Marilyn Manson Tour

Just when you thought it was safe to change your name to something genderbent and wear ghoulish make-up a new Australian tour was announced for Marilyn Manson to add to the Alice Cooper dates already announced.

The two tours are not connected, except by common use of cosmetics.

The Manson tour starts  in Perth in October and then makes its way to Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

This will be the first time in a long time Australia has seen Manson on stage with original member Twiggy Ramirez who recently rejoined his band.

Manson, without Twiggy, last played in Australia (also in October co-incidentally) supporting the release of the album Eat Me, Drink Me two years ago.

Marilyn Manson’s seventh album, The High End of Low, debuted at number 12 on the Australian charts, showing that Manson still has a committed fanbase even if their numbers are not as great as they once were.

Remarkably the band have just marked their 20th anniversary together, which either makes me feel very O.L.D. or makes their career surprising longevitous.

And according to a couple of sometimes reliable sources the band is as valid as ever.

“Manson’s reunion with longtime guitarist-bassist Twiggy Ramirez; together with producers Sean Beavan and Chris Vrenna, (sees them) sculpt a sound both harder-hitting and more finely detailed than on any previous Marilyn Manson record,” the LA Times wrote of the new album.

“While it’s still easy to dismiss his shock tactics as puerile and insensitive he hasn’t sounded this vital — and tuneful — since Mechanical Animals,” said Spin Magazine.

I actually got to meet and interview Manson while living in New York in the late 90’s. He was an interesting person who impressed me with his attention to detail and his complete dedication to the shtick he had created. I liked him and more importantly gained some lasting respect for his powers as a showman and an entertainer.

It will be interesting to see how he compares almost a decade later.

Tour Dates :

October 5, Perth, Challenge Stadium
October 7, Adelaide, Thebarton
October 10, Melbourne, Festival Hall
October 14, Sydney, Hordern Pavilion
October 17, Brisbane, Entertainment Centre