Reborn Again, 3 Out of 5 Stars
Manson jumps to the world of Indie-recording and delivers a big bang. "Born Villain" is his heaviest album since "The Golden Age of Grotesque" and sounds like he's back to being a bad-guy. Or at least a bad guy that isn't going though the motions. Gloriously gory, obviously obscene, flirtatious and filthy, all while MM wallows in some back to basics bible bashing. Have you heard it all before? Of course you have. But sometimes some gratuitous sex and violence in your hard rock makes for good junk food.
"Born Villain" works the turf like the pro Manson is. Starting with a "Life Sucks" number and closing with a deconstructed cover (featuring, of all people, Johnny Depp on one bluesy guitar), Manson sneers and winks his way along some well trodden paths. The highlights include the ode to sexual abuse in "Pistol Whipped," the talking blues of "The Gardener" and the mangling of "You're So Vain." There's plenty of absorbed Alice Cooper and Iggy Pop in these three songs alone to make this tasty.
Then there's the unexpected stuff, like the MacBeth soliloquy that opens "Overneath The Path of Misery;"
""And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing."
Yes, it's Shakespearean, and Manson chews through it in a carnivorous whisper. Just when I thought the guy didn't have any shocks left in his bag of tricks, he pulls one off. It's glitter from the gutter, and Manson, with "Born Villain," is back in form.
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