Released: May 26, 2009
Marilyn Manson had already done the monster thing better than almost anyone.
By 2009, nobody needed him to prove he could shock people. He had already built the whole machine: the makeup, the symbols, the ugly glamour, the religious panic, the industrial stomp, the big American nightmare stuff.
That was not the problem.
The problem was what happens when the monster starts to sound tired of being the monster.
That is what makes The High End of Low so interesting.
Released in 2009, the album came after Eat Me, Drink Me and brought Twiggy back into the writing picture. That mattered. The old chemistry was there, but the album was not a clean return to Antichrist Superstar or Mechanical Animals. It sounds more cracked than that. Less like a comeback. More like someone walking around inside the wreckage and pretending it is still a mansion.
“Devour” is a smart opener because it does not start with a punch. It starts with damage. The song feels slow, needy, and uncomfortable before the heavier parts come in. That is the album right there. It is not Manson standing above the chaos. It is Manson stuck inside it.
The heavier tracks still have bite. “Pretty as a Swastika” is ugly on purpose, and “Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon” has the big dumb Manson single energy. The title alone is trying to kick the door open. But even there, something feels different. The shock language is still in place, but it sounds worn down. The act still works, but the person behind it is starting to rot through the costume.
That is where the album gets better than its reputation.
“Four Rusted Horses” is one of the strongest moments because it does not try too hard. It has that dead carnival feel. Manson can still do better than most: acoustic dust, end-times imagery, and a chorus that feels half-joke, half-obituary. It is theatrical, but not in a clean way. It sounds like the circus packed up and left him behind.
The long middle stretch is messy, but the mess tells you something. “I Want to Kill You Like They Do in the Movies” is too long, but it also feels like it should be too long. It drags around its own bad mood. “WOW” is obnoxious and weirdly catchy. “Wight Spider” has more atmosphere than people give it credit for. These are not tight little rock songs. They feel like arguments left on tape.
That can make the album frustrating.
It also makes it feel honest in a weird way.
Manson’s best records usually turn disgust outward. America is sick. Religion is sick. Fame is sick. The crowd is sick. The High End of Low turns a lot of that inward. The target is blurrier. Sometimes it sounds like he is angry at someone else. Sometimes it sounds like he is angry at himself. Sometimes it is challenging to tell the difference.
“We’re From America” is the clearest throwback to the bigger social commentator Manson. It has the stomp, the sarcasm, and the middle finger. But the album around it is not as focused. That is not always a weakness. This record is not built like a manifesto. It is built like a bad night that keeps getting worse.
The end is where the whole thing starts to make the most sense. “Into the Fire” strips away a lot of the noise and lets the sadness sit there. “15” closes the record with Manson sounding less like a villain and more like someone who does not know what is left after the act stops working. That is not the most fun version of him, but it is one of the more revealing ones.
The production helps. Sean Beavan, Manson, Twiggy, and Chris Vrenna do not make the album sound glossy. It has industrial edges, glam-rock dirt, acoustic rot, and a weird amount of space. Sometimes it sounds unfinished. Sometimes it sounds exactly finished. That line is part of the record.
So what happens when the monster starts sounding tired of being the monster?
You get The High End of Low. Not Manson at his biggest. Not Manson at his sharpest. But Manson at a strange low point where the costume still fits, even though the seams are showing.
The album works because it does not sound powerful all the time.
Sometimes it sounds like the power ran out.
Written by Rob Joncas for DeadNoteMedia.
Artist information and music courtesy of the bands and publicists.
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