Antichrist Superstar
Encyclopedia
Antichrist Superstar is the second full-length studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...

 by American rock band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...

 Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson (band)
Marilyn Manson is an American metal band from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Formed in 1989 by Brian Warner and Scott Putesky, the group was originally named Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids with their uniquely theatrical performances gathering a local cult following in the early '90s. This attention...

. It was released on October 8, 1996 in the US through Nothing
Nothing Records
Nothing Records was an American record label, specializing in industrial rock and electronic music, founded by John Malm Jr. and Trent Reznor in 1992...

 and Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...

. The record's success in mainstream charts propelled the band into a household name and turned its frontman
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...

 overnight into a bonafide rock icon. This led to numerous protest
Protest
A protest is an expression of objection, by words or by actions, to particular events, policies or situations. Protests can take many different forms, from individual statements to mass demonstrations...

s from religious and civic groups such as the American Family Association
American Family Association
The American Family Association is a 501 non-profit organization that promotes conservative Christian values, such as opposition to same-sex marriage, pornography, and abortion, as well as other public policy goals such as deregulation of the oil industry and lobbying against the Employee Free...

 due to the band's anti-Christian
Criticism of Christianity
Throughout the history of Christianity, many have criticized Christianity, the church, and Christians themselves. Some criticism specifically addresses Christian beliefs, teachings and interpretation of scripture...

 stance as well as the transgressive and confrontational nature of their music, performance and appearance.

It is a rock opera
Rock opera
A rock opera is a work of rock music that presents a storyline told over multiple parts, songs or sections in the manner of opera. A rock opera differs from a conventional rock album, which usually includes songs that are not unified by a common theme or narrative. More recent developments include...

 concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...

 and the first installment in a trilogy that includes Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals is the third full-length studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It was released on September 14, 1998, in Australia and on September 15, 1998, in the US, Germany and France through Nothing and Interscope Records and marked the beginning of the band's brief foray into...

and Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood is the fourth studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in November 2000 through Nothing and Interscope Records. The album marked a return to the industrial and alternative metal style of the band's earlier efforts, after the modernized glam rock sound of Mechanical...

. After the release of Holy Wood, Manson revealed that the over-arching story within the trilogy is divulged in reverse chronological order. Holy Wood, therefore, begins the story, followed by Mechanical Animals, and concluding with Antichrist Superstar. It was recorded at Nothing Studios in New Orleans and produced by Trent Reznor
Trent Reznor
Michael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...

 of Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...

.

The album has sold over 7 million copies worldwide with 1.9 million of those copies being sold in the United States alone. It spawned two commercial singles ("The Beautiful People" and "Tourniquet
Tourniquet (Marilyn Manson song)
"Tourniquet" is the second major-label single by the band Marilyn Manson, from the second studio album Antichrist Superstar. The image this song conveys is that of the main character in a world of sorrow and self-pity, prior to his transformation into the Little Horn.The title track was covered by...

"), and an autobiography. The band supported the album with the controversial Dead to the World Tour.

Background

The album's title is a takeoff on Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...

's 1971 musical Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar is a rock opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Tim Rice. The musical started off as a rock opera concept recording before its first staging on Broadway in 1971...

. Similarly, the record is that of a rock opera
Rock opera
A rock opera is a work of rock music that presents a storyline told over multiple parts, songs or sections in the manner of opera. A rock opera differs from a conventional rock album, which usually includes songs that are not unified by a common theme or narrative. More recent developments include...

 which, in an issue of Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...

magazine edited by the band's frontman, is stated as a tribute to—and inspired by—the works of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...

.

After the release of Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood is the fourth studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in November 2000 through Nothing and Interscope Records. The album marked a return to the industrial and alternative metal style of the band's earlier efforts, after the modernized glam rock sound of Mechanical...

, Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...

 divulged that his concept album trilogy is an autobiographical story told in a reverse timeline (chronologically reverse from their actual release dates). That means Holy Wood opens the storyline followed by Mechanical Animals and concludes with Antichrist Superstar. Furthermore, though Antichrist Superstar and Mechanical Animals made sense as individual concept albums on their own, there was a hidden over-arching story running through the three releases.

