Anyone familiar with Marilyn Manson will know that he is well known for his provocative and theatrical nature. Needless to say, his performance at the Stampede Corral on February 8th surpassed what I could imagine it would be. During one point in the show Manson appeared on stage dressed as the pope, hat and all, and sprayed the audience with smoke from a hose. For every song Manson had a different outfit, running back-stage in between songs to change. The pope hat was definitely the best part of his outfits.
Not only were the clothes entertaining, but the
special effects during the show fit the mood of each song perfectly, whether the effect was smoke, lights or glitter falling from the ceiling. Manson preformed a variety of songs, old and new, including such classics as Personal Jesus, Mobscene, The Dope Show, The Beautiful People and Antichrist Superstar.
The biggest disappointment, for me, was that he didn’t play The Golden Age of Grotesque, my favourite Marilyn Manson song. It easily could have been included, Manson only played for about an hour and a half in total. The opening band, The Butcher Babies, were terrible. The band featured two girls screeching into microphones and seizuring around on the stage, “dancing” I think they consider it. Thankfully, they were only the opening act. The venue was alright; security was a pain to get through, the seats were hard and terrible, and the food was similar to cafeteria food, except there was hardly any selection. The overall sound quality wasn’t too bad (minus The Butcher Babies).
Yet, I don’t regret going. I’m happy I went. Despite the unfortunate venue, horrifying opening band, and short performance by Manson, the performance he gave was excellent, definitely worth seeing. Although he is often dubbed an “aging shock-rocker” he has ten times more attitude and character then most of the sixteen year olds I know, a musician whose dedication and guts we can all admire.