Search - Anthems of Rust & Decay :: Anthems of Rust and Decay: A Tribute to Marilyn Manson

Interesting but disappointing

catherine | japan | 07/28/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I can see the value this tribute album would have for manson fans, especially because of the (macabre but beautiful) accompanying artwork. Usually, the point of a tribute album is to hear different interpretations of the songs.... but many of the songs on this album are nearly exact replicas of the originals, only with more annoying vocals. Part of the appeal of marilyn manson is the person (persona) behind the music, so who wants to hear the same interpretations of the same songs sung by someone we've never heard of? There are some highlights, though. One of the best tracks is "mister superstar", by alex xenophon, which I almost like better than the original. It's more subdued, whispered in places, and the emphasis is placed on different parts of the song. (Interestingly, Xenophon also did "piggy" for the nine inch nails tribute). Another highlight is "the speed of pain" sung by Ophelia Rising and Abominable Id. Again, this is more subdued (and less moving) than Manson's original, but the harmonies are really nice and I like what a woman's voice does to the song. Also notable are "dried up, tied....." by needulhed and "rock is dead" by luxt, both of which are a little different, but not better than the originals. I'd say to fans and tourists alike, stick with the source."

The horrible covers

cenobite_ | Innsbruck, Austria | 12/16/2000

(1 out of 5 stars)

"First of all I must say that I love good tribute albums (like many of those by Cleopatra Records). Anthems of Rust and Decay, however, is as bad as they can actually get. Except for Luxt's interesting Rock Is Dead cover, there's not one song that does Manson's original justice. Just the opposite, the songs are either boring replicas or plain awful. The versions by Alex Xenophone and Robert Pierce are an insult to any Manson fan and the artist himself. American Head Charge, Broke Box & Co. deliver songs that are not really bad, but still are nothing but uninspired imitations of the original. Besides the already mentioned Luxt, Bile (who can do much better than that!) and Nocturne contributed the better entries, but even those are not nearly as good as the originals. So the only thing this CD actually achieves is to make you want to listen to the original songs again... And do we really need a tribute album for that?"

Speed of Pain, best re-working of a song..

Shinde Kudasai | Des Moines, WA United States | 08/19/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The band doing the stripped down lamentful accoustic version of "Speed of Pain" is Ophelia Rising (female vocals) and Abominable (male vocals) if you haven't checked them out you're missing a whole lot, they're a great and often overlooked band. I happen to think that this is the greatest re-working of a Manson song since Apoptygma Bizerk covered "Coma White." (Yeah it was ravey and seriously out-of-character for the song but that's the whole point of tribute/remix albums) The fem vocals on S.o.P. sound very close to Inkyubus Sukkubus (another group worth checking out) I didn't really like the other songs on this album so much as I did Ophelia's.



I listen to the song and think of loved one's and friends who've hurt me.



"And I wish I could sleep, but there's a knife in my back for every day that I've known you.""