Concert Recap: Marilyn Manson, Slaughter to Prevail + The Funeral Portrait in Silver Spring, MD (August 3, 2024)

I sometimes have to remind myself how big of a Marilyn Manson fan I really am, and how much of an impact his music has had on me over the years — when I first picked up the bass guitar, his songs were some of the first ones I learned how to play; when I first felt an interest in music journalism and interviewing bands, he was one of the first people on my bucketlist after watching several of his past interviews (not to mention the surprise of learning that he used to be a music journalist himself); my first attempt at ever writing an album review was for his 2015 record The Pale Emperor; before I entered film school, most of my media literacy skills stemmed from listening to his music and analyzing his lyrics and how he critiqued the status quo, particularly how our society responds and reacts to the sensationalist messaging of television and the news; becoming a fan as a pre-teen, his music offered a different way to see the world, a perspective that wasn’t presented to me in school or the other artists I would listen to at the time; long story short, his music has meant a lot to me in several ways. I’ve said my piece on his recent allegations and ongoing legal proceedings in a previous writeup leading up to his return, but at the end of the day, it would be foolish for me to ignore the integrity of his music and how much it's meant to me over the course of my life.

All of that being said, when it was announced that his first headlining show back after a 5-year hiatus would take place at The Fillmore in Silver Spring, Maryland on Saturday, August 3, it was a no-brainer that I had to try to be there. I had a feeling his years of sobriety would work in his favor and make for a much better performance than what his last few tours have shown, and I couldn’t have been more correct in my assumption. In all my years of being a fan, this was my first Manson show, and it was probably the best first Manson show I could’ve asked for, easily making the 7-hour drive from Jacksonville, NC to Silver Spring, MD very much worth it.

A huge incentive for going to this show was also getting to see The Funeral Portrait for the first time. I’ve been a fan of the Georgia-based emo rock quintet since 2021 and they’ve even played my hometown venue, Hooligans Live, a few times, but I had never been able to make it to one of their shows until now. When it was announced that they were going to be on this huge tour, I was ecstatic for them having the opportunity to perform to several people that might have heard of them, and I told everyone within earshot in The Fillmore that they’d be in for a surprise. Inside the venue before the band went on stage, any time I heard someone mention their name or ask who the first band to play was, I wasted no time in telling them about The Funeral Portrait and how great their music is, explaining that they were one of the main reasons I made the three-state drive to this show.

Needless to say, I wasn’t disappointed. Vocalist Lee Jennings commands a stage like no other, and the rest of the band is full of the same energy. On top of having great songs, the band has an equally great aesthetic and phenomenal chemistry on stage with each other. Effortlessly ripping through songs like “Suffocate City” and “Dark Thoughts,” the only downside to their set was that it was so short. However, this is just the beginning for them, and I’m hoping to have many more opportunities to see them live. After the show, Jennings stood at the band’s merch table, along with guitarist Caleb Freihaut and bassist Rob Weston, and they couldn’t have been cooler – obviously, there wasn’t a ton of time to talk with them because of how long the line was, but it was great to see how they made as much time as they could with each fan in order to get to everybody in line without feeling rushed. Additionally, their road crew is fantastic at what they do, with photographer/videographer Nathan Rogers constantly putting out great visuals of the shows, and it was also great to meet the band’s merch manager and makeup artist Dani England. These people are a big part of the band’s success and they’re great at what they do, and as a hardcore fan, it’s just as fun getting to see and talk with them as it is to see the band. The Funeral Portrait has a a great look, a great sound, and the types of songs that can help people through a lot of different things in their lives, so I can't say enough just how proud I am to see them on these big stages and to have this opportunity to reach even more people – be on the lookout for their upcoming album Greetings From Suffocate City, available Friday, September 13.

