I say this as a long way of confirming that history repeats itself.<\/p>\n
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Ghost, once a black metal band that eschewed all of the standard tenets of that sub-genre, have seen a similar transformation in the last few years, thanks in part to (I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m saying this) Tik Tok.\u00a0 Now, of course Ghost never claimed to be a black metal band in the vein of say, Watain or Mayhem.\u00a0 But their lyrics consistently celebrated Satanism and tore down the hypocrisy of Christian religion in sometimes tongue-in-cheek form, all courtesy of the one and only Papa Emeritus.\u00a0 Papa, in the early days, cut an imposing figure\u2014clad in Papal attire an accompanied by a cadre of sexy nuns administering communion to the first row of the crowd, few can claim such an outlandish and original stage presence.\u00a0 Ghost\u2019s sound was more accessible than most black metal bands from the very beginning, and their approach to celebrating Lucifer and his cronies was unusual for a band whose songs were just so damn catchy.<\/p>\n
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I think those of us who had been around since Opus Eponymous<\/em> knew, by about 2016 or so, that things were bound to change.\u00a0 The band was simply too good.\u00a0 Their songs were memorable, their image was undeniable, and, like the kings of \u201870s shock-rock before them, evolution away from what made them so unique was inevitable.<\/p>\n Which brings us to the Chicago stop on 2023\u2019s \u201cRe-Imperatour.\u201d<\/p>\n Reading everything I\u2019ve just written, you\u2019re probably expecting a curmudgeonly rant about Gen Z, social media, and all of that.\u00a0 And this recap could have easily gone that way, if I wanted it to.\u00a0 But, again, Ghost have defied convention in the most radical ways imaginable, have transformed themselves while maintaining their spirit, to an extent that I don\u2019t think anyone could have predicted.\u00a0 Put simply: in many ways, Ghost are Gen Z\u2019s KISS, which isn\u2019t necessarily a bad thing.\u00a0 Do those of us who have been around since the beginning want it that way?\u00a0 Probably not; most of the diehards can probably agree that the band felt a little more visceral when they weren\u2019t the toast of social media and stayed a little more buried behind their devil-worshipping personas.\u00a0 But it\u2019s where we are in 2023, and, as the band proved at Northerly Island on Tuesday, they can deliver a live show like few rock bands can in the modern era, which makes them worthy of every single accolade heaped upon them by whoever calls themselves a fan.<\/p>\n Taking the stage to \u201cKaisarion,\u201d Impera<\/em>\u2019s epic opener, Papa Emeritus IV (or Tobias Forge, behind the face-paint) led the Nameless Ghouls through a nicely paced run of hits and deep cuts alike, complete with a massive stained glass backdrop that looked like Ghost\u2019s own version of a church.\u00a0 New tracks \u201cSpillways\u201d and \u201cWatcher in the Sky\u201d went over huge with the younger segment of the crowd who have only been around since the band\u2019s \u201cMary on a Cross\u201d went viral on Tik Tok, though when balanced with tracks like the sweeping \u201cCirice\u201d or the one-two punch of \u201cCon Clavi Con Dio\u201d and \u201cYear Zero\u201d (maybe the finest paean to the dark lord in the last twenty years), it would have been hard to argue that the new material felt thinner somehow.\u00a0 There were exceptions, of course; \u201cCall Me Little Sunshine,\u201d the lead single from Impera<\/em>, came across as menacing in a way that the studio version didn\u2019t quite reach, and \u201cRespite on the Spitalfields\u201d is an arena-worthy set closer for sure.\u00a0 There was certainly a tonal shift at mid-set when things felt, for a few tunes, like the Ghost shows of old; there\u2019s a reason the band refers to their live shows as rituals, and here it was.\u00a0 Red lights, lots of smoke, Papa back in his full regalia, and an outdoor stadium on Chicago\u2019s lakefront singing \u2018Hail Satan!\u201d in unison\u2026it\u2019s hard to want much more than that, honestly.<\/p>\n And yes, there were families in abundance, kids and parents alike painted up like Papa, teenagers who wouldn\u2019t have looked out of place at a pop show.\u00a0 Which, in many ways, this was.\u00a0 The best hard rock bands have longevity, and you don\u2019t achieve longevity without figuring ways to expand your audience while also trying to maintain the old one.\u00a0 I think that\u2019s what we\u2019re seeing right now with Forge and Co. – to survive as a band is to evolve, and while the shift looks and feels a little weird to those of us who simply prefer purely evil imagery, humorless hymns to the devil, and a crowd that is fully unified in the celebration of all that, there are bound to be growing pains for a band as unique and talented as Ghost.<\/p>\n Have they changed?\u00a0 You bet they have.\u00a0 But there\u2019s still no one like them.\u00a0 And that\u2019s something to celebrate.<\/p>\n For more on Ghost, click here<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Ghost-Huntington-Bank-Pavilion-at-Northerly-Island-Chicago-2023-16-1024x683.jpg\")
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