The artist that I would like to give credit to for this assignment is Marilyn Manson. He is one of my favorite artists because of his unique lyrics and style of appearance. When looking at his appearance, you never really know how he is going to come out dressed. He has an array of styles from wearing a suit and tie, to S&M, to clothing that makes you uncertain whether or not he is a male. He is not afraid to be who ever he wants to be, and really doesn't care what other people think. His on stage presence is quite interesting, and again, you never really know what to expect from him. He puts his hands down his pants, rubs things in his crotch area, pretends to be having sex with the microphone, and girls and other audience members are still reaching out to him to touch him, since he is seen as an idol to many. The interesting thing however, is the way the rest of his band members are dressed. They might have similiar outfits to Manson, but you always can tell that they are men. Manson is putting on a show for his audience as he performs and it is an experience that many are willing to experience, even if he is dressing in gender-bender ways.
One song of his that I would like to point out is called "Doll-Dagga Buzz-Buzz Ziggety-Zag." Some of the lyrics are:
All the goose step girlies
with the cursive faces
We know it's all Braile beneath their skirts
I'm bulletproof bizzop and swing heil and
I don't really care what gentlemen prefer
Say, all you pin-down girls and
Bonafide ballers, so manically depressed
And manically dressed
We got our "Venus not in furs"
but "in Uniforms"
If you're not dancing, then you're dead
Doll-dagga buzz-buzz ziggety-zag
Godmod grotesque burlesque drag
Doll-dagga buzz-buzz ziggety-zag
Godmod grotesque burlesque drag
The reason why I wanted to point this song out is because it is one of the more unique songs that I thought fits the topic of gender. The lyrics speak for themselves pretty much. I just find this song to be interesting because Manson is not afraid to wear clothing that makes him look feminine and so this song fits with how he portrays himself sometimes.
Another song that I just want to make mention to is "The Golden Age of Grotesque." I also think this song fits in with our topic.
The devils are girls with Van Gogh's missing ear
You say what you want but filth is all that they hear
I've got the jigger to make all you bigger
Ladies und gentlemen
So drop your pissroom mate, and make sure you're not late
You tramps and lunatics
Here's a trick that's gonna make you click
We're the low Art Gloominati, and we aim to depress
The scabaret sacrilegends
This is the Golden Age of Grotesque
One thing that I forgot to mention above was about the artist's name. Brian is his actual name, but he chose a name that seems to be ambiguous. By looking at the name alone, and if you didn't know Marilyn Manson, you might not know if it is a man or a woman. He chose the name by combining two other famous people's names. Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson, and out of that you get Marilyn Manson. I find this interesting because he used a woman's first name and a man's last name, but that is just me. Another thing I find interesting with this is the people he chose. One is a famous singer, the other is a famous murderer.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting choice. Manson is clearly trying to provoke reactions, but is also very intellectually astute. I really appreciated the comments he made in the Michael Moore documentary BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE, in which he said that American culture is based on two basic principles/impulses: fear and consumption.
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