Marilyn Manson, Riviera Theatre, Chicago, Illinois

Over twenty years ago, Ohio native Brian Warner took the stage name Marilyn Manson by juxtaposing the names of two American cultural icons – Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson. In addition to the name of Warner’s new persona, the name also doubled for that of the band he fronts. Manson himself has been the only consistent member of that band, which has released albums and toured regularly over the past two decades, including this most recent tour in support of his tenth album, The Pale Emperor (2015). The members, particularly Manson, dress in outlandish makeup and costumes and have engaged in intentionally shocking behavior both onstage and off. Their performances have frequently been called offensive and obscene, and, on several occasions, protests and petitions have led to the group being banned from performing. On stage with him again was non-original but long time on and on band member Twiggy Ramiez on bass (Twiggy + serial killer Richard Ramirez) as well as newcomers Tyler Bates (guitar), Gil Sharone (drums), and Paul Wiley (guitar).

Though I was never more than a casual fan of Marilyn Manson, I have always considered him very talented and enjoyed his music. I’ve also always liked him, or at least found him interesting, as a person. He’s completely uncompromising, both in his art and his daily life. While he sometimes comes across as an asshole and does a lot of strange things, I’m glad he exists somewhere out there in the world to shake things up. At the same time, his persona has probably kept me at a bit of a distance. My clean cut dress and general contentment with life is at odds with his stereotypical fan, of which many were present at the show that evening. To some degree I was admittedly there just to see a spectacle as I was to hear his music. I knew I was in for an interesting experience.

I arrived only a few minutes before the start of his set. While the show wasn’t listed as sold out as of earlier in the day, it seemed close to it once I was inside the venue, though I didn’t look at the balcony. Manson came onstage about 9:15 dressed in all black, with ghoulish black makeup accenting his face. As the show began, I worked my way through the crowd, sliding my way to the lower section, noticing a relatively open section of the floor occupied by only one fairly large guy in a tank top, drunkenly swaying back and forth. Cognizant of what I could be getting myself into by opting to stand next to him, I took my chances and went for the open space. For a while, he and the rest of the crowd were relatively calm.  Not nearly the mosh pit shenanigans I was expecting. I was a bit disappointed! However, the start of “mOBSCENE” got the guys around me going. The pushing and shoving erupted. I mostly stood on the end and kept things stable though I jumped into the fray occasionally as well. The moshing never seemed to last too long. I guess his fans are getting old, so they winded easily. Everyone was respectful though and having a good time.

The set featured lots of explosions of light and confetti throughout the show, accented by moments of relative quiet, including a few times when he addressed the audience. This included him thanking “Detroit.” Though he wore a black cloak for the first part of the show, looking a bit like Ingmar Bergman's personification of Death, halfway he changed into a glamourous (faux?) fur coat. Glittering “Drugs” signs spun in the background. His set included a mix of songs from new album, many of which I quite enjoyed, as well as his greatest hits from older albums.

Setlist:
Requiem [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart cover]
Deep Six
Disposable Teens
mOBSCENE
No Reflection
Killing Strangers
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) [Eurythmics cover]
Cupid Carries a Gun
Rock Is Dead
The Dope Show
Third Day of a Seven Day Binge
Personal Jesus [Depeche Mode cover)
This Is the New Shit
The Mephistopheles of Los Angeles
The Beautiful People
Irresponsible Hate Anthem
Encore:
Coma White