Album Review (Five Words or Less) - BORN VILLAIN

Verdict: ONE-DIMENSIONAL

There was a time when this idiot was able to – somehow – transcend time and space and produce music with all the meaning and depth of vintage Pink Floyd. Somehow. Again, I don’t understand it in the least, but I still remember the first time I ever heard “The Speed of Pain” (Mechanical Animals); I think I listened to it twenty times that same night. I remember when the next album dropped (Holy Wood), I remember thinking: “There is no way this dude is going to top Mechanical Animals.” Guess what! I was wrong. Nineteen of some of the most rocking, energetic, well-produced tracks I’d heard up until then. Plus – he tapped into that same “Speed of Pain” vibe with “In the Shadow of the Valley of Death!” I remember watching many sunrises from the roof of my apartment listening to the end of that song: “Death here is policeman/death it is the priest/death it is the stereo/death it is the TV…” *chills*

If I were reviewing Holy Wood right now, the summary would be: “EXCEEDS EXPECTATIONS.”

Unfortunately for everyone, I’m not: I’m reviewing Born Villain.

I can’t really draw you a line between the two albums because I have no idea how many Manson albums connect the two. You see, as much as I dug the guy at one time, we did eventually encounter some irreconcilable differences – namely, Golden Age of Grotesque, the follow-up album to Holy Wood. Good God in heaven, did Golden Age stink on ice or what? You know how you do that thing when you buy an album that should rule but you immediately recognize that it sucks donkey but you just refuse to believe it? You’re like “the problem must be ME…maybe if I keep listening to it. Maybe if I try it again tomorrow.” Nope. Just like Apollo Creed said to Rocky – there is no tomorrow. That album sucked so bad I quit listening to the guy or paying attention in general.

I don’t know what possessed me to buy Born Villain. Maybe I was trying to recapture my youth. Maybe I was simply curious. Maybe it was on sale for $5 in the Amazon MP3 store. In any event, for better or worse, I bought it.

First off – there is zero depth here. Remember when Metallica squatted over the Collective Ears of the World and squeezed out the black album when we were all expecting something dynamic and exciting, as we’d become accustomed to from them? Kind of the same thing here. These aging Gothsters (Manson, Reznor) have always been exceptionally talented at pushing the musical envelope from several perspectives; one of my favorite aspects about their music was their skill in manipulating the sounds themselves: working with layers, developing new sounds, etc.

You don’t get a lot of that here. For the majority of the album, you get a few varied drum sounds (heavy, electronic), a fairly heavy bass sound, and a heavy guitar. That’s it.

Absent also is Manson’s typical respect for the art of crafting lyrics. In the past, this guy could fill entire songs with dramatic, interesting, engaging imagery; he could write a song with four verses and never repeat himself if he chose. Not so much anymore. Here verses are crafted with a single line repeated ad nauseum (“I wanna have your ache/and beat ya too,” – “Pistolwhipped,” or “You don’t even wanna know what I’m going to do to you,” – “No Reflection”). Methinks Manson’s muse has been asleep on the job.

Another thing I miss? Manson not being intentionally stupid. Seriously, this is something that calls back to the aforementioned Grotesque turd salad; the whole “I am an artist” thing he started fisting down our ears back then. It’s one thing to try and challenge your listener; quite another to simply show up and do spoken word like how I imagine the gimp from Pulp Fiction or Machine from 8mm would sound. Check out “The Gardener” or the intro to “Overneath the Path of Misery.” Or, better still, don’t.

Ninja's Note: To all Aging Gothsters – no one likes it when you opt to talk over a track rather than sing. I know you’re getting older now and it’s nice to produce a song or two that will – if strategically positioned in your set list – will give your tired, old, worn-out vocal cords a break. But trying to talk over music? Dumb. We’d prefer instrumentals.

There are some interesting moments here. “Hey, Cruel World” is a passable song. “No Reflection” stands out as the album’s best track. “Born Villain” is interesting in a good way. I don’t immediately forward through the “You’re So Vain” cover, though it doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the tracks or the overall vibe of the album. All in all, however, one would have to categorize this album as under-inspired at best. 

KISS BALLS, Manson.  You're not pushing yourself.  You know what happens then?  I'll let me readers fill in the blanks.  (...but it ain't good.)