Concept

The three part storyline begins with the Crowleyean
Aleister Crowley
Aleister Crowley , born Edward Alexander Crowley, and also known as both Frater Perdurabo and The Great Beast, was an influential English occultist, astrologer, mystic and ceremonial magician, responsible for founding the religious philosophy of Thelema. He was also successful in various other...

 statement "When you are suffering, know that I have betrayed you". The backdrop is set to a landscape of 'victim
Victimisation
Victimisation is the process of being victimised or becoming a victim. Research that studies the process, rates, incidence, and prevalence of victimization falls under the body of victimology.-Peer victimisation:...

s' (the 'weak'; Nietzsche's 'slaves' in his Master-Slave
Master-slave
Master-slave may refer to:* Master-slave dialectic, philosophical concept* Master-slave * Master-Slave manipulator, see remote manipulator...

 morality
) oppressed by "The Beautiful People" (the 'masters'), a kratocratic
Kratocracy
Kratocracy, , is according to Montague, government by those who are strong enough to seize power through force or cunning....

 plutarchy whose power is, in a double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....

 with phallic and religious connotation, "relative to the size of their steeple
Steeple (architecture)
A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...

" and whose authority is Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism
Social Darwinism is a term commonly used for theories of society that emerged in England and the United States in the 1870s, seeking to apply the principles of Darwinian evolution to sociology and politics...

 taken to the extreme—they are "justified" by the existence of the weak. Among that populace is an abused and insignificant wretch, the protagonist, called "The Worm", who develop aspirations to become one of the elite. However, he is rejected in as simple terms and after wallowing for a time in sorrow and self-pity concludes to exercise his will to power
Will to power
The will to power is widely seen as a prominent concept in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. The will to power describes what Nietzsche may have believed to be the main driving force in man; achievement, ambition, the striving to reach the highest possible position in life; these are all...

 and seize authority with his own hands. The record proceeds to detail his rise to prominence presented in the metaphor of a worm to angel metamorphosis.
In his rise to power, he fashions himself into a charismatic demagogue and hierophant
Hierophant
A hierophant is a person who brings religious congregants into the presence of that which is deemed holy. The word comes from Ancient Greece, where it was constructed from the combination of ta hiera, "the holy," and phainein, "to show." In Attica it was the title of the chief priest at the...

, the "Little Horn", to proselytize self-determination
Self-determination (philosophy)
Self-determination is the idea of a positive freedom, a freedom for actions that we originate, actions that are "up to us." Such acts constitute the essence of free will. This is Mortimer Adler's term, translating ideas from Aristotle and Aquinas...

 and self-realization
Self-realization
Self-realization is a self-awakening.Self-realization may also refer to:* Self-Realization Fellowship, worldwide spiritual organization founded by Paramahansa Yogananda...

 and to usher in a new metanarrative
Metanarrative
A metanarrative , in critical theory and particularly postmodernism, is an abstract idea that is thought to be a comprehensive explanation of historical experience or knowledge. According to John Stephens, it "is a global or totalizing cultural narrative schema which orders and explains knowledge...

 in place of the hitherto reigning ideal. In spite of this, the Little Horn is self-punishing, with self-doubt still lingering from his dejected former self. The people respond to his revolution with adoration and blandishment. Thus, though he is successful in his aims, he is soon disillusioned and begins to despise those very adoring and sycophantic disciples when he comes to the realization that they are not interested in being saved and quite content to remain weak, imitative and oppressed. It's under this intolerable failure that he begins the final stage of his development. Dying in the manner of a caterpillar, the Little Horn rebirths himself under intense pressure, emptying his cocoon of the self-loathing, guilt and abuse that marked the Worm in harrowing fashion, to "get his wings".

Having transcended his lesser nature, all he has left is his bitterness and disenchantment. He has shed his ability to feel empathy for anyone and repurposes his newfound stature and confidence in becoming the penultimate culture war
Culture war
The culture war in American usage is a metaphor used to claim that political conflict is based on sets of conflicting cultural values. The term frequently implies a conflict between those values considered traditionalist or conservative and those considered progressive or liberal...

 iconoclast
Iconoclasm
Iconoclasm is the deliberate destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually with religious or political motives. It is a frequent component of major political or religious changes...

