Since Antichrist Svperstar was released in 1996, I've been a fan of Marilyn Manson. I was 15 years old at the time, trying to find myself, lacking confidence due to my atypical imagination and not wanting to accept it, not to mention my increasing skepticism in what I'd been told by authority figures up to that point in my life. Through Manson's image, interviews, and music, I slowly began accepting my creativity, in essence myself, and as the saying goes, the rest is history. While I'd be the first to point out the band Marilyn Manson isn't the most musically gifted group in the history of rock'n'roll, I also believe they're underrated musically, exceptional lyrically, and that Marilyn Manson, the man, is one of the only true artists in the music arena over the past 20+ years. He's managed to effectively combine the shock antics of Alice Cooper with the chameleon-esque storytelling and sounds of David Bowie, and add a modern-day twist. He's gone from what I call spook rock on his debut, Portrait of an American Family, to industrial metal on the before-mentioned Antichrist Svperstar, to space/glam rock on Mechanical Animals, to goth rock on Holy Wood, to rap/rock on The Golden Age of Grotesque, to classic rock on Eat Me, Drink Me, to pop rock on The High End of Low, to punk rock on Born Villain, to blues rock on The Pale Emperor, to his latest album, Heaven Upside Down. Having listened to Manson's 10th album several times now, I thought I'd write a track-by-track review, and follow that up with some closing thoughts.
1) "Revelation #12" (8/10): The album gets started with what sounds like a distorted message relayed by a news anchor, before sirens begin making their presence felt. From the very first cord, a haunted, near-doom sensation enraptures the listener. As is typical, Manson is anything but coy with his songwriting, as the chorus reads, "We paint the town red, with the blood of children," hard-rocking riffs run throughout the track, as well as vocal distortions. While "Revelation #12" isn't the best track on the album, it's certainly the perfect opener, as it provides catchy, memorable lyrics; Antichrist Svperstar-like riffs; and the start of the conceptual puzzle known as Heaven Upside Down.
2) "Tattooed in Reverse" (8.25/10): The spooky vibe continues with the second track, "Tattooed in Reverse." Sonically the song mixes elements from Portrait of an American Family, Golden Age of Grotesque, Born Villain, and get this, Peter Frampton. While "Tattooed..." isn't nearly as heavy as its predecessor, it's arguably one of the catchier songs on the album, as the chorus reads, "I'm unstable, I'm not a show horse; I can't be bridled, of course; I'm outstanding, I'm unregretted; I got tattooed in reverse." With some catchy, poppier elements to this tune, I'd be quite surprised if it doesn't get released as a single at some point.
3) "We Know Where You F*cking Live" (8.5/10): Heaven Upside Down returns to a darker, heavier edge with this song. Not only that, but the lyrics turn aggressive yet again, with the chorus, "We know where you f*cking live; we know where you f*cking live; we'll burn it down, burn it down; they won't even recognize your corpse." If any song on the album harkens back to the Antichrist Svperstar days, it's this one. I even hear some remnants of "Little Horn" in the latter portions of the song.
4) "Say10" (6.5/10): This was to be the title track of the new album, until Manson decided to alter the album title from Say10 to Heaven Upside Down. In hindsight, that may have been a good thing as, in my opinion, "Say10" is the weakest track on the album. It's not bad by any means, but lacks the punch, the memorability of most other tracks on Heaven Upside Down. The introduction to the song is rather eerie, providing a sonic hybrid of Portrait of an American Family and The Golden Age of Grotesque, before Manson begins to half-rap the first verse, and wails on the chorus. While the song is lacking musically, it may very well be one of the cornerstones of the story presented on the album. Not a bad song, but if I'm not in the mood to listen to the album in its entirety, this would be my most likely skip.
5) "Kill4Me" (9/10): If you like dark, catchy pop-rock songs, this one is for you! Along with "Tattooed in Reverse" and most of "Je$u$ Cri$i$," this is one of the catchiest songs on the album. If Eat Me, Drink Me and Portrait of an American Family had a baby, it may very well be "Kill4Me." Running consistent with the rest of the album, Manson turns things upside down on this tune, as instead of asking the almost clichéd line, "Would you die for me?," he twistedly asks, "Would you kill for me?"
6) "Saturnalia" (10/10): Call me crazy, but this could go down as one of my favorites, if not my favorite Marilyn Manson song of all time. When the dictionary is next updated, beside the word "epic," there may be an option to listen to "Saturnalia." Standing at 8 minutes, "Saturnalia" is one of the longest Marilyn Manson songs ever recorded. If Pink Floyd fornicated with Portrait of an American Family, this song would pop out, "bigly." I don't want to say too much about it and ruin any element of surprise. Let me just close by saying it's unlike any other Marilyn Manson tune, may be a grower, and if you give it time (8 minutes worth), I'm cautiously optimistic it'll instigate goosebumps from head to toe on you like it did for me.
7) "Je$u$ Cri$i$" (7/10): While some music critics have been critical of the lyrics to this song, if I'm interpreting the words correctly, I think they may have simply missed the point, which I'll get to in my conclusion. No matter how juvenile one may think the chorus is, it's impossible to deny that the likelihood of it getting stuck in one's head is greater than the odds of flipping heads on a two-headed coin. The chorus lyrics read, "I write songs to fight and to f*ck to; if you wanna fight, then I'll fight you; if you wanna f*ck, I will f*ck you; make up your mind or I'll make it up for you." The first 3/4 of the song plays like a catchier version of "(s)AINT" from The Golden Age of Grotesque, before it transitions to heavy metal, and then comes around full circle. I honestly wasn't sure about this song initially, but the more I've listened to it, the more it's grown on me, and it's next to impossible to not tap my foot and sing along to the chorus.
