Freaks on Parade Tour @ Dos Equis Pavilion – Dallas, TX

August 28, 2023

Freaks on Parade Tour
Rob Zombie, Alice Cooper, Ministry, Filter
Dos Equis Pavilion
Dallas, Texas
Photos and article by Artur Brakhman

It was a hot day in Dallas, and Freaks on Parade Tour opening night made it much hotter. First on stage were Filter with a short, but punchy 5 song set. It included everyone’s favorites “Take a Picture” and “Hey Man Nice Shot” to which people in the crowd were singing and raising their fists in the air.

Setlist:
(Can’t You) Trip Like I Do
Obliteration
Take a Picture
Welcome to the Fold
Hey Man Nice Shot

Next on stage were Ministry. The band’s current line up is Al Jourgensen (founder and lead vocals), John Bechdel (keyboards), Monte Pittman (guitar), Cesar Soto (guitar), Roy Mayorga (drums) and original Tool bass player Paul D’Amour. They turned up the heat a bit more with their very energetic 9 song set that was kicked off with “Thieves”. The band members were all over the stage, headbanging, interacting with the crowd and just having fun on stage. The crowd, from first rows to the lawn, was either dancing or headbanging the whole set. Every song was accompanied by corresponding videos, including a couple surprises. A brand new single – “Goddamn White Trash”, that was released August 17, from the band’s upcoming album “HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES”, and a song that hasn’t been played live since 1984 – “Revenge” from the band’s first LP release “With Sympathy”.

Setlist:
The Lords of Salem
Thieves
The Missing
Deity
Stigmata
Burning Inside
N.W.O.
Just One Fix
Goddamn White Trash
Revenge

The whole crowd was definitely warmed up and energized, ready for the tour’s co-headliners Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie.

I first got acquainted with Alice Cooper’s music when I was around 15. First album that I heard was “Hey Stoopid”. My first ever concert was Alice Cooper’s SCHOOL’S OUT SUMMER TOUR with The Scorpions back in 1996. If it wasn’t for my uncle who took me to this concert, I would have never known the awesome experiences of going to rock/metal shows.

Some people were dressed up in different variations of Alice Cooper’s famous outfits. Others had their countries’ flags, all sorts of signs and drawings of the shock rocker. Everyone was patiently waiting for Alice Cooper to hit the stage. The stage itself was covered with a blown up fictional front page of “Texas Chronicles” newspaper which read “Banned in Texas, Alice Cooper”, until the band started playing. Once the banner covering the stage was taken down, the crowd went crazy with deafening screams and whistles. The extensive career covering set was kicked off with “Lock Me Up” which morphed into “No More Mr. Nice Guy”. As the band kicked off “I’m Eighteen”, Alice Cooper brought out a huge crutch which he was wielding around the whole stage. Nita Strauss was all over stage throughout the whole set, interacting with Alice Cooper and all other guitarists – Chuck Garric, Ryan Roxie and Tommy Henriksen. She also played a solo after “Devil’s Food” that was followed by “Black Widow” jam by the whole band, during which all guitarists lined up and moved in complete synchronicity.

The stage was full of everchanging theatrical props as well as Alice Cooper himself changing outfits several times throughout the set. He came out in a straight jacket during “Ballad of Dwight Fry”, had a whip during “Poison” and brought out his beautiful boa constrictor during “Snakebyte”. A guillotine was on stage during “I love the Dead”, where Sheryl Cooper (Alice Cooper’s wife), who was bloody with an eye-patch wearing Marie Antoinette outfit, cut off Alice’s head and was showing it off. There was a huge Frankestein walking around the stage during “Feed My Frankenstein” and other evil looking characters walking around the stage during some other songs as well. During “Elected”, Alice was standing behind a huge podium with American flags on both sides and election banners in the background. The band concluded the set with “School’s Out” with “Another Brick in the Wall” squeezed in the middle.

The whole set was an amazing, twisted theatrical experience which was accompanied by an incredible setlist by The Godfather of Shock Rock himself.

Setlist:
Lock Me Up
No More Mr. Nice Guy
I’m Eighteen
Under My Wheels
Billion Dollar Babies
Snakebite
Lost in America
Hey Stoopid
Poison
Feed My Frankenstein
Devil’s Food
Black Widow jam
Ballad of Dwight Fry
Killer
I Love the Dead
Elected
School’s Out (with “Another Brick in the Wall”)

Rob Zombie Headlined this amazing show. The man, whose craft I’ve been following for at least a couple of decades. The crowd, although hot and exhausted, was waiting to be shocked and awed even more by Rob Zombie and his band. Some people in the crowd were wearing zombie-like face paint and other crazy outfits. The stage was covered by a huge black curtain. The lights were dimmed in the whole venue, the band got on stage and the huge curtain fell. The band kicked off their career spanning 12 song set with “The Triumph of King Freak (A Crypt of Preservation and Superstition)” from their latest album “The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy”. The crowd’s screams were deafening. Everyone just went crazy. Rob was on a huge wooden riser with carved ZOMBIE lettering into it, all washed out in red lighting. There were at least a dozen LED screens all over the stage, projecting different images.

Throughout the show, all band members were wearing face paint except Ginger Fish (drums). Piggy D (bass) always had a huge grin and at one point he was dressed as a ghoul, his bass looked like broken wooden planks. Rob Zombie was running up and down the whole stage, interacting with the crowd and his band members. The stage lighting and images on the screens were changing practically with every song. At one point during the show, Rob’s mic stand was a skeleton with 6 arms!
The rest of the mics on stage were skinny demon-like figures. There was a huge zombie behind the drum riser during “Superbeast” and a 10 foot devil walking around the stage. There was confetti released during “The Lords of Salem” and a huge beast came out during the song as well. The band played “Demonoid Phenomenon” after which Ginger Fish put on an awesome drum solo.

Rob Zombie addressed the crowd after “More Human Than Human” saying that it was hot as hell, then said the following: ”If you wanna party, then say you wanna fucken party. Do you wanna party?” The crowd went insane! After which the band kicked off “Living Dead Girl”. Everyone around me was exhausted, yet they found the last drops of energy to headband as hard as they could.

Rob Zombie asked everyone in the crowd to turn on their phone lights when guitarist Mike Riggs had some technical difficulties at the start of an oldie but definitely a goody “Thunder Kiss ’65”. The whole place lit up from the lawn to the front row. During the same song, he asked everyone to scream. The whole crowd happily obliged, then everyone in the whole place was jumping to the song. Rob Zombie thanked all the bands on tour, the crowd got louder with each band mentioned.

The stage was updated with another riser that looked like a demon skeleton during “Dracula”. The crowd was headbanging, dancing, jumping and singing throughout the whole song. There was also pyro lit up all over the stage. At the end of the set, Rob Zombie introduced his band. The stage had a Texas flag on all the screens, with ZOMBIE written on it.

The whole show was nothing short of a full-on adrenaline rush. To say that the show was amazing, is to say nothing at all. The twisted theatrics from Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie will scare some, but not the twisted minded people like me. At the same time, they are there to accompany the twisted songs that these amazing artists write and perform. My heart was full of all sorts of emotions during this amazing night. If I had it my way, I would follow this whole tour to every city and enjoy it every single night.

Setlist:
The Triumph of King Freak (A Crypt of Preservation and Superstition)
Feel So Numb
Well, Everybody’s Fucking in a U.F.O.
What Lurks on Channel X?
Superbeast
Demonoid Phenomenon
The Lords of Salem
House of 1000 Corpses
More Human Than Human
Living Dead Girl
Thunder Kiss ’65
Dragula