, a Nietzschean Übermensch
Übermensch
The Übermensch is a concept in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. Nietzsche posited the Übermensch as a goal for humanity to set for itself in his 1883 book Thus Spoke Zarathustra ....

 calling himself the "Antichrist Superstar
Antichrist Superstar (song)
"Antichrist Superstar" is a promotional-only single from Marilyn Manson's second studio album of the same name. The song itself is symbolic of the climax of the concept album's story, the point where the abused and wretched victim at the center of the tale takes on the identity of the nihilistic...

"
(or alternatively, "The Disintegrator"), having finally concluded that what the people truly want is what he sought to dispose of. They no longer deserve salvation. In this manner he adopts as his personal insignia the epithet "When you are suffering, know that I have betrayed you" as he lets his scathing vitriol spiral into nihilism
Nihilism
Nihilism is the philosophical doctrine suggesting the negation of one or more putatively meaningful aspects of life. Most commonly, nihilism is presented in the form of existential nihilism which argues that life is without objective meaning, purpose, or intrinsic value...

 and misanthropy
Misanthropy
Misanthropy is generalized dislike, distrust, disgust, contempt or hatred of the human species or human nature. A misanthrope, or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings...

, railing against and destroying everything. Spent and disconsolate, the "Minute of Decay" intimates that "I'm on my way down now, I'd like to take you with me. I'm on my way down" as he embarks on a final scorched earth
Scorched earth
A scorched earth policy is a military strategy or operational method which involves destroying anything that might be useful to the enemy while advancing through or withdrawing from an area...

 campaign of apocalypse
Apocalypse
An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...

, delivering the condemnation, "your world is an ashtray, we burn and coil like cigarettes [...] it's the nature of the leeches, the virgins [to feel] cheated, you've only spent a second of your life" and contracting the world like the pupil of an eye into the size of a bullethole, "one shot and your world gets smaller". He begins to destroy everyone and everything including himself and his revolution, declaring, "pray your life was just a dream, the cut that never heals [...] the world in my hands, there's no one left to hear you scream [...] no one left for you". As he abrogates everything into nothingness, he begins to understand that "when all of your wishes are granted, many of your dreams will be destroyed".

Packaging

Antichrist Superstar has elaborate packaging, consisting of a black cardstock sleeve covering the plastic jewel case with graphics of Manson on both the front and back, the latter of which is flanked by the red Superstar Shock logo and the Roman numerals IX, VI, III and VII. The booklet contains pictures of the band, a visual worm-to-angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...

 metamorphosis
Metamorphosis
Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops after birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation...

, medical diagrams, printed lyrics to each song, and liner notes including traditional thanks and credits as well as a curious entry found under the lyrics to the song "Irresponsible Hate Anthem", stating it was recorded live on February 14, 1997, despite the album being released well before that in October 1996.

Also, found on the front of the album cover is a circle surrounded by the words Heart, Mind, Complacent, and Malice. If one folds the booklet just right they can also find the hidden words Heart, Mind, Complacent, and Malice made up of folding the words Heaven/Comfort, Minister/Fiend, Complaisant/Magnificent and Master/Lice respectively. The booklet also makes reference to Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...

 chapter twelve, verses one through five, in the Bible.

The album, despite containing a gap of silence a few minutes long, is cyclical
Song cycle
A song cycle is a group of songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a single entity. As a rule, all of the songs are by the same composer and often use words from the same poet or lyricist. Unification can be achieved by a narrative or a persona common to the songs, or even, as in Schumann's...

, as both opening and closing seconds include the distorted phrase "When you are suffering, know that I have betrayed you." When the album is placed on loop, the pacing between the sentences matches that of the additional distorted recitation found in the preceding hidden track. The names of the two latter cycles seem to be a reference to two films by avant-garde filmmaker Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger
Kenneth Anger is an American underground experimental filmmaker, occasional actor and author...

: Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome
Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome
Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome is a short 38 minute film by Kenneth Anger, filmed in 1954. Anger created two other versions of this film in 1966 and the late 1970s. According to Anger, the film takes the name "pleasure dome" from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's atmospheric poem Kubla Khan...

and Lucifer Rising
Lucifer Rising (film)
"Lucifer Rising" is a short film by director Kenneth Anger. The film was completed in 1972 but was only widely distributed in 1980.-History:Anger began filming around 1966, hiring a young musician named Bobby Beausoleil to act and compose the soundtrack. The film was abandoned in 1967 because Anger...

.

Singles

"The Beautiful People" is the first single of Antichrist Superstar. The video was released on September 22, 1996 and directed by Canadian director and photographer Floria Sigismondi
Floria Sigismondi
Floria Sigismondi is an Italian, naturalised Canadian, photographer and director.Apart from her art exhibitions, she is best known for writing and directing The Runaways, starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning...

. According to Manson, the title "The Beautiful People" was an inspired for a book that came out in the mid 60's by Marilyn Bender. This book contains information on the life of the Kennedy family, politics, fashion and culture. Moreover, the single was certified gold record with by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), besides being one of the most heard in the United States occupying the position twenty-six in the Modern Rock Tracks
Modern Rock Tracks
Alternative Songs is a music chart in the United States that has appeared in Billboard magazine since September 10, 1988. It lists the 40 most-played songs on modern rock radio stations, most of which are alternative rock songs...

 of Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

and UK position eighteen. The music channel VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

 named this single twenty-eight of their 40 Greatest Metal Songs.

"Tourniquet
Tourniquet (Marilyn Manson song)
"Tourniquet" is the second major-label single by the band Marilyn Manson, from the second studio album Antichrist Superstar. The image this song conveys is that of the main character in a world of sorrow and self-pity, prior to his transformation into the Little Horn.The title track was covered by...

" is the second single from the album. It was released on September 8, 1997 and was also directed by Floria Sigismondi. In the video Manson is a humanoid moving through a wheel. The band uses a variety of costumes bizarre with each passing scene. This is one of three music videos where Manson appears without makeup, the other two videos are Get Your Gunn
Get Your Gunn
Released in 1994, "Get Your Gunn" is the first official single by alternative metal band Marilyn Manson. "Snake Eyes and Sissies" was originally planned as the lead single but never released; "Get Your Gunn" was released instead. The track was released to support the album Portrait of an American...

 and Lunchbox.

"Cryptorchid
Cryptorchid (song)
Cryptorchid is a song from Marilyn Manson's third full length album, Antichrist Superstar. It is the sixth track and while it was not a single for the band, "Cryptorchid" did reach No. 20 on the German music charts and a music video was produced for the song...

" is the third single from the CD. The video was directed by E. Elias Merhige
E. Elias Merhige
Edmund Elias Merhige, known as E. Elias Merhige, is an American film director born in Brooklyn.Merhige is best known to mainstream audiences for the 2000 film Shadow of the Vampire, and to underground audiences for the cult-classic 1991 film Begotten.As he says in his audio commentary to the...

 and displays images from his 1991 experimental film Begotten
Begotten
Begotten is a 1991 experimental/horror film, directed and written by E. Elias Merhige.The film deals with the story of Genesis. But as Merhige revealed during Q&A sessions, its primary inspiration was a near death experience he had when he was 19, after a car crash. The film features no dialogue,...

. Some scenes were replaced by Manson to avoid the original publications of the tape.

"Antichrist Superstar
Antichrist Superstar (song)
"Antichrist Superstar" is a promotional-only single from Marilyn Manson's second studio album of the same name. The song itself is symbolic of the climax of the concept album's story, the point where the abused and wretched victim at the center of the tale takes on the identity of the nihilistic...

" was released as the fourth single. The video was also directed by E. Elias Merhige and depicts Manson on a podium bearing a lightning bolt symbol. In one scene, Manson tears apart the Bible and later dumping it to the public. Before its planned launch, the video was screened at the 1997 San Francisco Film Festival, however, Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...

 was appalled by its content and prevented its release. In 2010, the unedited video of "Antichrist Superstar" was leaked on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

.

