Manson Upcoming LP 'Most Violent, Yet Beautiful' (Sonicnet - Dec '99)

Shock rocker calls final album in trilogy, In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, unlike predecessors.

The next Marilyn Manson album, In the Shadow of the Valley of Death, will be "a soundtrack for a world that is being sold to kids and then being destroyed by them," the shock rocker wrote in a website posting Wednesday.

Manson stated in the posting (at www.marilynmanson.net), which was accompanied by a four-minute video clip, that the group has written more than 100 songs for the album. He said the LP, due sometime next year, sounds "unlike" its predecessors.

"It is the most violent yet beautiful creation we have accomplished," he wrote. The frontman is producing the effort with Bon Harris (Nitzer Ebb) and Dave Sardy (Barkmarket, Slayer).

In his written address to fans, the singer said the songs on the follow-up to Mechanical Animals (1998), which featured the songs "Rock Is Dead" (RealAudio excerpt) and "Posthuman" (RealAudio excerpt), will hint at the story line of his film "Holy Wood," which also is due sometime next year.

In the video clip he said, "This [album] is the final piece of a triptych that I began with Antichrist Superstar," referring to the band's 1996 album, which featured the song "Irresponsible Hate Anthem" (RealAudio excerpt).

In the clip, the black-clad singer showed off his shaven head, divulged his new alchemist mercury symbol and elaborated on the posting's description of the new album's themes. The video also featured shots of the band performing two new songs in a studio.

Manson (born Brian Warner) said the group has been recording the LP in Death Valley, Calif., and "various undisclosed locations."

The performances included in the video clip began with a rock number, whose chorus featured Manson reciting the familiar Beatles lyric, "You say you want a revolution?" The second song excerpt was more of a ballad and featured Manson at the microphone, appearing to read off a lyric sheet.

"Mommy dear, tell me please, is the world really round?" he sang in a voice that sounded strained. "Tell me, where is the bluebird of happiness found?/ Tell me, why is the sky up above so blue?/ When you were a child, did your mommy tell you?"

Manson also announced that he will now be represented by the symbol of mercury, explaining that his Mechanical Animals character, Omega, is a thing of the past.

"The character of Omega has been disposed of, as he was a ruse to lure commercial mall-goers into the web of destruction that I've always planned since the beginning," he said. "That's not to say any of the songs on Mechanical Animals were not sincere. Those were all great songs that I loved very much. The character I personified was more of a satire that people misinterpreted as reality."

Mercury, Manson said, is "most commonly used in alchemy." Alchemy is a pseudo-science begun in the Middle Ages whose aim was to turn base metals into gold and discover the elixir of youth. It is centered on the belief that there are four basic elements — fire, air, earth and water — and three essential ones — salt, sulfur and mercury.

Manson encouraged fans to do their own research on mercury, advising them that "from now on, you will recognize me by this symbol and this symbol alone." The symbol is similar to the one Prince began using to identify himself in September 1993.

In the posting, Manson implied a link between the new album's themes and the school shootings at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., earlier this year. The singer, who found himself attacked by the media when it was reported that the two killers were fans of his music, later struck back at the media and the public for "shamelessly gorging themselves" on the tragedy.

"We truly sit in the shadow of death, or rather the billboard that advertises it," he wrote. "We're all going to die, ... and if enough people are taking photos, we will all be stars."

Fans who sign on to his website are greeted with the questions, "Is adult entertainment killing our children? Or is killing our children entertaining adults?"

Manson promises in the video clip to make frequent appearances on the website, "as it will be my only contact with humanity."

Staff Writer Teri vanHorn reports: (Staff Writer Christopher O'Connor contributed to this report.)

(C) Charly Goreman