Influences And Recollections of a Musical Mind

Antichrist Superstar by Marilyn Manson literally consumed my musical listening upon its release in 1996. By the time this record came out, everything in rock music was starting to sound the same. I love a lot of grunge music, but I grew up in a time of performers, and grunge really was the antithesis of that. Marilyn Manson embraced the spotlight and had taken bits of David Bowie and Alice Cooper and created something new and dangerous. The record captivated me on all levels…conceptual, lyrical, production-wise, and musically…I would listen to it on headphones and get completely absorbed. I usually spotlight my favorite songs in these mini reviews, but this one just works from beginning to end and I usually played it through because it worked so well as a whole. Manson was basically public enemy number one during this period of his career. I caught one of the shows on his Dead To The World tour, and the amount of protestors outside was something I had never seen before. Inside, the band were owning that stage. They had hit their stride and it was their time. I will be attending the Twins Of Evil tour next month featuring Manson and Rob Zombie. I am hoping the Antichrist Superstar still has some of the dark magic up his sleeve…I wouldn’t bet against him!

Written By Braddon S. Williams