"Man That You Fear
Man That You Fear
"Man That You Fear" is a promotional-only single from Marilyn Manson's second studio album, Antichrist Superstar, and is the final song on the album. It is a very gentle song, comparable to "Coma White" on Mechanical Animals...

" was the last single from Antichrist Superstar. The music video was directed by W.I.Z.
W.I.Z.
W.I.Z. is a music video director from the United Kingdom.-Background:W.I.Z. has directed a number of high-concept videos for major music artists from the United Kingdom and the United States, including Massive Attack, Kasabian, Oasis and Marilyn Manson...

 and adapted from the Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson
Shirley Jackson was an American author. A popular writer in her time, her work has received increasing attention from literary critics in recent years...

 short story The Lottery
The Lottery
"The Lottery" is a short story by Shirley Jackson, first published in the June 26, 1948, issue of The New Yorker. Written the same month it was published, it is ranked today as "one of the most famous short stories in the history of American literature"....

. The video also contains aesthetic and symbolic references to the 1973 film The Wicker Man and the 1989 Alejandro Jodorowsky
Alejandro Jodorowsky
Alejandro Jodorowsky Prullansky, known as Alejandro Jodorowsky, is a Chilean filmmaker, playwright, actor, author, comic book writer and spiritual guru...

 film Santa Sangre
Santa Sangre
Santa Sangre is a 1989 Mexican-Italian surrealist film directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky and written by Jodorowsky along with Claudio Argento and Roberto Leoni...

.

Critical reception

Lorraine Ali of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

commented "The rise of Marilyn Manson marks the end of the reign of punk realism
Grunge
Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...

 in rock & roll [...] the layered effect of the music recalls that of Ministry
Ministry (band)
Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to industrial metal in the late 1980s. Ministry found mainstream success in the early 1990s with its most successful album Psalm 69: The Way to...

, but Marilyn Manson's execution is not as dense. Instead, Antichrist Superstar writhes with a cool, sinister and taunting feel [...] before lurching out from the shadows with hammering percussion and static-loaded feedback [...] For all of the album's attractions, the band could have compressed Antichrist Superstar into a more powerful blast of evil." Jim Farber of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...

commented "With Antichrist Superstar, Manson offers a combination vintage concept record and cheesy exploitation flick [...] to match his antisocial outbursts, Manson offers grinding metal guitars and death-rattle bass lines, letting his own deformed screech serve as the poison cherry on top [...] At least Manson's high-concept depravity has its own sick charm." Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...

 of allmusic commented "Though the sonic details make Antichrist Superstar an intriguing listen, it's not as extreme as it could have been—in particular, the guitars are surprisingly anemic, sounding like buzzing vacuums instead of unwieldy chainsaws. Even with that considered, [It] is an unexpectedly cohesive album and will stand as Marilyn Manson's definitive statement."

Commercial performance

The album debuted at № 3 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

. According to Soundscan, the record moved 132,000 units in its first week.

Accolades

According to AcclaimedMusic.net Antichrist Superstar is the 14th best album of 1996, the 180th greatest record released during the 1990s and the 973rd greatest of all-time. In 2001 Q
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...

named Antichrist Superstar as one of the 50 Heaviest Albums Of All Time. In 2006, sister British magazines Classic Rock
Classic Rock (magazine)
Classic Rock is a British magazine dedicated to the radio format of classic rock, published by Future Publishing, who are also responsible for its "sister" publication Metal Hammer. Although firmly focusing on key bands from the 1960s through early 1990s, it also includes articles and reviews of...

and Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer
Metal Hammer is a monthly heavy metal music magazine published in the United Kingdom by Future Publishing, and in several other countries by different publishers. Metal Hammer articles feature both mainstream bands and more unusual acts from the whole spectrum of heavy metal music...

