Marilyn Manson is rocking again
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US rock singer Marilyn Manson.
Source: Supplied
BILLY Corgan taught Marilyn Manson a valuable lesson, then made him throw up, the Antichrist Superstar tells Mikey Cahill.
Maz, the last 24 hours of your life, go …
I don’t see time in the same way other people do, it’s some sort of mental disorder, if I look at a clock the one and the two are waaaay apart. I was hanging out with my friend Shooter Jennings. doing an interesting song for his record, the cover of Cat People by David Bowie with Giorgio Moroder then I remember eating Apple Jack cereal for breakfast, or did I (makes lewd aside) … Then my cat took a s— on one of my favourite books. I was very upset with her. Then I watched a movie called The Strange Colour Of Your Body’s Tears.
The demented French film?
Yeah, it was very interesting. And then I was reviewing three videos we shot in the last two weeks and I was unhappy with the edits, unhappy with the order I wanted the images to appear. Then I listened to the record The Pale Emperor for the first time … and some dumb dumb gave me the censored version. I was listening and it sounded fan-f—king-tactic and then when it got to the word “motherf—ker” there was no “f — k” in it so I emailed the record company (swears even more profusely). And it (no “motherf—ker”) made my dad the angriest because my mum’s dead. And then I had a Bloody Mary early in the day without the blood, just drinking vodka early in the day.
How do you go, drinking so early in the day? I crash and burn by 2pm.
You’re f—king Australian, you guys just drink all the time! You’re like the Irish. I stopped drinking absinthe seven weeks ago, purely out of vanity purposes, there’s too much sugar in it. It was effecting my temporal lobe. I was determined that 3am was when I was at my most productive time of creativity but what I understood making this record with Tyler Bates playing bass and drums with me when the sun was still up was the different schedule worked. I realised at 3am my brain wasn’t shutting down and all the circuits were going (sings clown music) “Ba ba dadada da da da da.”
How did you hook up with this film soundtracks whiz Tyler? You sound revitalised.
We met on Sons Of Anarchy doing music together, my father’s favourite show, my mother’s favourite show — my mother just died — and it was a big deal for me to get the job as an actor on the show, at first it was just gonna be a song.
Now you and Bates have the opening song on Salem …
Right. I take acting very seriously too. I got on the straight and narrow in 24 hours and was focused on my job. No-one expected that. It’s the art of war, I surprise people who have low expectations of me.
Which videos from The Pale Emperor have you shot clips for?
We shot The Third Day of a Seven Day Binge and I’m in the process of shooting another video with all my chaotic lyrics, naked pictures and food orders. I can watch TV, have the radio on, be reading a book, having a conversation and writing lyrics at the same time. It’s ironic because I feel most vulnerable in a room full of people I don’t know. I feel happiest performing on stage.
The song Deep Six really cooks, the band sounds focused, it shows how far you’ve come since Portrait Of An American Family in 1994 with the lyric “Narcissist you better watch yourself.”
I thought I should say that at some point. Historically, in Greek mythology it was a matter of looking at it metaphorically, I could relate it to a Cat Stevens song Wild World, “It’s hard to get by on a smile girl.” Sometimes being pretty isn’t enough.” The line “You better watch yourself” is like “I’ll put you six feet beneath the ground because I’ve got a nice garden out the back and near the petunias you will be buried” (laughs).
The bluesy swagger of this record feels like you’ve found the next chapter in your musical output.
It’s slaaaanky, that’s the word I made up, it’s skanky and slinky. The blues revolve around the guttural, visceral element of music. I leave holes in these stories so it becomes your story, it becomes more cinematic. For example in the film Rosemary’s Baby you don’t see the baby but in your mind you do.
And personally you show yourself a lot more through the writing on this album …
The songs are about me trading something with the devil — whatever that is — for becoming a rock star. I need to pay back that due, I ignored it for a couple of records, nah nah, but I had hellhounds on my trail. This album is payment plus interest, cheque’s in the mail, devil! I don’t think I was what I was supposed to be for a couple of years now I’m going to f — king do it all the time and to be calm and to be certain.
On the Soundwave line-up, who do you want to watch and hang out with?
I actually interviewed Mike Patton when Faith No More put out their first album when I was a music journalist. I love those guys. Billy Corgan and I were very close friends in the ‘90s. I forgot how close we were. I hadn’t seen him for 15 years, we joked about who coined the term “grunge.” He taught me how to play guitar. He literally said to me at one point “Wanna go for a ride?” and then he drove like an a — hole. (laughs) I got carsick.
The Pale Emperor (Cooking Vinyl) is out now.
Soundwave Festival, Melbourne Showgrounds, Feb. 21-22, $ 132 to $ 188, Olympic Park, Sydney, Feb. 28, March 1, $ 132 to $ 188, Brisbane Showgrounds, Feb. 28, March 1. $ 132 to $ 188. soundwavefestival.com
