Since Marilyn Manson returned to the stage in the summer of 2024 with the One Assassination Under God tour, pulsating illuminated upside-down double crosses have been a consistent part of the stage design. The double cross itself is nothing new in Manson's work. It has been part of his imagery for many years and became particularly prominent again after the Heaven Upside Down era. What is new since 2024 is the way the symbol has been incorporated into the lighting of the performance. Rather than functioning simply as a static emblem, the crosses now pulsate and change as part of the stage itself, becoming one of the most noticeable elements of every concert. Manson's return to the stage has also involved bringing back many features and images from earlier periods of his career, which has naturally given the performances a nostalgic quality for longtime fans. What interests me for this analysis, however, is what has actually been added during this new period that has not be...
48 hours after the release of "God is a Weapon", the music video has garnered 1.5 million views on YouTube and was trending there at #2 for music, while previously in just one day it had hit a million views and at its peak was trending at #4 for all YouTube videos. The song has been trending on all the major streaming services as well. The music video has inspired many reaction videos on YouTube als (most of which are very funny and worth watching at least for the reaction when they realize Marilyn Manson is a part of it), and out of the 20 or so that I saw it was received very positively, primarily because the song is often described as an earworm that is very pleasant to listen to which slowly builds up but doesn't take too long to do so, and the video has cinematic production value, while at the same time the lyrics and symbolism are thought provoking. These are perfect ingredients for a song to be listened to repeatedly. As for Falling in Reverse and their lead singer...