Circumstances conspired against me and I almost didn't make it to the show Wednesday night. But at the last minute, I was finally able to rush downtown and got in there at 9:15 just as Manson was about to come out. Amazingly enough, I was able to just walk right up to within 10 feet of the stage! Actually, I wasn't that surprised...I had noticed the previous night that the mosh pit wasn't completely full. The Warfield downstairs area is an interesting place...there are stairs going down to the pit in front of the stage, and behind that is an elevated floor area, level with and close to the stage, with some really nice spots alongside various bar railings, so people stake these out first. Behind that are some tables and chairs. They have aisles taped out which they keep clear so that the waitresses can sell drinks. They only sell so many floor tickets so it's never uncomfortably packed in there.

I think they played pretty much the same set list as the previous night, except this time they did "Mister Superstar" and Manson kept his clothes on longer, and didn't cut himself. And I don't remember the flag (was it not there??) I had a really good view this time of Manson at the podium, smiling and spitting, blowing kisses and ripping up that bible...it was so funny!

I was standing at the edge of the crowd in front of the speaker wall, and nobody was crowding or pushing me (oh by the way, my ribs healed in a week from the Idaho show, so I don't think they were cracked after all, or I wouldn't have been down there). People were jumping up and down and getting wild in the center area, but nobody was violent, nobody got hurt, nobody passed out or had to be lifted over the barricade, such as it was (there was only a very small space between the barricade and the stage, and the guards made themselves scarce and didn't even block the view at all).

The crowd was totally cool!! I can't emphasize this enough, especially as compared to the situation in Idaho. (I had optimistically expected this would be the case at the Warfield, even at a Manson show, and I was right). A bit later I was knocked into the moshing area and got thrown up near the stage, about the 3rd "row" right under Zimzum, so I stayed there. It wasn't even packed that tight--I certainly had no trouble breathing, and nobody pulled my hair or elbowed me in the ribs--nothing like that! There was some accidental pushing because people were jumping and dancing around, but that was about it. I only saw about three crowdsurfers throughout the whole show, and none of them came near me. I didn't see them kick anyone in the head either. There actually were a couple of assholes, but really only a couple, and I was pleased when I saw one of the security guards grab this guy's head and give him a good talking-to. (This is not to say that people weren't excited to be there--we just had none of the bad aspects common to mosh-pit scenes.)

So, a great time was had by all and the shows went really well! It was especially nice to see Manson at the Warfield, my favorite venue (aside from a couple of small clubs). Sometimes I forget why I like it here, but right now I have a warm fuzzy feeling about San Francisco :)