MARILYN MANSON — Smells Like Children (review)

MARILYN MANSON — Smells Like Children album cover EP · 1995 · Metal Related Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
siLLy puPPy
SMELLS LIKE CHILDREN is the second release by shock rockers MARILYN MANSON. This is technically an EP but a sprawling one that clocks in at 54:43 and initially began as a simple idea to remix the single “Dope Hat” but due to the involvement of various outside sources and the band’s fertile mind’s the whole project evolved into this bloated behemoth of grab bag ideas, some of which are utterly brilliant and some that should have been jettisoned into the composting heap.

This EP was actually my first exposure to MARILYN MANSON when a friend of mine was obsessed with their cover of the Eurythmics’ “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)” which quickly got my attention and admiration as this is one of the most brilliant covers i’ve ever heard with MANSON’s industrial doom take on the new wave 80s pop hit augmented with their own shock rock imagery 2.0 following in Alice Cooper’s footsteps. The track is a masterpiece for effortlessly adapting the upbeat pop song into a depressive motif that changes the synth pop into down tuned guitars, darkened bass echoes and MANSON’s ability to leap his screams from one octave to another. The video has actually been deemed one of the scariest ever to exist.

While this EP gets a bad rap i have to admit that i don’t find it all that horrible. Sure there is plenty of filler whether it be the overlong intro “The Hands of Small Children” which is a weird mix of strange sounds with voices of suffering children or the total wastes of time “F**k Frankie” and phone call footage “May Cause Discoloration of Urine And Feces” where all we get is a boring phone call of some dude who hasn’t taken his meds and is losing it, but there are plenty of interesting moments on here including the track “Sympathy For Parents” which leads into “Sweet Dreams” and the actual remixes themselves such as “Everlasting Cocksucker” which sounds like NIN meets White Zombie doing a remake of “Cake And Sodomy.” The remakes of Jay Hawkins’ “I Put A Spell On You” and Patti Smith’s “Rock N Roll Nigger” are also strong tracks with the latter ending the set perfectly to usher in the pinnacle of MANSON’s shock rock 90s era.

Too long? Definitely. This set is as messy as MANSON’s makeup. As dualistic as his multi-hued contact lens that offer the best the band has ever attempted as well as some of the worst. The name after all is derived from MARILYN Monroe and Charles MANSON symbolizing dualities. This is a strange little beast that came out when it did but it was the one that got them noticed and despite the presence of skippable material that may have seemed like a good idea at the time this one is still a must own for me simply because of the strongest tracks on board. A strange album that deserves a whopping 3 stars.
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