1. Suffocate City
2. Generation Psycho
3. You’re So Ugly When You Cry
4. Blood Mother
5. Voodoo Doll
6. Dark Thoughts
7. Holy Water

Direct support for Manson came in the form of the Russian deathcore giants Slaughter to Prevail, a band I never thought I’d be seeing live. In all honesty, my tolerance for super heavy subgenres like deathcore is pretty limited, but I still had a great time watching them perform. Vocalist Alex Terrible is insanely talented, so to be able to witness that level of technique and power was epic. While they may be too heavy for me to regularly listen to, I enjoyed their live set, especially the performance of their latest single, “Kid of Darkness,” along with their cover of Rammstein’s “Du Hast.” Of course, the callout during “Viking” in which Alex screams without a mic and is still heard throughout the entire venue was awesome to see in person too. Between the band’s impressive musicianship and Alex Terrible’s wild vocals and exuberant way of commanding a crowd, Slaughter to Prevail ended up being a fitting act to get the crowd amped up for the headliner.

Slaughter to Prevail Setlist:

1. Bonebreaker
2. Baba Yaga
3. Demolisher
4. Viking
5. Bratva
6. Kid of Darkness
7. Du Hast (Rammstein cover)

As the lights dimmed after Slaughter to Prevails's changeover, the crowd immediately began chanting Manson's name, eagerly awaiting the return of one of shock rock's biggest icons. Accompanied by the brooding intensity of “Cruci-Fiction in Space,” Manson confidently entered the center of the stage welcomed by every single person in the room cheering and applauding, ecstatic to finally see him back doing what he does best. What made the occasion even better was how great his voice sounded as he belted through career standouts like “Disposable Teens” and “This Is the New Shit” — in the years before his absence, many fans criticized his live performances for being sloppy and generally less-than-stellar, but he couldn't have been more on the mark during this show. Sobriety and weight loss has obviously done wonders for reviving his vocal chops to a certain degree, but I can't help but wonder if he's also had some form of vocal coaching during his years away from the spotlight. His clean singing had a slightly higher center of pitch, evident during tracks like “The Dope Show” and “mOBSCENE,” even showing off his falsetto during the bridge of “Third Day of a Seven Day Binge.” It was also very clear that he was being careful with his harsher vocals, making a point to consistently maintain a specific tone as opposed to just wailing and shredding his vocal cords in the process. In many ways, I felt like I saw the Marilyn Manson that I grew up hearing about – his outfit was reminiscent of a mix between the Holy Wood and The Golden Age of Grotesque eras, and there were even moments during the show where I was reminded of the live videos I saw from those album cycles. His voice was in phenomenal shape, the crowd was rabidly excited, and it felt like I took a time machine to the early 2000s. 

The show felt like it was more focused on the music and the quality of not just Manson's vocals, but also his band. Once again collaborating with composer Tyler Bates on guitar (who also helped produce his upcoming comeback album) and former drummer Gil Sharone (also known for his time in The Dillinger Escape Plan, among other artists), the lineup was rounded out by Code Orange guitarist Reba Meyers and “Piggy D” Matt Montgomery, longtime bassist for fellow shock rockers Rob Zombie, also known for his work with The Haxans and Wednesday 13. Having such accomplished and talented musicians in one band working together is awesome, and what's even better is that they all have great chemistry together on stage and bring a lot of dynamic energy to the show — the new lineup feels like a collective unit as opposed to just grouping a bunch of session musicians together. While they're all very busy people with different projects, I hope they continue to stay in Manson's band for many years to come, because they all work so well together, and I'd love to hear what they could bring to the table if they all enter the studio together one day.

While the music took the front seat, it didn't come without its theatrical touches — multi-colored LED Celebritarian crosses adorned the back end of the stage, with fog machines working overtime at certain moments. Manson himself pulled out some of the classics, like holding a directional lantern up to his face in the pitch darkness at the beginning of his cover of “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” donning a bowler hat during “mOBSCENE,” a black captain hat for “The Beautiful People,” and a trenchcoat and a wide-brimmed fedora for the encore of “Coma White” while fake snow briefly fell onto the stage. While the haze made it hard to see, there were two different backdrops as well — for most of the set, the MM initials (in the same font as Manson's masterpiece album Holy Wood: In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) were positioned at the center a black backdrop, which changed during “The Beautiful People” into the American flag with Manson's Antichrist Superstar shock symbol replacing the stars.

