Many people insist that Marilyn Manson has nothing of a genious. More than disagreeing with them, I just don't really care anymore on explaining the facts. There are those who just cannot see (which I tend to consider stupid), and those who don't care or never cared about Marilyn Manson. For those I have completely nothing to say: I know that are lot's of birilliant artists I've never cared too much to know, and, specially if you're not found of hard music, it's easy to disregard about the existence of Marilyn Manson. So, this post ends being for those that
do care about Marilyn Manson, being fans or not.
First noticed as of January 3rd, 2006,
the website of Marilyn Manson has been undergoing numerous progressive changes towards the upcoming era, which we all suspect having it's climax in the release of another album. These updates have been such a popular topic amongst the several Marilyn Manson fan communities that they have warranted much discussion. I'll expose some things that aren't to be taken as certain, but as a speculation on the meaning of this new era.
January 3rd - 1st Transformation
The opening image from the (s)AINT video began its first change. Whereas up to that point it had remained on screen for a number of seconds before fading away, it then began to fade in and out of focus, and in the upper left hand corner of the screen the cross of Lorraine could be seen for a brief moment of time. Due to lighting issues, a lot of people were unable to witness the Cross of Lorraine, but nonetheless, it was there:
For those who can't see it well in this colors, where's a negative:
In addition to this, the Merchandise section of Marilyn Manson’s website began reissuing three shirts: "The Believer", "Old Man" and "Final Beast".
While all of these shirts are reissues, the Believer tee has been signifigantly modified, including the recent trifaced painting of Christ. In addition, it also states "BeLIEver" instead of the 1996 edition which said "BeLIEve". It has also lost the previous message which stated "See no truth, hear no truth, speak no truth", and now features sleeves which read "Against All Gods".
The news section was expanded, and once again offered archived news as far back as 2004, which had previously been unavailable for several months.
January 5th - 2nd Transformation
Marked by the date of Marilyn Manson’s birth, another metamorphosis occurred. Music was added to the splash opening, setting it as a taste for the musical development of the upcoming era. The fading of Manson’s face began to synchronize with the surging electronic bass sound, and the ticking of a clock could be heard. A higher pitched voice (or voices) could be heard as well. Two theories currently exist to explain these voices: the first is that it is a distorted soundbite from an Aleister Crowley recording, while another popular explanation is that it is the voice of children.
This is also the likely launch of the number game. Though the first report of the numbers was at 2:44 A.M., January 6th, the music was first reported 11:50 P.M., January 5th, and it is likely that the discreet numbers simply went undetected for the first few hours while the fans attention was focussed on the new music.
The numbers originated from the bottom left hand corner of the screen, and proceeded on to the right, vanishing at a certain point midway, and reappearing near the end before it disappeared entirely. This number (from left to right) is: 13053135015503113501.
As has been noted by many members up to this point, only four numbers appear in this segment: 0, 1, 3, and 5. First brought up by Galaxy Girl, it has been mentioned that you can create the Cross of Lorraine by using the alt code, ALT + 0135, though how this is relevant to the number game is still uncertain. Thematically these numbers are also of importance, as of those four numbers the year 1350 can be formed - the end of the first great black plague of Europe.
January 7th - 3rd Transformation
The seventh of January became an essential part of the transformational process, as it was the first date to introduce a set of three pictures. Now with the music, number sequence, and images present, this presented a clear view of the new era. The three photos which appear only momentarily and blurred, are presented below:
The first picture displayed was actually revealed prior to this date in the booklet for Lest We Forget:
as well as in the video for Personal Jesus:
All of the images depicts the palm of a hand, bloodied by a strong puncture wound. This stigmata is considered to be a mark of the devout, which in turn with Manson’s new “BeLIEver” shirt, is hardly coincidental. In the brand of humour which only Manson can provide, the hand has been covered with a band-aid, positioned in the form of a cross, which is failing to prevent the obvious loss of blood. I can't stop thinking that this can have some relation (maybe only inspiration) with Scarling.'s "Band-Aid covers the Bullet Hole", which is somewhat probable if we think that Marilyn Manson is friend of Jessicka since somewhat between 1989 and 1992, and was one of the guest to the "Scarling. is born" party. He was yet one of those who got a copy of a promotional "Band-Aid covers the Bullet Hole" recording, previous to the single being recorded.
The second photo we are also familiar with -- The Cross of Lorraine (Also known as The de Gaul cross or the Double Cross), is representative of everything Marilyn Manson represents: the presentation of dichotomy, and the collaborative union presented through those dichotomies. Whether it be man or woman, light or dark, Jehovah or Lucifer, Marilyn or Manson, the cross in itself embodies the physical and spiritual balance that Manson has spent many years trying to achieve.
The third picture is all new, and is heavily laden with the imagery of his new era. The stigmata concept is featured again, with visible puncture wounds in both of his hands.
Present also is a Skull and Crossbones atop Manson's head which can be readily attached to the subject of the Black Death. This too was hinted at in LWF:
Despite the most obvious connection to the Black Death, the Skull & Crossbones has connections to many groups, being a symbol heavily used by the Freemasons, the order of the Skull and Bones, Alchemists, the supposed Illuminati, the Egyptians, and even the Romantics and the Victorians. The acknowledgement of death (memento mori) served those very same groups a sort of metaphorical rebirth, enabling them to take into account their own mortality, and make the best out of their lives. This continual cycle of death, rebirth, and transformation is at the very heart of Manson's work.
In terms of numbers, the number fifteen seems to be a powerful and reoccurring number for Manson's new work (as it was some era's ago), as there are fifteen swords surrounding Manson's head. Though the original image bore 16, it is unlikely that Manson did not realize he was only obstructing the view of a single dagger. In addition, there are fifteen Crosses of Lorraine around the new MM seal, along with 15 triangles:
The seal of MM reveals a circle which almost makes a full rotation, but just stops short, creating a C - likely representing the concept of Celebritarianism, which Manson brought up in his recent interview with MansonUSA. The symbol, much like the Cross of Lorraine, reflects an astounding level of balance in its physical structure.
To a certain extent this can draw a Freemason connection (among other esoteria), and will likely be covered in future updates at The Nachtkabarett.
The hands present in the new image bare many strong similarities with the movie poster for the film M:
(comparison image created by the astute Sanssouci)
The film M, a 1931 film noir directed by Fritz Lang, follows the story of a serial killer who preys on children. It's also of importance to note that in the film, there are a League of Beggars, which also make an appearance in the Bertolt Brecht/Kurt Weil collaboration of The Threepenny Opera, which Manson has drawn on prior to this upcoming era (see The Nachtkabarett for more information). This tie in to death and Celebritarianism blends seamlessly.
This film will be watched closely for any other influences that may appear.
As if this wasn't enough to take in for one night, within the time frame of 12:00 - 3:00 A.M., Manson's site was updated three times with a series of cryptic messages, which appeared predominantly in the lower left quadrant of the screen.
The first was “LISSTEN TO GALAXY GIRL THEY MIGHT KNOW”, followed by “THISS CAN BE SOLVVED”, and “HURRY TIME IS”. Some of the messages were followed by a variety of numbers, suggesting a cipher relationship between the two.
There is now an webpage continuing the explanation of this developments, so if you're interested check here. But be ready to got more news on the issue here in by blog too, as far as I get the time to post more on my analisis...