included Antichrist Superstar in The 200 Greatest Albums of the 90s. Furthermore, in 2001, Classic Rock ranked the album 92nd in its 100 Greatest Rock Albums Ever. The French edition of the British magazine Rock Sound
Rock Sound
Rock Sound is a British magazine which champions rock music. The magazine aims at being more "underground" and less commercial, whilst also giving coverage to more well known acts.-History:...

ranked Antichrist Superstar 11th in their Top 150 Albums of Our Lifetime (1992-2006) and 13th in their 1996 Albums of the Year. Kerrang!
Kerrang!
Kerrang! is a UK-based magazine devoted to rock music published by Bauer Media Group. It was first published on June 6, 1981 as a one-off supplement in the Sounds newspaper...

ranks Antichrist Superstar 3rd in their 1996 list of Albums of the Year, 14th on their 100 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die and 88th in its 100 Greatest Rock Albums. Dutch magazine Muziekkrant OOR
Muziekkrant OOR
Muziekkrant OOR is the oldest currently published music magazine in the Netherlands. The name "OOR" is the Dutch word for ear.-History:The magazine was first published on 1 April 1971, being founded by Barend Toet . Of the first issue 20,000 copies were printed and paid for by Berry Visser, one of...

ranked Antichrist Superstar 109th in their 1996 Albums of the Year list. Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...

listed Antichrist Superstar among its Essential Recordings Of The ‘90s in 1999 and ranked it 84th in their The 100 Greatest Albums of the 90s in 2010. The record is also listed in the book Albums: 50 Years of Great Recordings. British magazine Record Collector
Record Collector
Record Collector is the United Kingdom's longest-running monthly music magazine. It distributes both within the UK and worldwide. It started in 1979.-The early years:...

also list the album among their 10 Classic Albums from 21 Genres for the 21st Century. German magazine Visions considers the album 37th in its list of The Most Important Albums of the 90s. The French FNAC ranks the record 606th in their The 1000 Best Albums of All Time. Furthermore, the French music magazine Rock & Folk
Rock & Folk
Rock & Folk is a prominent French popular music magazine founded in 1966, and published in the Paris suburb of Clichy. Its current editor in chief in Philippe Manœuvre. Though the magazine's title includes the word "folk," it is in fact oriented strongly toward rock and roll, especially championing...

lists Antichrist Superstar among The Best Albums from 1963 to 1999. In 2008, Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound
Consequence of Sound, also known often as CoS, is a Chicago-based music website featuring news, album and concert reviews, and editorials. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook micro-site, which serves as an on-line database for music festival news and rumors...

 identified Antichrist Superstar as a modern classic in their "Dusting ‘Em Off" feature due to its counter-cultural
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...

 and social impact during the late 90's. The album is also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is a musical reference book edited by Robert Dimery, first published in 2005. The most recent edition consists of a list of albums released between 1955 and 2010, part of a series from Quintessence Editions Ltd...

.

Dead to the World Tour

Following the release of Antichrist Superstar, Marilyn Manson staged a worldwide stadium tour, titled the Dead to the World Tour. Beginning on September 5, 1996 and lasting until September 16, 1997, the tour included eight legs spanning Europe, Japan, Oceania, Hawaii, North America and South America with a total of 175 shows.

A concert film was recorded to depict the tour, titled Dead to the World
Dead to the World
Dead to the World was released on February 10, 1998 on VHS, documenting the infamous tour of the same name by Marilyn Manson. It contains primarily live performances but delves into backstage and archival footage of the band....

, and released on February 10, 1998 in VHS
VHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....

 format by Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...

. It features live concert footage of 11 songs culled from performances across the world. "Apple of Sodom", "My Monkey", "Rock 'n' Roll Nigger
Rock N Roll Nigger
"Rock N Roll Nigger" is a rock song written by Patti Smith and Lenny Kaye, and released on the Patti Smith Group's 1978 album Easter. The song has since been covered by several artists, and was included on the soundtrack of the 1994 film Natural Born Killers.- Liner notes :The following is quoted...

" and a selection of songs from Antichrist Superstar are on the release.