It's hard to fit so many great songs into a setlist when you have the kind of discography that Manson does, but he did a great job of balancing the hits with some selections for the hardcores — fans at this show were also treated to the live debut of the comeback single “As Sick As The Secrets Within.” Additionally, some of my favorite moments of the set included the extended instrumental that preceded “Tourniquet,” along with the performance of Holy Wood cut “The Love Song.” The only upsetting thing was that one of my all-time favorites as explained in my dream setlist writeup prior to the show, “The Fight Song,” was listed as an option towards the end of the set, but was ultimately omitted. Fingers crossed for next time though.

While it's hard to choose a concrete favorite song from a show, I'd say my favorite moment came during “Great Big White World” — not only is it one of my favorite Manson songs in general, but it marked a point in the show for me where I needed to change where I was standing. Because of how much that song means to me, I felt the need to move from my spot towards the front of the crowd to the back near the soundboard, for the sole reason of being able to actually hear Manson’s vocals. Up front, I had an extremely difficult time hearing him over the crowd around me singing along to every single word of every song, but standing in the back provided a much more balanced sound in which I was able to hear everything.

The energy in the room was contagious, and it was such a great feeling to see everyone in the room so excited about Manson's return and quite literally reciting every word of every song. Due to the kinds of assumptions people tend to make about Manson and those who identify with his music, I also feel like it's important to say this — Marilyn Manson fans are some of the kindest, most inviting people I've ever had the pleasure of coming across at a concert or online. I won't name other artists, but I know so many other fanbases that have clique mentalities and elitist tendencies to a certain degree, and there has been none of that in the interactions I've had with Manson fans. I had some great conversations with people in line before the doors opened about their concert stories from seeing him over the years, the new music, and the return show in Hershey, PA on the first stop of the Five Finger Death Punch tour the night before. After the show, I had the pleasure of meeting model and photographer Manzin, along with Kelly, host of the Justice for Marilyn Manson podcast, and Cupid’s Gunn, who was a guest on Kelly’s podcast and a huge Manson fan. I had great conversations with the three of them about the show, how much we all love the new music, and our general excitement that Manson is back and better than ever. We stood outside the Fillmore and watched the marquee display the flyer for the show over and over, and I’m almost certain we were the last people to leave the premises that night. With the three of them talking with each other, I didn’t want to take too much of their time or interrupt the conversation they were having, but they were all so friendly and seemed happy to converse with me and my dad, who I brought to the show with me. 

All in all, getting to see Marilyn Manson live for the first time was a dream come true, made even better by the level at which he was performing with his band, along with how solid his support lineup was. It’s awesome to see Manson back, and as a longtime fan, I’m happy and proud of him for the changes he’s been able to make that led to this kind of epic return, and I hope that this rejuvenated energy and sense of motivation from both him and his band lasts for many years and many album cycles to come. This was easily my favorite concert of the year so far, and it’ll take a lot to top it. The whole experience of this show was one I’ll never forget, and I hope I’ll be able to run it back soon.

Marilyn Manson Setlist:

1. Cruci-Fiction in Space
2. Disposable Teens
3. Angel With the Scabbed Wings
4. SAY10
5. This Is the New Shit
6. Great Big White World
7. Deep Six
8. Third Day of a Seven Day Binge
9. mOBSCENE
10. Tourniquet
11. The Dope Show
12. As Sick As the Secrets Within (live debut)
13. Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
14. The Love Song
15. The Beautiful People

Encore

16. Coma White

To see the remaining tour dates and buy tickets, click here.

Support the bands at the following links:

- The Funeral Portrait

- Slaughter to Prevail

- Marilyn Manson

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