Marilyn Manson ends tour early
Marilyn Manson ends tour early
In wake of shootings,
band cancels final 5 shows
MINNEAPOLIS, April 28 — Hundreds of demonstrators rallied outside a Marilyn Manson concert, protesting possible links between the band’s dark music and the Colorado school killings. At the same time, the shock-rocker announced the cancellation of next week’s last five dates of his band’s U.S. tour, saying it was out of respect for the victims of the shootings in Littleton, Colo.
‘We reap what we sow, and if we’re filling our kids’ heads with this garbage ... what comes out is what you put in.’
— CHRIS RISCHETTE
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“IT’S NOT a great atmosphere to be out playing rock ’n’ roll shows, for us or the fans,” Manson said in a news release Tuesday.
Manson said he blames ignorance, hatred and access to guns for the tragedy.
A concert by the group tonight in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was still scheduled and extra security was planned, promoters said.
Since the shooting, critics have charged that the dark messages in Manson’s music can influence troubled youth. The killers in the school shooting were said to be Manson fans.
“We reap what we sow, and if we’re filling our kids’ heads with this garbage ... what comes out is what you put in,” said Chris Rischette, a parent who demonstrated outside the Target Center during Tuesday’s concert in Minneapolis.
“I would never blame Marilyn Manson or say it’s his fault, but without a doubt it’s so clear to me that he had an impact on what was in those boys’ heads,” she said.
Fans said the music isn’t to blame. “When it gets right down to it, the kids were the ones who went out and did the shooting,” said Jared Bennett. “It’s the kids’ fault, it’s not the music they listen to.”
According to local promoters and the Marilyn Manson Web site, the band is postponing concerts scheduled for May 3 in Reno, Nev.; May 4 in Fresno, Calif.; May 5 in Las Vegas; May 7 in Phoenix, and May 8 in Los Angeles.
There was no comment today from the band’s spokeswoman in New York. Jennie Boddy of Nothing-Interscope Records did not immediately return calls.
In Cedar Rapids, officials at the Five Seasons Center have been telling callers it’s their right to protest tonight’s concert if they wish, but the concert will go on, said marketing director Tammy Koolbeck.
“It is not our position to censor what comes into this building,” Koolbeck said.
Police, medical personnel and fire crews normally are on duty outside the arena for general admission concerts, and more were to be on duty tonight, officials said.
Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn had urged that the Reno concert not be held, saying in a letter to the organizers Tuesday that cancellation would be “a fitting show of respect for the victims of the Colorado tragedy.”
Guinn’s letter followed a similar call by a group of parents in the Reno area. “This is not about censorship,” parent Jody Ruggiero said. “This is about public safety.”
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