Live Review : Ghost @ AO Arena, Manchester on April 15th 2025

The spoiler, that crucial bit of information that reveals the denouement and shatters the sense of surprise. Rosebud is the sledge, Darth Vader is Luke’s dad, and Bruce Willis is dead (for those who think the last one is cruel, I haven’t said in which film…). The curtain has just come down on the first show in Ghost’s imperialistic trek around the globe. No media were invited, no photographers were present, and everyone’s phones were locked away in rather nifty pouches. So how do we talk about it without giving away any of the surprises and preserving the intended air of mystery? 

Well, keeping to the generalisms as opposed to the specifics, Ghost have succeeded in once more reinventing the arena experience. Def Leppard did it in the eighties by putting the stage in the middle of the room, Metallica did it in the nineties by having a drum kit that moved and sticking their fans in the middle of their superstructure and Rammstein did it in the noughties by setting fire to everything. Now Ghost have done it in the 2020s by well….. you need to see it to believe it. They have produced a stunningly choreographed show that feels big in ambition, staging and appetite. They have dispensed with everything that went before and completely reinvented themselves. The costumes are new, the masks are new, the setlist has been overhauled and even the banter has been updated.

Last time around Ghost felt like a band growing into the newly acquired arena-bothering status. This time around they ooze with confidence. They own and dominate every inch of the multi-layered set-up. Whilst Tobias’s newly acquired personas are still very much the main draw, the nameless ghouls (now numbering eight) have become an essential and integral part of the act. They are no longer bit players, playing second fiddle to the various incarnations of Papa Emeritus, this evening they happily share the limelight and the podiums with their boss. They are everywhere, their new silver-encrusted stage wear glinting in the lights as they rush around the mega stage.

The sound is lush and pristine. Heavy when it needs to be but also lusciously melodic. Ghost have reached the point where they have a body of work that can dominate two hours and still leave plenty of bangers on the subs-bench. Interestingly, the new album doesn’t overtly dominate (says he, sailing close to the spoiler zone) and instead they feel confident enough to delve deep into the back catalogue, bringing up a fair few numbers that will definitely surprise the diehards (that's about as much as you get from me).

As always there are set pieces with the theatrics dialled up to 11. They are no longer party tricks, instead, they have developed into opulent moments of grandeur that showcase just how boundary-pushing Ghost have decided they want to be. As said, this show reinvents the arena experience and there are at least three moments that momentarily take the breath away. It is a slick, immaculately paced and precision-engineered show that has obviously been rehearsed to within an inch of its life. But there is still a heart beating away at its centre. It is not a soulless spectacle. Parts may well be being played and all the performers may well strut behind masks, but there is still an almighty emotional connection with the audience. Ghost have created a communal experience that is rich in atmosphere and borders on euphoric hysteria.

So I’m not going to tell you what happens, I'm not going to tell you what the stage looks like (apart from once again to reminisce on its expansive nature), I'm not going to tell you what they played. But what I am going to say is that it is extraordinary. A magnificent spectacle that never once sagged in its two-hour duration. A sensory feast that it diligently constructed and masterfully executed. And most importantly, did any of the twenty-two thousand people once miss their phones? Did they bollocks. The phone ban not only just worked, it turned the whole thing into a unique communal experience that belonged exclusively to those present. You will get no more from me. Ghost have now transcended. Festival headlines and stadium reinvention beckon. This is the tour people will talk about in decades to come; this is the moment that Ghost become the band of their generation.