Marilyn Manson
About
"Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), better known by his stage name Marilyn Manson, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, composer, actor, painter, author and former music journalist. He is known for his controversial stage personality and image as the lead singer of the band Marilyn Manson, which he co-founded with Daisy Berkowitz and of which he remains the only constant member. His stage name was formed by juxtaposing the names of two opposing American pop cultural icons; actress Marilyn Monroe and cult leader Charles Manson." (source)
Image and Content
Many of Manson's songs include religious lyrics and imagery in their respective videos. A still taken from Disposable Teens is a great example. Here Brian is dressed as the pope whilst standing in front of a large crucifix. The lyrics also feature themes of religion and God, usually in a rather negative way;
"and I'm a black rainbow
I got a face that's made for doing violence upon
I'm a teen distortion
survived abortion
a rebel from the waist down"
"Dear god the sky is as blue
As a gunshot wound
Dear god if you were alive
You know we'd kill you"
There is also songs with religious titles such as Lamb of God, Godeatgod and Cruci-fiction in Space. It is clear that religion is a driving topic with in the band's material and their image. This is a factor that has differentiated the band with others, and is a USP. But, instead of using religion as a positive element, it is the condemning of christianity which grabs attention.
Public Response
Manson uses the element of shock value to promote the band; this draws the audience in through controversy. Marilyn Manson's image and music is and was unique, and at the time of their successes, a lot of those in America had not seen anything like this in pop culture before. In a time period (80s/90s) where religion was still prominent in society, many people were bound to reject Manson. However, Marilyn Manson also gained a lot of popularity in metal fans all over the world, and became extremely successful around the time of album releases Antichrist Superstar and Holy Wood.
From watching interviews with Brian Warner / Marilyn Manson, and also seeing other people's comments, it is a common consensus that they are misunderstood with those outside of the metal scene. This is obviously due to their image, which represents religion in a negative sense (a force people usually find comfort in), and some have also described the band as 'satanic'. Themes like this may scare and intimidate. In an interview by Phil Donohue that features Marilyn Manson, they talk about the dangers of 'moshing'. Throughout the video, Donohue and the audience are very intolerant of the alternative individuals who feature on the panel. This was filmed in the 90's, and represents opinions of that time. (source)
Furthermore, an interview with Brian from MM by Bill O'Reilly also shows the intolerance the band faced from their image. Although Warner was well articulate, the interviewer was still rather rude and seemed to reject and critique, possibly due to his own opinions.
"A lot of people don't want to make their own decisions. They're too scared. It's much easier to be told what to do." - Marilyn Manson
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