Marilyn Manson's name, both of the band and the person who is truly the group, Brian Warner, is sure to be divisive. While the music the group created in the 1990s and early 2000s was terrific Industrial metal, too many accusations have been thrown (and settled out of court) about Warner to make one feel completely OK about still listening to the music.
What follows has nothing to do with what may or may not have happened between Warner and his accusers. The music is solely judged here, and Marilyn Manson has released too much good and important music to dismiss. The band also has a new album, One Assassination Under God – Chapter 2, set to drop in August, and a new single ahead of that.
Is "Exit Wound" going to add a lot of followers to Manson's order? Not really. At this point, he isn't likely trying to acquire new fans because any potential fans might be turned off by all the accusations that have been thrown at the artist. People have a right to be turned off however they are, of course.
Marilyn Manson delivers new single, "Exit Wound" - Review
Still, for longtime fans and those devotees who have chosen to stick by the musician and follow his music, rather than the individual who makes the music, the new song is what one would expect. In Marilyn Manson's world, that's not a bad thing. People have a right to like the music that they like, despite, at times, the person who created the songs and albums.
"Exit Wound" starts slowly, as one is used to in the Manson oeuvre, until about 30 seconds in, when drums and bass that fit most metal songs kick in. The singer starts about 50 seconds in with his normal style. The notes and cadence are reminiscent of "Dried Up, Tied and Dead to the World" from his masterpiece, Antichrist Superstar, but the bombast is never truly realized.
The song isn't bad, and a longtime fan might listen to it more than once. The vocals are almost too clear and clean, however, and the production is nothing like Trent Reznor would have supplied when he produced the band's best record in 1996.
In fact, the drawback to most new music from the band is that they tend to make proper tunes, not tracks that verge on being more dangerous. Maybe the years of accusations have forced Marilyn Manson to take a safer route musically, too. The songs and albums are fine metal, but certainly not transformative.
Not until about a minute is left in "Exit Wounds" does Manson rage. A full track of that would have been more cathartic, as "1996" was. All musical artists change, of course, and the challenge is evolving to something fresh and better. Manson can't do that as his best was left 30 years ago. He is still capable of goodness, though, and "Exit Wound" is that.
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