Buy the ticket, take the ride. ~Hunter S. Thompson
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| Marilyn Manson at the State Theater |
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| Written by John Abbott | |||
| Tuesday, 15 September 2009 04:38 | |||
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There were positive attributes about the Marilyn Manson concert I was at earlier this evening. A few months ago the concert was announced to be at the Myth Nightclub. I bought the tickets with some trepidation. We had only heard bad things about the Myth. The pinnacle of which, was my nephew who had Rob Zombie tickets, and left before the main act hit the stage. He hated the place that much. So, when the Myth filed bankruptcy last month, and I heard the show was being moved to the State Theater, I was very happy. I am betting the moshpit crowd wasn't. Certainly, with assigned seats the wild fans, could not be so wild. The concert also had a downside. A very unfortunate one. The music. I thought the venue was great. What a great place to see a larger than life act. Gaudy and over the top describe both the Manson, and the State Theater. It was perfect. Our seats, in the front row of the left balcony seemed right on top of the stage. I think these might have been the best seats I have ever had at a big show. Where we were sitting, the sound was fantasic. But, I ran into my friend Chris outside the doors after the show and he had nothing good to say about it. I need to confirm with him where he was sitting, but I am guessing he was sitting under the balcony. I am thinking those bass response sound waves just couldn't sqeeze themselves under the balcony and so muddied everything up for him. The crowd was great. Dressed for the show. Exuberant. Two years ago in St. Paul you had to search for goth-wear in the crowd. Not so last night. Pleather, hair spikes, and pale skin abounded. People were dressed to party. The concert was heavy on the new songs. Similar to what I heard when I went to the concert of Manson's mentor, Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails. Where the band has gone a direction you don't really like, and its almost all they play. Some of the people in the crowd were really into it. I have several favorites on the new release, but Manson only played one of them. A rocking new song reminisent of the Glory days of the Golden Days of the Grotesque CD, Blank and White. I was really hoping for them to play Into the Fire off the new CD. I love that song! The combination of Manson's hard beat eventually flowing into a Twiggy Ramirez blues solo is fantastic. I find myself humming this song as I ride my bike. But, no luck, it didn't come up.  An amusing note, Manson made reference to his last appearance at the State Theater. Where, during the show he rubbed his crotch against a security guard's head. He pointed out the spot on the stage where it happened. ...It wasn't. Actually that happened down the street at the Orpheum Theater.Good surprises were provided when Manson pulled out of the long term storage rack, the very first Manson song I fell in love with. Rock is Dead. And, he did a really great job of it. This song will always provide warm feelings for me. The wife and I had just discovered multi player race car games on the computer and we were racing against one another with this, and other songs from The Matrix soundtrack blasting. It had been a long time since I had heard him sing this song. So long in fact I thought he was doing a cover. The stage show was good. The outfits were not as complex as in years past. One thing I didn't like was the fog machines seemed to be arena sized. The air was filled with the sweet odor of chemical smoke. At times we couldn't even see the stage. It was a total whiteout. I am sure I took in a months supply of PM-2.5. So, I am a Manson fan. ...if you haven't noticed already. And so that makes it doubly hard to say what I feel needs to be said about this concert. Manson was dragging. He looked tired. The music lacked the normal punch. But, there is more. During his older songs, which are the ones I know by heart, I started noticing "Whoa, he is off pitch. And not just a little off pitch either." It got worse as the concert went on. I think perhaps it was Mobscene, toward the end which should have been a popular song, the crowd was subdued. I think everyone was noticing, and not wanting to hear a warbling version of a classic Manson hit. It was sad to hear it. It was hard to tell, it seemed like he wasn't wasted. But, he was defiantly off key. I am worried about the burn-out factor.  Warmup was provided by Blue Felix, sort of an industrial headbanger rock. Somewhat on the order of Slipknot. I am not a fan of that type of music. There were some in the crowd who liked it. The third song they played, I thought was not bad. Sound quality was very low where we were at. The music was muffled, lyrics and between song chatter was unintelligible. I really wish warmup bands could just use the equipment of the headlining band. Why can't we all just agree to make everyone on stage at the venue, sound as good as possible?It was fun being there. We had a good time. It was great to get out. Get dressed up and have the adventure of a national act playing in downtown Minneapolis. But, I have serious concerns Manson could be nearing the end of his career. Everyone has bad nights once in a while. I hope thats all it is. It has to be tough, living the rockstar lifestyle and moving from city to city for months on end. Two years ago I walked out of the Excel Energy Center in St. Paul, having just seen the Marilyn Manson show, and the top of my "Must See" still contained Marilyn Manson. Not so last night. And, maybe thats the thing I feel the worst about.
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| Last Updated on Thursday, 15 October 2009 14:46 |