8) "Blood Honey" (7.25/10): Manson switches things up a notch with "Blood Honey," as the song starts with an eerie piano solo. It's arguably the darkest song on the album, reminiscent in that respect to "Warship My Wreck" from The Pale Emperor. Manson's vocals are superior on this song when compared to that one, however, and while "Blood Honey" definitely isn't my favorite track, it's a powerful song, which plays perfectly at the 8th spot on the album.
9) "Heaven Upside Down" (9.25/10): The sonic shifts continue with the title track, as Manson integrates acoustic guitar and a guitar solo in Heaven Upside Down. While he seemingly lightens the mood as far as tone goes with this song, though, he still manages to pack a punch emotionally, which is fitting. As Manson himself has stated, the final track on the album is like the final credits to a movie; Heaven Upside Down is essentially the end of the story. Great song - one of the best on the album!
10) "Threats of Romance" (9.25/10): Manson certainly saved some of the best for last as, next to "Saturnalia" (track #6), I think the two best tracks are the final two on the album, this one included. The song starts with a loud banging, reminiscent of one of Manson's heavier tracks, before it delves into a catchy classic blues-rock feel. "Threats of Romance" wouldn't have felt out of place on The Pale Emperor. Like on "Blood Honey," Manson includes some piano on this song as well, providing an epic feel, and a perfect album closer.
Overall: 83/100 (83.0%)
Conclusion: It both humors and perplexes me to hear some suggest "Manson's back!" and "Manson's not as shocking as he used to be." First of all, Marilyn Manson never left. This is his 7th top 10 album (out of 10). Also, it takes a lot more than just shock appeal for shock rockers to last multiple decades. They have to make good music. There's a reason why Alice Cooper and Kiss have lasted as long as they have - they've made great, catchy, radio-friendly songs. The same goes for Marilyn Manson. Sure, in the age of 24-hour news and YouTube, he may not be as shocking as he once was, but the man (and band) has lasted over 20 years and produced 7 top 10 albums for reasons other than shock appeal - he makes good music. The same is true with Heaven Upside Down. What makes it and his previous album, The Pale Emperor, stand out from other recent discs, however, is that Manson feels focused and reenergized. On The Golden Age of Grotesque, Eat Me Drink Me, The High End of Low, and Born Villain, Manson still produced great songs left and right, but the focus and energy seemed to be lacking in comparison to the years of the triptych. For whatever reason, his fire is being displayed with more fervor over these past couple albums, and largely due to that, he's gone on to release two of the best albums in his career. While The Pale Emperor felt like Manson's most complete effort sonically in 15 years, Heaven Upside Down feels like the most complete album both sonically and lyrically for almost 20 years. He's taken elements from what has made him great in each of his previous nine records and implemented them in Heaven Upside Down, while adding a new twist. The album plays like a horror movie soundtrack, with a sense of impending doom throughout, until the end when a glimmer of hope is displayed. There isn't a weak track of the ten, and outside of Mechanical Animals, I think Heaven Upside Down is Manson's strongest record to date! I'll give it 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Concept: While Marilyn Manson himself has said the concept of this album is open to interpretation, I have a feeling I'm coming closer to understanding the message behind his story. The title of the album, Heaven Upside Down, is a major clue, from my vantage point anyway. The story appears to have been inspired by self-described conservative Christian Republicans, most notably, Donald Trump. Throughout the ten tracks, Manson provides a haunted, almost apocalyptic feel, with which he melds angry, aggressive lyrics. Through this, he masterfully paints a picture of modern-day Republican leaders, how they've been able to successfully turn the concepts of God, heaven, and Christianity upside down and brainwash and manipulate their followers along the way. In the opening track, "Revelation #12," Manson says, "Too stupid to call ourselves evil, so we call ourselves heroes." Manson further illustrates this transformation in the song "Say10," as during the chorus he screams, "You say God, I say Say10." This trend continues on the next track, "Kill4Me," as Manson takes the concept of sacrifice, of Jesus dying for sins of mankind, and turning it upside down, as he asks, "Would you kill, kill, kill for me?" On "Je$u$ Cri$i$," he opens by singing, "I write songs to fight and to f*ck to. If you wanna fight, I will fight you. If you wanna f*ck I will f*ck you. Make up your mind or I'll make it up for you." While some critics took this as a juvenile string of lyrics for the shock rocker, I see it as emblematic of politicians thirsty for power and attempting to garner said power by any means possible. The album closes with "Threats of Romance," where Manson sings, "I like you damaged, but I need something left; something for me, something for me to wreck." This shows the stark reality of people in power thriving off the weak, yet attempting to walk the fine line between damaging and destroying them. What did Donald Trump do throughout his campaign and 9 months into his presidency? The man promised anything and everything to everyone, even if these promises came by means of contradictory language. He saw his supporters were damaged, so he fed off their anger and vulnerability. He went against every code of ethics presented in the Bible, yet he, following the modern-day Republican Party's mantra, turned Heaven Upside Down, and this is what we're left with.
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