The masked maestros of Sweden’s own Ghost descended upon Cleveland’s Rocket Arena on July 17 for their cleverly titled Skeletour. They’re currently on tour promoting their new album, ‘Skeletá,‘ released in April 2025.
The setlist laced together new ‘Skeletá’ tracks with older anthems, balancing novelty and nostalgia neatly. And, since it was a no-phone show (concert goers had their devices locked in Yondr pouches when entering the venue), the entire crowd was living in the moment.
There was no opener. Ghost came out to ominous music and a dark curtain with giant white gashes in it, hiding the stage. After a few moments of anticipation, the curtain dropped, and the guitarist, Nameless Ghoul Fire (the band members don’t have names and are all referred to as Nameless Ghouls), launched into the opening riff of “Peacefield.”
The stage was decorated like an old church, with giant stained-glass windows in the background, depicting demons and angels, with skulls supporting drummer Nameless Ghoul Earth’s risers. Flanking the stage are dark-angel backup singers, the keyboard player, bass, and guitarists.
True to form, Tobias Forge (Papa V Perpetua) led his nameless ghouls through a theatrical procession of Satanic pageantry and melodic metal, draped in ornate costumes and church-turned-chapel aesthetics. He was having a blast, dancing with the mic stand; leaving and reentering the stage in different outfits, rising up from below holding a cowbell high above his head, and so on.Sans phones, everyone was fixated on the performance of not just Forge, but the entire band. It’s been a long time since this reviewer has seen a concert without a single phone out, especially one of this size, and it was such a great experience. More shows need to follow suit.
Ghost is commonly classified as a Swedish metal band, and that moniker brings with it a certain reputation that might cause people to write off the band without giving them a chance. Metal, particularly death metal, is, of course, known as raw, guttural, with lots of screaming, etc. That’s particularly true for the Swedish variant. But, while Ghost has all the trappings of classic heavy metal, they’re also much more than those things.
Sure, they were rocking elaborate skeleton outfits and masks. They had heavy guitar riffs on songs like “Cirice,” and the gothic/religious imagery all over the stage, but their sound seemed like it evolved from metal more than it was classic metal. They’re a metal band for a new generation. They’re melodic. You can sing along to their songs. They’re even catchy at times. Dare it be said that there were elements of pop music in songs like “Darkness at the Heart of My Love.” That’s likely part of their appeal, and why they’re able to pack arenas the size of Rocket Arena when it wasn’t that long ago that they were playing the much smaller TempleLive. It’s metal for the whole family.
Then again, they know how to rock at the same time. They tore through 22 songs in a ritualistic marathon, anchored by favorites like “Lachryma,” and “Mummy Dust,” and finished with a triumphant encore of “Mary on a Cross,” “Dance Macabre,” and “Square Hammer,” with a fierce passion.
Anyone who ever questioned Ghost’s heft as a live act, question no more: their precision, energy, and flair are top‑tier. Critics have rated them among the elite 10% of live performers, and Thursday night confirmed it. With tight instrumentation, soaring choruses, and infectious hooks, the band held the crowd under a spell. And the no phones out made that spell stronger.
It was dark, dramatic, and devilishly fun ritual of night, a sonic cathedral stripped of distractions. If you weren’t there, you missed the point: this is how live shows used to feel. And frankly? It’s how they should stay.
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