Analysis of The Features of Marilyn Manson’s Unique Style

During the middle and late 1990s, Manson, an amazing showman, became the latest and most notorious of the drug-abusing, crossdressing, self-proclaimed Satanists shaking up the music scene. He has been cataloged as the most chaotic thinker and the great exotic and extravagant artist. Indeed, Manson’s lifestyle has been lawless since he proclaimed, “My point on Earth is chaos”; therefore, his shocking messages and practices, such as smoking human bones or performing dramatic representations of abortion, have spawned squabbles, including the charge of encouraging the Columbine tragedy through the 'lived by' song. Manson’s odd music renaissance sets made him gather huge audiences, mostly disaffected adolescents: the lonely, the misunderstood, and the alienated. In short, some peculiar features such as an awkward look, an eccentric life, and the leadership of almost lost musical genres made Brian Hugh Warner, better known as Marilyn Manson, stand out among other artists.

Examination of Marilyn Manson's Distinctive Style Characteristics

Marilyn Manson’s face covered with heavy makeup was the first thing to captivate everyone's eyes. To build his eccentric look, Manson used one white contact lens in his left eye and also applied colored eyeshadows and eyeliner to make his eyes pop. In fact, he wears two different color contact lenses in both eyes, each with a different size pupil, paying tribute to the legendary British musician David Bowie, who suffered from anisocoria, a permanently dilated pupil condition creating the illusion that both eyes are different colors. Furthermore, the usage of excessive amounts of powder turned his face completely white, and the black or red tones of lipstick on his lips and between his front teeth gave him the iconic look. The first time, Manson stole Max Factor Pan-Cake foundation to use the flour as a powder; then, people said, 'Marilyn Manson wears pancake makeup,' which was true. Indeed, Marilyn delights in wearing lipstick on his teeth because he believes that is something that people didn't like to have, and he desired to be seen as quaint. Thus, makeup swayed Brian Warner's metamorphosis into Marilyn Manson; the shock value of the occult prince in lipstick and powder appealing since Manson’s 90s heyday.

The Influence of Occultism and Tattoos

Manson’s beliefs in Occultism are another remarkable aspect of his uniqueness, and it’s shown in his tattoos. Manson has reflected on his skin his fanaticism for this field that explores the things that are outside the natural. Known for his love of the macabre and the darker side of life, Manson sports one tattoo on each arm; these tattoos are reportedly modeled after a mythical creature called ‘Cyaegha,’ which is said to be driven by contempt and nihilism. Manson desired to come over hard stages; he wanted to look and be seen as unique to reinvent himself. Though he was proud of what he had created, in an interview alluding to his detractors, he stated, 'People who didn't necessarily like what I create liked what I had to say.' In addition, Manson has led his career with a dark and demonic style and has even expressed the idea that he is a kind of antichrist waiting for horrible events to happen. Actually, in 1996, the 'church of Satan' reverend Manson released 'Antichrist Superstar,' and he declared himself the father of chaos. As Manson's cult-like popularity grew, his concerts were regularly picketed by the community of Satanism religious leaders. Therefore, Marilyn’s odd ideologies are mirrored in his tattoos.

The Dark and Provocative Music of Marilyn Manson

His music exposed religion, drug addictions, and other topics with cruel perspectives, accompanied by bloody and spooky music videos. The exposure of his sexual life, the people he admires, his beliefs, and the consumption of substances are other aspects Manson is proud to show. In addition, focusing on Manson's bizarre and vampiric personal life, The Rolling Stone magazine documented the Antichrist Star's sexual habits; later, he confirmed having given an interview for that magazine. Besides, in another conference, he mentioned that he admired Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson, and he said that, indeed, his name is a mash-up of those two names. Accordingly, Manson chose the names because those people’s lives commune with his anarchic tenets. Moreover, menacing, confrontational, paranoid, nihilistic, acerbic, aggressive, tense/anxious, theatrical, cynical/sarcastic, and hostile are the words that describe the music of Marilyn Manson. Thus, the legendary rock star is famous for being the pioneer of the growth of Shock, Goth, and Heavy Metal music genres. Actually, his music has always challenged every boundary, whether it’s related to religion, addictions, society, or authority. Summarizing, Manson’s harsh perspectives have coerced his creepy music style.

The Legacy of Marilyn Manson

Being the owner of a ghoulish and fiddly aspect, having an exotic lifestyle, and presenting his revolutionary music style, Marilyn Manson has been considered an antichrist artist. Whereas his ghostly makeup, his exotic tattoos, and the extravagance of his look are not what people expect to see in an artist, the Antichrist singer’s occultism religious ideology has encouraged him to do the opposite of what people await and to practice self-inflicted cuts during shows; hence, his body is covered in scars, declaring himself as the God of mayhem. In fact, he told Rolling Stone, “I’m the third act of every movie you’ve ever seen. I’m the part where it rains and the part where the person you don’t want to die dies.” Furthermore, his music shows have portrayed his strong and rebellious beliefs, as well as his pleasure in Satanism and violence, which have been exposed through highly visual concerts, freakish costumes, and shock techniques. His controversial cover art of the album “Mechanical Animals” depicted Marilyn Manson as a naked androgynous alien figure, whom he calls Omega. Accordingly, all these characteristics made Marilyn Manson one of the most bizarre musicians.

References

1. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Book. Publisher.
2. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Article. Title of the Journal, Volume(Issue), Page Range.
3. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Webpage. Website Name. URL
4. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Film. Director's Name. Production Company.
5. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Interview. Interviewee Name. Interviewer Name.
6. Author Last Name, First Initial. (Year). Title of the Music Video. Artist. Record Label.