Mayhem
by Scott Hardie on August 12, 2009
Last night I saw Killswitch Engage, Slayer, and Marilyn Manson. This morning I discovered that Walgreens sells a pretty good neck brace for $11.99.
Aaron Shurtleff bought my Mayhem Festival ticket in May as a gift, and I'm grateful to have another generous friend. Aaron, I would have implemented your Rock Block suggestions anyway, you didn't need to do all that. :-)
KSE is not a band I'm familiar with, but I need to get more acquainted. They're pretty damn good. Too bad the Dio cover was the only song I could sing along to, but I was in good company. The singer really needed to stop alternating between "I'm really glad you guys showed up to support us, we're grateful to have such good fans" and "fuck you pussies who are sitting down out there!" in the same breath.
Slayer was the main event for us, no matter what order the billing was in. We've both been fans for many years. Lori Lancaster will remember afternoons after high school when a bunch of us would drive home in my car and play Reign in Blood until the tape wore out. I haven't listened to it in years, and I still remember the lyrics. Incredible album; still sounds as good. I didn't recognize a couple of songs off of the new album, but all of the classics they played came right back to me. They don't stop between songs to chat with the audience, save for an occasional "thank you;" they just kick your ass relentlessly for an hour. Great band, great show.
Manson is not a favorite of mine, but I'm still glad we stayed for his show. He played the half-dozen songs that I knew, and it was fun to sing along. "Beautiful People" was the big finish and whipped the crowd into the biggest frenzy all night. When Manson is good, he has some solid rock songs and puts on an exciting show. When he's bad, he's self-indulgent and doesn't seem interested in what he's doing, and his minimal stage presence and rambling between songs reminded me of that. We know you like drugs and want us to take them; you don't need to tell us after every song.
I regret that Jeremiah Poisson wasn't able to join us like we hoped, and that we missed Cannibal Corpse higher up the festival billing. But otherwise this was a terrific time, some of the most fun I've had at a concert. Now my neck just needs to forgive me.
Four Replies to Mayhem
Scott Hardie | August 13, 2009
Good story! To my right through the whole concert were two teens who looked like they were on a date, and her dad was there. He stood for a few songs and even nodded along for a few songs, but mostly just sat there. He was a good sport to put up with the lengthy show, though.
Lori Lancaster | August 13, 2009
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Amy Austin | August 14, 2009
Ha, that was a good story... but really made all the better for the fact that Marilyn Manson now appears to be related to all of you. Lol... *four* times? I guess you've gotten used to your new name all right, Jackie! ;-D
Logical Operator
The creator of Funeratic, Scott Hardie, blogs about running this site, losing weight, and other passions including his wife Kelly, his friends, movies, gaming, and Florida. Read more »
The Wedding
Kelly and I wed on March 15, an event that we've been looking forward to for a very long time. Despite keeping the wedding modest and casual, it still involved a great deal of planning and anxiety, occupying my attention for the last few months. (Kelly was in charge of her outfit; I planned everything else, with her approval at each stage.) Go »I Can Deflect Staples
Should you call your day a complete wash if your greatest creative achievement was paper fastener nunchucks? Go »Solitaire
Right now, I don't think I could write emotionally about my feelings from last night as well as I could have in the moment, but I haven't finished considering them and this is a part of that process. Long story short, I found myself passing on friends who really wanted to spend time with me in order to sit here and write code for Celebrity Goo Game, and I came to question what the hell I was doing. As in, my whole lifestyle. Go »And If You're Not Careful, You Might Learn Something
Ten things I learned from watching the entire run of The Cosby Show over the last few months on Netflix streaming: - Cliff wasn't the only one who wore wild sweaters. - Seinfeld was celebrated as the "show about nothing," but this show had even less plot. Entire episodes just riffed for twenty minutes on Vanessa fretting over a test or Theo having a crush on a girl, nothing more. Go »The Proposal
By now, the news is out that Kelly and I are engaged. We couldn't be happier about it! Here's the full story for anyone interested. Go »
Jackie Mason | August 13, 2009
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