Track listing

Notes
  • While consisting of three cycles, the album was released as a single disc, similar to the four cycles of 2000's Holy Wood
    Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
    Holy Wood is the fourth studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in November 2000 through Nothing and Interscope Records. The album marked a return to the industrial and alternative metal style of the band's earlier efforts, after the modernized glam rock sound of Mechanical...

    .
  • No name for Track 99 has been identified, though The Marilyn Manson Collection on iTunes
    ITunes
    iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....

     titles it "Ghost Track". Rhapsody
    Rhapsody (online music service)
    Rhapsody is an online music store subscription service, launched in December 2001, and available in the United States only. On April 6, 2010, Rhapsody officially declared its independence from RealNetworks. Downloaded files come with restrictions on their use, enforced by Helix, Rhapsody's version...

     titles Track 99 as "Empty Sounds of Hate".

Outtakes

  • Long Hard Road Out of Hell
    Long Hard Road out of Hell
    "Long Hard Road Out of Hell" is a single by Marilyn Manson. The song is featured on the Spawn movie soundtrack, where it is credited to both Marilyn Manson and the Sneaker Pimps.It also appears on Manson's greatest hits album...

     – appears on the 1997 Spawn
    Spawn (film)
    Spawn is a 1997 American superhero film loosely based on the comic book of the same name, by Todd McFarlane and published by Image Comics. Directed and co-written by Mark A.Z. Dippé , the film stars Michael Jai White in the leading role...

    soundtrack; also released on the "Man That You Fear" promotional single
  • The Suck For Your Solution – appears on the Howard Stern: Private Parts soundtrack
  • Apple of Sodom – appears on the Lost Highway soundtrack
  • Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes
    Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes
    "Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes" is a song by Marilyn Manson. It was the only single on the Celebrity Deathmatch soundtrack. It was nominated for the Best Metal Performance Grammy in 2001, but lost to "Elite" by Deftones.-Track listing:...

     – appears on the Celebrity Deathmatch soundtrack.

Album

Chart (1996) Peak
position
Australia
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

 (ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

)
41
Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

 (Ö3
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann...

)
37
Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 (Mitä Hitti
Mitä hittiä
The Official Finnish Charts is a national record chart in Finland composed by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.The singles chart was started in January 1991 as Radiomafian lista and was broadcast on the radio station Radiomafia of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, YLE. This chart is based on a...

)
13
France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 (SNEP
Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique
The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry...

)
116
Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 (Media Control
Media Control Charts
The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie...

)
100
Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 (Mahasz
Mahasz
Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary....

)
21
New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 (RIANZ
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

)
5
Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 (Sverigetopplistan
Sverigetopplistan
Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association ....

)
50
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 (OCC)
73
United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 (Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...

)
3

Certifications

Region Provider Certification Shipment Actual Sales
Argentina CAPIF
Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers
The Argentine Chamber of Phonograms and Videograms Producers is an Argentine organization member of the IFPI, which represents the music industry in the country. It is a nonprofit organization integrated by multinational and independent record labels....

Gold 20,000+
Australia ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

Gold 35,000+
Canada CRIA
Canadian Recording Industry Association
Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada...

2x Platinum 200,000+
Mexico AMPROFON Gold 75,000+
United States RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...

Platinum 1,000,000+


Singles

Single Chart (1996) Peak
position
"The Beautiful People" Australia
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...

 (ARIA
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...

)
42
Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 (MegaCharts
MegaCharts
MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top...

)
96
New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 (RIANZ
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

)
29
Modern Rock Tracks 26
Mainstream Rock Tracks 29
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 (OCC)
18

Single Chart (1996–1997) Peak
position
"Tourniquet" Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 (Mitä Hitti
Mitä hittiä
The Official Finnish Charts is a national record chart in Finland composed by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.The singles chart was started in January 1991 as Radiomafian lista and was broadcast on the radio station Radiomafia of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, YLE. This chart is based on a...

)
16
New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 (RIANZ
Recording Industry Association of New Zealand
The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand...

)
41
Mainstream Rock Tracks 30
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 (OCC)
28


Credits and personnel

Marilyn Manson
  • Marilyn Manson
    Marilyn Manson
    Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...

