TVD Live Shots: Ghost at Oracle Arena, 7/5

The band Ghost may be one of the most polarizing bands in metal. There are those who embrace the shtick and rejoice in the opportunity to worship at the altar of Papa Emeritus III and his Nameless Ghouls, and then there are those who simply don’t get it.

Only three days earlier, Ghost had delivered an epic headlining performance across the bay in San Francisco and here they are on a Wednesday night at Oakland’s Oracle Arena opening for the mighty Iron Maiden, a band that could quickly and easily sell out any venue of this size with no opener at all.

Ghost

While there were folks still pre-partying in the parking lot when Ghost kicked things off at 7:30, the arena was respectfully packed with a combination of Ghost diehards packing the barricade and curiosity seekers who no doubt wanted to see what all the hubbub was about.

With a generous 45+ minute set and their own stage production, Ghost tore through the highlights of their catalog, a chatty Papa Emeritus repeatedly sexualizing their transparent homages to Satan. The current batch of Nameless Ghouls proved to be way more energetic than their predecessors, giving off the impression that this is a band that’s truly found their groove.

Were there converts in Wednesday night’s crowd? Hard to say. But this is a band that needs to be seen live to be truly appreciated.