Ladies and gentlemen, we have big news--this June, at a venue not far from here, three of the all-time titans of shock rock will be performing on the same bill! That's right, the Masters Of Madness tour, starring Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, and GWAR, will be hitting the stage at Merriweather Post Pavilion on Monday, June 17th! Tickets for this show don't even go on sale until this Friday, but your friends at RVA Magazine have a pair of lawn tickets to give away--and you've got a chance to win them before they even go on sale!
This tour's lineup is one for the ages, and at the top of the bill is the grandaddy of them all: Alice Cooper. With a career spanning more than four decades, Alice started out in the early 70s as the guy whose music your parents used to piss off their parents. From his career-establishing hits like "School's Out,""I'm Eighteen," and "No More Mr. Nice Guy" to his equally popular late 80s/early 90s singles like "Poison,""Feed My Frankenstein," and "Lost In America," Alice Cooper has a ton of great tunes to unleash upon his audiences. And considering that he once used a guillotine and a tank full of live snakes as onstage props, you're guaranteed to see a great stage show.
Marilyn Manson's history is just as shocking as that of Alice Cooper; from the rumors about child television stardom and breast implants to the deliberately controversial stage name (which we're all jaded to by now, of course) and the provocative, sometimes gender-bending imagery, Marilyn Manson's been such a reliable purveyor of shock value over the years that the Onion once used that fact as the subject of a parody article. But after beginning the 2000s with a few less-loved albums and ending that decade with a years-long break from music, Manson returned to action last year with his eighth album, Born Villain--and we had to admit, it was pretty awesome. Now, rejoined by longtime sidekick and partner-in-crime Twiggy Ramirez, Manson's hitting the road again to renew his legacy in front of a whole new generation of fans.
And then there's GWAR. Our mighty metal overlords need no introduction, of course, since all of us here in RVA keep well informed of their continued exploits. But on the off chance any of you crawled out from under a rock where you've been living since 1985, and have just now figured out what this whole "internet" thing is about, we should mention of course that the seven-foot tall alien warriors of GWAR will be fresh off their Fate Or Chaos tour and taking a break from the planning stages of this summer's fourth annual GWAR-B-Q in order to touch down at Merriweather Post Pavilion and slaughter a veritable rogue's gallery of evil aliens and pop culture effigies. It's a good thing Alice Cooper and Marilyn Manson are both notorious for their mindblowing live shows, for we all know what a tough act GWAR will be to follow.
WHAT:The Masters Of Madness Tour Takes Over Merriweather Post Pavilion!
WHO:Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, GWAR
WHERE:Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patunxent Pkwy, Columbia MD
WHEN: Monday, June 17, 5:30 PM
ADMISSION: $40-$75 in advance--purchase tickets HERE
Can you believe you'll get to see all of this at one show? I swear that it is true! And while tickets can be ordered from the link above starting on Friday, March 15, you can win a pair of lawn tickets right now, before they even go on sale! Just enter your info into the widget below, and get yourself as many opportunities to be there as you possibly can! You've got until Thursday at 5 PM, but don't delay--enter now!