Review: Benjamin Coe
Marilyn Manson is aging like a fine wine; the older he gets, the more elegant and full-bodied his artistic endeavors become. Whether it be his increasingly dark and morbid paintings, his illustrious, ever-expanding list of acting credits or the alt-rock/goth-metal music which he has spent the better part of the last 30 years crafting and perfecting, Manson has certainly solidified himself as a music industry mainstay and pop-culture icon for the ages.
I refer you to my fine wine analogy from earlier; the maturity and wisdom of age and a thousand lives lived bleeds through onto this record and takes you on a beautifully cathartic journey through the softer side of one of the most abrasive artists of the 21stcentury. If you had ever wondered what a Marilyn Manson album would have sounded like if it were made at the height of the 80’s synth-pop era then wonder no more!
There is some classic Manson on offer here, albeit in rather small doses. The opening track Red, Black & Blue and the dark and twisted Infinite Darkness are sure to satiate the fans of the self-proclaimed God Of Fuck’s heavier side but they are surely not what this album is all about. This album is the arty side of Manson, this is as close to mainstream as he’s ever been and probably ever will be and while this may upset a lot of long-standing fans let’s be honest, when has this man ever played it safe?
