts: Sadly, I missed the apparently spectacular appearance at Brooklyns own Barclays Center but fortunately our own Kat Electric was in attendance and offered up her thoughts and you can read them HERE. Though the band will not be returning to my particular sector of coverage, maybe I will head out onto the road for one of the dates and make an adventure out of it. The band Nothing More is also a fantastic choice and one of the more exciting bands to have hit the circuit in many years. I don’t have much more to add to the mix on this one and will leave the commentary to the rest of you. As more information about the band surfaces I will be sure to post and for a historical look back on anything we have written about them over the years just click HERE. Let me know what you think down below. All Hail Ghost!!!!!
Official Websites:
Ghost: http://www.ghostofficial.com