Ghost haunts the House of Blues
A few things we learned from Lucifer salutin’ Swedish hard rockers Ghost following their great show at the House of Blues on Friday:
—They sing of hell, but sound more like heaven. Has there ever been a band that exudes such malevolence lyrically and image-wise while frequently sounding like a ray of light instead of eternal darkness? Songs like “Ritual” and “Stand By Him” were far more stirring than sinister.
—“Jigolo Har Megiddo” is the greatest song that Blue Oyster Cult never wrote. The only thing missing was a little cowbell when the Ghost played the “Infestissumam” highlight.
—Ghost is a great cover band. Their recent covers E.P., “If You Have Ghost,” indicated as much, and they played that’s album’s title song, making the Roky Erikson original even more haunting, but they also transformed The Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun” into a thing of hypnotic, inviting doom.
—“Year Zero” has to be the song that Lucifer cranks when attempting to max out on his bench press. Seriously, has there even been a more rousing song about the fall of mankind and the coming of the Dark Lord? Had the devil actually been present on Friday, he would have gotten plenty a fist bump. Oh, wait..
—Satan was in the house. There he was, a bespectacled fellow with his face painted red, a pair of devil horns protruding from his forehead, making his way through the crowd, posing for plenty of pictures. By the way, did you know that Beelzebub has dreadlocks?
—Show openers King Dude, a shadowy trio from Seattle, impressed with grim, skeletal tunes that could be sung around a campfire. Just about any of their songs would sound right at home on Mark Lanegan’s soot-black “Scraps at Midnight.” That’s a compliment.
Contact reporter Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476. Follow on Twitter @JasonBracelin.