     – all voices, guitar
    Guitar
    The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

     and pan flute
    Pan flute
    The pan flute or pan pipe is an ancient musical instrument based on the principle of the closed tube, consisting usually of five or more pipes of gradually increasing length...

  • Daisy Berkowitz – lead and rhythm guitar
  • Twiggy Ramirez
    Jeordie White
    Jeordie Osbourne White , better known by his pseudonym Twiggy Ramirez , is an American musician, who is best known for being the bassist and guitarist for Marilyn Manson. He was also the bassist for A Perfect Circle, and Nine Inch Nails...

     – lead and rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, bass
    Bass guitar
    The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....

  • Madonna Wayne Gacy
    Madonna Wayne Gacy
    Stephen Gregory Bier Jr., formerly known by his stage name Madonna Wayne Gacy is the former keyboard player for Marilyn Manson, 1989-2007. His stage name came from the names of the singer Madonna and the serial killer John Wayne Gacy...

     – all keyboards
    Keyboard instrument
    A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

    , loops
    Music loop
    In electroacoustic music, a loop is a repeating section of sound material. Short sections of material can be repeated to create ostinato patterns...

    , and other original pieces of 16-bit audio information
  • Ginger Fish
    Ginger Fish
    Kenneth Robert Wilson , better known by his stage name Ginger Fish, is an American drummer primarily known for playing drums for Marilyn Manson 1995-2011...

     – live drums
    Drum kit
    A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....

    , programming
    Programming (music)
    Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...

  • Zim Zum
    Zim Zum
    Timothy Michael Linton more commonly known as Zim Zum, is an American rock musician/songwriter and former guitarist for Life, Sex & Death and Marilyn Manson...

     – live guitar on the tour for Antichrist Superstar

Production
  • Sean Beavan
    Sean Beavan
    Sean Beavan is a musician, record producer, and audio engineer best known for his work with Guns N Roses, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, God Lives Underwater, and Slayer...

     – producer, engineer, editing, mixing, guitar, guitar synthesizer
  • Trent Reznor
    Trent Reznor
    Michael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...

     – producer, editing, mixing, mellotron
    Mellotron
    The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...

    , guitar, rhodes piano
    Rhodes piano
    The Rhodes piano is an electro-mechanical piano, invented by Harold Rhodes during the fifties and later manufactured in a number of models, first in collaboration with Fender and after 1965 by CBS....

  • Robin Finck
    Robin Finck
    Robin Finck is an American guitarist of Nine Inch Nails and former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses. He is one of only a few artists who has played in two different bands listed on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock"; Nine Inch Nails and Guns N' Roses .-Career:Finck grew up in Marietta,...

     – rhythm guitar-back vocals
  • Danny Lohner
    Danny Lohner
    Daniel Patrick "Danny" Lohner , frequently known as Renholdër, is an American rock musician who plays bass guitar, electric guitar, and keyboards. He worked with Trent Reznor on numerous occasions, both with Nine Inch Nails and on the now defunct Tapeworm project...

     – guitar
  • Chris Vrenna – drums, programming, engineer, editing
  • Dave Ogilvie
    Dave Ogilvie
    Dave "Rave" Ogilvie is a Canadian record producer and musician. He is a producer of industrial music and has been associated with bands such as Skinny Puppy , Doughboys, The Birthday Massacre , Marilyn Manson, Jakalope , Killing Joke, Queensrÿche, Alexz Johnson, Fake Shark...

     – producer, programming, engineer, editing, mixing
  • Brian Pollack – production assistant, assistant engineer
  • Tom Baker – mastering
  • P. R. Brown
    P. R. Brown
    Paul R. Brown is a graphic designer, photographer, and music video director.In 1996 he founded Bau-da Design Lab, which currently operates out of Los Angeles and New York. P.R. Brown is well-known for his album designs for musicians such as Mötley Crüe, Korn, Godsmack, and early in his career he...

     – digital illustration, design
  • Dean Karr
    Dean Karr
    Dean Karr is an American photographer and music video, commercial, and film director.-Official biography:Director/Photographer Dean Karr's signature style, often copied but never...

     – photography


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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