The Ultimate Tour Named Death headed by Swedish metal band Ghost with support from Nothing More came into Huntington, WV at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena on October 11,2019. Fans from all over the area came to the arena for this night of metal.
This was my first time seeing the band Ghost and my fourth time seeing Nothing More. The first to take stage was Nothing More a band from Texas fronted by Jonny Hawkins with Mark Vollelunga, Ben Anderson and Daniel Oliver. This band has been taking the world by storm since 2003. They have been nominated for a Grammy for best rock song of 2018, and best rock album 2018. And they have also have multiple charting singles, including “This is the Time”, which hit number 1 on the Mediabase Active Rock chart and number 2 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart, and “Mr. MTV”, “Jenny”, and “Here’s to the Heartache” all charting in the top 15 of both charts.
When they took the stage Jonny climbed to the top of a stand where he had a air raid siren, the first song they performed was “Let ‘ e Burn”. They continued there powerful set with “Christ Copyright”, then “Don’t Stop” and “Go To War”. Then came the more powerful songs about his family Jenny his sister, and “Fadein/Fadeout” about his father. These two songs to me are the most moving songs by them. Nothing More leaves you emotional with their lyrics about corruption, religion, how the media is shoved down our throats, and the mental health issues that many of us or someone we know face. They finished their set with a excerpt from Queen “We Will Rock You” with the crowd singing along I think they gained some new fans.
As the crowd waited, a black sheet covered the stage and when it dropped the fans went crazy. The stage set up looked like a Catholic church scene, with the stained glass windows. The Nameless Ghouls took the stage as the first song “Ashes” was ringing through the arena. Cardinal Copia took the stage the crowd went crazy. They continued their set with their hit “Rats”, then “Absolution”. The first three songs I was busy photographing the show, which was visually pleasing with good lighting. I put my camera away just in time to catch the 6th song “Devil Church” followed by “Cirice”.
I really haven’t listened to Ghost or understand how people really like them. They still aren’t my choice of music, but they do put on a good show. The crowd really loved them and was singing along to every song. I watched the show unfold as 2 of the Nameless Ghouls had a guitar battle. They even threw a little comedy into the battle that had people laughing and cheering. Now I am starting to see what the appeal is with the band. They not only perform their music, they tell a story with a set up like no other, throw some comedy into the set and all around just show the crowd a damn good time.
If you have a chance to check out the band live go do it. You may not like the band much but after seeing them live you get a better understanding of their following. After all doing what you love, and having fun at the same time, who cares who likes you and who doesn’t. It’s working just fine for them and I don’t see them stopping anytime soon.
