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ALBUM REVIEW: "Heaven Upside Down" by Marilyn Manson

   Manson's 10th studio album trades the bass-heavy glam swagger of 2015's The Pale Emperor for a more industrial, metallic tone reminiscent of Mechanical Animals era Manson, which was a disappointment for me. Instead of expanding his turf and exploring the newer, less-worn areas of his artistic output, we have a re-tread of what Manson has already proved himself to be adequate at, but without the danger and vitality his music was dripping with in the 90s. No one is going to be banning this album today, and he isn't the automatic scapegoat he once was, so this return to the past is as tiresome as it is confusing. Manson fans will likely jump right in, and there certainly is a certain glory-days vibe to Heaven Upside Down, but looking in from the outside I have no reason to care for something that was controversial and shocking 20 years ago, but dull and exhausting today (lyrics "so fuck your bible" don't do it for me on the first iteration, let alone the fifteenth time in three minutes). Didn't care for this album at all.

   Favourite Tracks: SAY10, Saturnalia and Blood Honey

    Least Favourite Tracks: Tattooed In Reverse, WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE, KILL4ME and Threats of Romance

   Rating: 3/10

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