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rusty_haloI have some kind of magical concert karma. I got there late (about 8:45pm), stopped at the coat check, meandered my way forward into the crowd... and ended up in the front row right in front of Twiggy. I never push; I just slip forward when other people leave. Insane luck, I tell you. To think that we used to line up at noon for this.
Twiggy! I know he is sleaze personified; I know I just saw him repeatedly in Nine Inch Nails; but this is different. He belongs in Marilyn Manson, and Marilyn Manson is a pale shadow of itself without Twiggy Ramirez. I've seen them on every tour since 1998 and without him it was just wrong. I was worried that he'd be doing that "Take me seriously as a musician" no makeup thing that he did in NIN, but no, it was really Twiggy! Wig, skirt, makeup, Twiggy!
Manson made a point of welcoming him back and encouraging the audience to cheer for him. I don't know what happened between them, but Manson seemed happy he was there now, kept going over to tease him throughout the show, so I hope it continues to work out.
Don't they just look right together? This photo hung in my bedroom throughout my teenage years; I didn't know the word "homoeroticism," but I knew this was hot.
The show was nothing like the early days, but it was better than the last few times I've seen them (the previous time was painfully awful). The crowd was more into it this time, and they'd put some effort into the staging. It still doesn't hold up to the late 90s/early 00s, when Manson used to have a costume change every few songs, stilts for "Tourniquet" and glitter for the Mechanical Animals songs, but whatever. The podium! They brought out the podium! And Manson wore the suit, and writhed like a puppet, and we chanted "HATE!" and he set a Bible on fire. THAT'S A MANSON SHOW.
Unfortunately it was only for one song ("1996") and the rest of the time he just wore the same stupid t-shirt (dammit you are Marilyn Manson, perform for me!). He's getting lazy in his old age. His stage banter consisted largely of yelling "NEW YORK CITY!" which um... is fun the first time, but by the third, it's like, yes dude, I know where I am. And there was a huge gap between the barrier and the stage. Like, about twelve feet. So even though I was in the front row, the band was still pretty far away. On the plus side, Manson came down and sang into the crowd on both sides, and when he came to my side he was literally right in front of me. So... I got to grope Marilyn Manson's arm. Yay?
Thinking about it beforehand, there are four things I want out of a Marilyn Manson show:
1) The Antichrist Superstar podium
2) Twiggy in a dress
3) Confetti raining from the sky during one of the pretty slow songs (I got this times three! And one time it wasn't confetti, it was soap bubbles that looked like snow.)
4) "The Reflecting God"
I got three out of four; they didn't play "The Reflecting God." *sob* THEY PLAYED IT THE NIGHT BEFORE. If only I'd gone to both shows! I am cursed to never hear that song live again, aren't I? And it's by far my favorite Manson song.
But. "The Beautiful People"! "Irresponsible Hate Anthem"! "Antichrist Superstar"! "Rock is Dead"! "The Dope Show"! "Tourniquet"! "1996"! Yeah, I can't complain. Well, except that half the songs were new (by which I mean anything after Mechanical Animals) and I didn't know them, but whatever, that's me being old and snotty.
It was a good show. Not the best, and I never really managed to lose myself in it, but it was far better than I expected. I'm bruised, my back is killing me, and my throat is raw from screaming, all of which are signs that a show was worthwhile.
Plus, I got to see my old friend April. We met nine (!!!) years ago, back when we were groupies for the same band. Now she's married, living in suburbia, and just had a baby. It's insane how people change... and how they stay the same. Both of us scrunched into our Goth outfits, rocking out to Manson as if nothing had changed; I wonder if we'll still be doing it in another nine years? And, also, she is proof that no matter what fannish thing you're obsessed with, what really matters is the friends you make along the way.
I did get a couple blurry photos of the band (and one of me and April), but it's going to take me a while to figure out how to get them off my cell phone. I did get Gothed up, though! You can never have too much black liquid eyeliner. ;)
[Cross-posted to InsaneJournal]
Twiggy! I know he is sleaze personified; I know I just saw him repeatedly in Nine Inch Nails; but this is different. He belongs in Marilyn Manson, and Marilyn Manson is a pale shadow of itself without Twiggy Ramirez. I've seen them on every tour since 1998 and without him it was just wrong. I was worried that he'd be doing that "Take me seriously as a musician" no makeup thing that he did in NIN, but no, it was really Twiggy! Wig, skirt, makeup, Twiggy!
Manson made a point of welcoming him back and encouraging the audience to cheer for him. I don't know what happened between them, but Manson seemed happy he was there now, kept going over to tease him throughout the show, so I hope it continues to work out.
Don't they just look right together? This photo hung in my bedroom throughout my teenage years; I didn't know the word "homoeroticism," but I knew this was hot.
The show was nothing like the early days, but it was better than the last few times I've seen them (the previous time was painfully awful). The crowd was more into it this time, and they'd put some effort into the staging. It still doesn't hold up to the late 90s/early 00s, when Manson used to have a costume change every few songs, stilts for "Tourniquet" and glitter for the Mechanical Animals songs, but whatever. The podium! They brought out the podium! And Manson wore the suit, and writhed like a puppet, and we chanted "HATE!" and he set a Bible on fire. THAT'S A MANSON SHOW.
Unfortunately it was only for one song ("1996") and the rest of the time he just wore the same stupid t-shirt (dammit you are Marilyn Manson, perform for me!). He's getting lazy in his old age. His stage banter consisted largely of yelling "NEW YORK CITY!" which um... is fun the first time, but by the third, it's like, yes dude, I know where I am. And there was a huge gap between the barrier and the stage. Like, about twelve feet. So even though I was in the front row, the band was still pretty far away. On the plus side, Manson came down and sang into the crowd on both sides, and when he came to my side he was literally right in front of me. So... I got to grope Marilyn Manson's arm. Yay?
Thinking about it beforehand, there are four things I want out of a Marilyn Manson show:
1) The Antichrist Superstar podium
2) Twiggy in a dress
3) Confetti raining from the sky during one of the pretty slow songs (I got this times three! And one time it wasn't confetti, it was soap bubbles that looked like snow.)
4) "The Reflecting God"
I got three out of four; they didn't play "The Reflecting God." *sob* THEY PLAYED IT THE NIGHT BEFORE. If only I'd gone to both shows! I am cursed to never hear that song live again, aren't I? And it's by far my favorite Manson song.
But. "The Beautiful People"! "Irresponsible Hate Anthem"! "Antichrist Superstar"! "Rock is Dead"! "The Dope Show"! "Tourniquet"! "1996"! Yeah, I can't complain. Well, except that half the songs were new (by which I mean anything after Mechanical Animals) and I didn't know them, but whatever, that's me being old and snotty.
It was a good show. Not the best, and I never really managed to lose myself in it, but it was far better than I expected. I'm bruised, my back is killing me, and my throat is raw from screaming, all of which are signs that a show was worthwhile.
Plus, I got to see my old friend April. We met nine (!!!) years ago, back when we were groupies for the same band. Now she's married, living in suburbia, and just had a baby. It's insane how people change... and how they stay the same. Both of us scrunched into our Goth outfits, rocking out to Manson as if nothing had changed; I wonder if we'll still be doing it in another nine years? And, also, she is proof that no matter what fannish thing you're obsessed with, what really matters is the friends you make along the way.
I did get a couple blurry photos of the band (and one of me and April), but it's going to take me a while to figure out how to get them off my cell phone. I did get Gothed up, though! You can never have too much black liquid eyeliner. ;)
[Cross-posted to InsaneJournal]
