Papa Emeritus III and his nameless ghouls put on an abbreviated version of their ritual last week at Tinley Park as the opening act for Iron Maiden.

For those who have not seen Ghost before, I can only imagine what must have been going through their head. Papa Emeritus III plays the role of the demonic Pope, dressed in full regalia, but with inverted crosses and his face painted like a skull. The other band members play in identical black outfits (minus the one symbol that identifies them) and face masks. Despite the satanic messages their songs may preach, their heavy music is surprisingly poppy.

The majority of Thursday night’s setlist came from their 2015 album, Meliora, and only one from their most recent EP, Popestar. The remainder of their 8-song setlist was split evenly between their first two albums. Ghost’s set was overflowing with power and kept the attention of everyone at the venue, even those who originally went for Iron Maiden. My only issue with their performance was that the set was too short and didn’t contain enough songs from their first album, Opus Eponymous. Considering set time is not determined by them, I can’t hold it against them…I will just consider their show at Tinley Park to be a teaser for the next time they come through on their own tour.

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