Have Ghost tapped into something by re-embracing the Gen X music experience?While the calendar says 2025, it might as well read 1991 given the way that Ghost are approaching the promotion of their Skeleta album and personally, as a Gen Xer, I’m here for it!Ghost raised a few eyebrows when they announced that their 2025 touring would be a phone-free experience. After all, the advent of YouTube and Instagram seemed tailor made for experiencing concerts in modern day and sharing with others, so why would Ghost make such a move?But then the newly installed Papa V Perpetua and his gang of Nameless Ghouls dropped another new (or shall we say old) approach to promoting their latest album and it suddenly became clear — Ghost are going full on Gen X. That means they’re trying to recapture the spirit of music from their youth and the latest way of doing so is to revive the midnight record store sale experience.If you’re of a certain age, you likely understand why this would be an exciting move for the Gen X crowd. But why should millennials and Gen Z get on board as well? Trust that Ghost has a plan and it might bring you something you’ve not experienced and may hope to try out again.Why Ghost Installed a “No Phones’ Concert PolicyBack in October 2024, Ghost revealed their world tour plans for 2025. But one thing that fans might have initially glossed over in the standard tour announcement was a message posted to their website that the shows would be a “phone-free experience.”In an interview with Planet Rock after the announcement, leader Tobias Forge explained himself. “I really wanna underline that the ban has nothing to do with, let’s say, copyright control. It’s not that we wanna sit on all the material and we don’t want anybody to monetize [Ghost videos]; it has nothing to do with that,” he offered.He then revealed that the idea came after they played “phone-free” concerts in Los Angeles for the filming of their Rite Here, Rite Now concert film.”What ended up happening was that we had such an engaged crowd that seemed joyous in a way that… I had to go back years and in time since I last saw a fully engaged crowd where everybody’s actually watching [the show]. They don’t have to watch me, but they’re watching the band,” he explained.”I don’t wanna turn this into an ageist thing where I’m gonna tell 14-year-olds everything was better back then. But I swear that the experience of shows and the making of memories, the making of magic, was much more powerful. Some of the best shows I’ve ever been to, I have maybe not even seen a picture from that because they all live here [in my head]. They live in my core. That’s the memory I have of that. And that is an experience I wish for,” he added.”I really believe that the younger portion of our crowd will, as they did in L.A., come out saying, like, ‘That was not only a great concert; that was also an overwhelming experience.’ Because I do believe that you will feel that,” he concluded.What Ghost Have Said About Their ‘Skeleta’ Midnight Sale PromotionEarlier this week, Ghost revealed their latest initiative was to stage a midnight record store sale for the Skeleta album. They announced their plan through a faux talk show video that served as the promotional announcement.In it, host Dusty Comstock set the stage announcing, “For the first time in decades, record stores will be staying open to midnight to support the release of a soon to be chart-busting hard rock album Skeleta.”The talk show’s guest LH Kernison then acts as the voice of reasoning for the group, citing the excitement of attending midnight record store sales for Metallica’s Black Album and Guns N’ Roses Use Your Illusion records in 1991.”A midnight sale, fans can come and join and feel like they’re part of something. Go to a record store, show up and at 12:01 come in and celebrate with fans and listen to it the first, second and third time and really take the album in right away,” he explains.Kernison then adds, “There’s really something special to me that you can go to a midnight sale and be around people and physically go and get this tangible object. And then you’ll get to go to this concert experience where there’s no phones and you can just experience it. In some way, this is the first time in a generation where you can have an experience similar to how music and concerts and the whole sort of album cycle, there’s something to kind of reclaiming the night.”And to document your participation, stores will have copies of the new Skeleta album stamped with the crucifix stamp for proof that you were there and enjoying the experience. All participating stores can be found through the Ghost website.Ghost Announce the Midnight Sale of SkeletaWhy the Gen X Music Experience Was SpecialFirst of all, we get it. There’s a convenience in having music at your fingertips, being able to order concert tickets from your computer or phone or filming favorite portions of your concert to revisit later. There’s no denying the ease and access that it provides.But it also robs you of a bit of the communal vibe, personal gratification from investigating music and the social engagement that can come with how music was once experienced. Some would argue that the convenience is worth it, but you’re losing some of what once made loving music more of an essential part of our lives growing up rather than making it a more expendable transaction.READ MORE: 15 Things We Love About the Gen X Music ExperienceGhost are not the first act to try to revive some of the old school music experience vibes. Nine Inch Nails famously incorporated in-person ticket sales in 2018 designed to have fans interact with one another.”You may actually encounter other actual human beings with similar interests likely wearing black clothing during the process and potentially interact with them. The experience has the potential to be enjoyable*. Nine Inch Nails has always been about bringing people together, living life to the fullest and good times.** … *NOT GUARANTEED **NOT ENTIRELY TRUE,” Trent Reznor stated at the time in announcing the move.Was queuing up for shows convenient? No. But was it generally a good time camping out for concert tickets and killing time by talking with other fans in line? Yes.Generally, growing up and attending shows where you had to get tickets in person, those provided some of my favorite memories of bonding with friends over the experience or making new friends on line and left me more invested in the show I was about to see. There are stories still shared to this day about waiting out to get tickets for shows and what you went through to see your favorite bands.Now in my 50s, I’ve experienced multiple decades with the incorporation of social media and cell phones having their impact on the live shows.It’s rare and it usually happens with a mostly gray-haired audience that you’ll see concerts nowadays without a mass of filming from audience members, but when it does happen, I tend to remember those experiences a bit more without the distractions in place. We’ve all been annoyed by someone holding up their phone and we tend to remember those negative feelings strongly as well. No phones means no bad vibes.There was something great, as Tobias Forge shared previously, about growing up in a generation where the experiences were more intrinsically felt as opposed to externally captured for eternity through a video on your phone.Likewise, there was an excitement about the anticipation of hearing an album for the first time. Being among the first to purchase it and investing time and effort into being a fan of a band comes with the record store midnight sale experience. In the current model where most music is readily available and easily expendable, that anticipation and shared experience is not something a lot are getting these days.While it’s doubtful that music fans will discard the ease that technological advances have brought to the music experience overall, it’s an interesting experiment that Ghost are employing.Bringing back some of the engagement to being a music fan feels like they are filling a void that has been increasingly absent. Perhaps the band is onto something. If nothing else, they are providing a new generation of music fans something they aren’t getting otherwise.This writer is on board for it. I hope you give it a try too.Ghost’s 2025 Skeleta tour kicks off April 15 in Manchester, England.Dates and ticketing information are readily available through the group’s website. As for the midnight sales, dress up and engage with fellow Ghost fans picking up their Skeleta album on April 25 at midnight local time.Participating record stores can be found through the band’s website as well.The ‘Big 4’ Bands of Gen X Dad RockIf there were four bands to represent the Dad Rock of Generation X, it would be these.Gallery Credit: Lauryn Schaffner
