A Young Marilyn Manson Debates Moshing With Parents in 1995
KISS, Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, Slipknot, Ghost and so-on - these bands all used shock value to captivate fans. In Manson's case, the shockwaves of his actions have always been intertwined with his abrasive music.
In 1995, Manson appeared on The Phil Donahue Show to debate the violence of moshing with supporters and opposers of the extreme dance form. Present on the show are parents whose son had died two months beforehand from a stage diving incident.
At one point, Manson describes the extreme form of dance in his own terms: “I think moshing is a sign of what Christians would call the Apocalypse. It’s a sign of the times – I didn’t invent it."
Manson keeps calm throughout the entire interview. He addresses each question honestly, but whether or not his responses were appropriate are debatable. For example, Donahue reads a previous quote from Manson in which he said that if anyone were to kill themselves because of a song, they "deserve" that fate. Manson reacted to the quote's reading by simply saying, "Exactly." After he says essentially anything, the reaction of parents in the audience is usually either disgust or disbelief.
You can watch the entire show below, which clocks in at over 45 minutes long. It's an interesting look back at a completely different time in mainstream culture, when conversations were handled in a much different fashion than they are now.
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