Manson Live
By Gregory O
When someone referred to as the Antichrist Superstar rolls into town you would think that there would be dark skies above. Marilyn Manson was on the west coast this past weekend and the day was nothing short of heavenly. He brought his show to a small but intimate theater setting and as a first time Manson concertgoer I had no idea what I was about to experience.
The lobby of the theater was buzzing with anticipation and the crowd was as eccentric as one would expect. The sold out show was minutes away from exploding into something that no other band is capable of delivering. The translucent curtain draped the stage as stacks of candles burned in the background. Silhouettes of the band began to swell from the darkness and the crowd erupted as Manson and his crew jumped into “Cruci-Fiction in Space.” Why was I not shocked to see him singing into a two-foot microphone that resembled an enormous knife?
There was a real sense of enthusiasm on stage and Manson was undoubtedly aroused that Twiggy Ramirez was back in the band and touring once again. At one point they erotically shared Twiggy’s bass guitar in a way that surely made the ushers of the theater blush but showed how much Manson valued his return to the band.
The band rocked hard for the entire two hours much to the credit of hard-hitting drummer Ginger Fish and Rob Holliday on guitar. Chris Vrenna, who once played drums for Nine Inch Nails was on the keyboards and there was great intensity in the audience that was rewarded by nearly twenty songs with classics dating back to 1995. The bulk of the set list came from Antichrist Superstar (1996) and Holy Wood (2000). With only two performances from Manson’s most recent album Eat Me, Drink Me (2007).
“Heart Shaped Glasses” offered up with a version of Evan Rachel Wood that was cool and calm as she walked to the front of the stage for the shock rocker’s love song. Marilyn Manson was fixated on her body and was seductively touching the girl before finally ripping her head off in a rage of passion. The headless girl raised her leg in pleasure and disappeared into the smoke as Manson continued on with just the head of Miss Wood.
Political rants were kept to a minimum that evening but Manson was quick to comment on the hassle he often gets crossing borders as his bus gets searched for drugs and prostitutes. These comments got as much of an awakening from the fans as there was for “The Dope Show” which included an altered version of the lyrics. “Drugs they say…. are made here in Vancouver.” The name Vancouver flashed across the screen as digital pills trickled down the backdrop.
The band added a nice frigid touch to the evening as snow floated down on the band and Rob Holliday as his brief guitar solo in the great white north transitioned into a cool arrangement of “Coma White” and “Coma Black.” I wonder what they do when they play this song down in California.
The break before the encore was very intriguing as there was no doubt that Manson had a few more tricks up his sleeve. The lights came on and an adaptation of a Manson made dictatorship was created. The Antichrist Superstar was in full control during this song of the same name and the crowd was powerfully responding. Like an evil marionette he dangled and played atop his powerful podium to the joys of his followers below. The evening completed with a version of “Beautiful People” that fell nothing short of intense and was a perfect way to ensure everyone walked out of that smoky theater satisfied. Well except for the guy that had to repair and replace Manson’s microphone stands all night. The kid must have pissed Manson off or something that day because in all of the shows I have been to I have never seen a rocker blow out so many mic stands in one night.
Some might say that this 39 year old rocker is on his last legs, but when you are reunited with an old friend in Twiggy Ramirez and can still rock the stage as hard as they did that night you can clearly see that this is not the end for Marilyn Manson.
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