Hotpress, February 2001
It's one of the most remarkable rock 'n' roll sights that Ireland's ever seen. Marilyn Manson entering stage left, and Bono climbing down from the balcony, to join Iggy Pop for a communual demolition of "Louie Louie". Never mind shit eating, the superstaer backing singers had grins on their faces that could have devoured a sewage farm.
"That was in the Hotpress Hall Of Fame place right?" drawls the more goth-minded of the duo. "There's always and expectation when you meet one of your idols, and Iggy Pop was everthing I'd hoped for. As well as being great that night on stage, he was very respectful and positive about what I do. Tob acknowledged and validated by someone like him is great."
The first thing which strikes you about Marilyn Manson is that, self proclaimed God Of Fuck or not, he's scrupulously polite and well spoken. His records may be a veritable profanity-fest, but one on one he's just as personable as that nice Mr Hewson.
"He is nice.... for a Christian," the 32-year-old cackles. "We were getting beat up by the media during the Antichrist Superstar days and Bono made a statement saying that if no-one else would give us gigs, we could tour with U2. Him expressing his support - at a time when it really wasn't cool to do so - meant a lot."
Of course, some of us had the added post-MTV award bonus of witnessing Puff Daddy and Shane Lynch's contretemps in the Temple Theatre.
"Puff Daddy tried to attack one of the guy's from Boyzone? Man, I'd have paid a hundred bucks to have been at ringside for that fight."
There are no prizes for guessing which of the pugilists he would have been shouting for. Talking last year to an American radio statiom, Mazza blamed the rapper "for the decline of music in the 90's. He is the true ant-christ because he has destroyed everything that is good about rock and roll."
Puff stayed out of the war of words, but was said to have been "very animated" when their paths crossed shortly afterwards in New York's Times Square.
"Him being on trial for that nightclub shooting kind of speaks for itself," is todays somewhat more measured response. If he's guilty he should get what he deserves. And if he's not......"
There'll be a next time?
"(laughs) You're trying to get me into trouble!"
What a terrible, and frankly slanderous thing to say. While this writer has every sympathy for Manson's anti-Puff stance, I must take issue with him dissing my old mate Moby. Although, in fairness, Manson was under the impression that Moby had lashed out first.
"That was a bit of a misunderstanding. They took a quote that was quite old and made it sound like he was commenting on recont events."
The villains of the piece are 'The New York Post', who, following som pre-Christmas argy-bargy at MM's Roseland Ballroom show, quoted the Mobester as saying that, "It was disgusting. I'm waiting to see if the police want witnesses. That kind of violence is totally unecessary on stage."
Unaware that those mal mots were four years old, and pertained to a completely different incident, Manson threated to have the "TV commercial soundtracker" beaten up.
"Does he read your magazine? Okay, Id like to apologise for unjustly delivering ill will to him. If hes got no problem with me, then Ive got no problem with that little bastard either!"
Excuse me while I wipe a tear from my eye. As youre probably aware, Manson copped the lions share of the blame when Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold decided that they couldnt be doing with their Columbine classmates. One of the choicest comments came from At Gores Presidential running mate, Joe Lieberman, who branded him, Ginger, John, Twiggy and M.W.G "the sickest group ever promoted by a mainstream record company." His detractors were rather less vocal when it emerged that Harris and Klebold had never bought any of their records, been to one of their shows or expressed an opinion about them, good or bad.
"I thought, Hey, maybe now theyll call the dogs off, but actually it had the opposite effect."
Although at 6ft 4" well able to take care of himself, Manson admits that there were times when the scrutiny became just a little bit too intense.
"There were a lot of death threats after Columbine, and I didnt want anybody getting hurt" he reflects. "The few times I went anywhere, I just had the overwhelming presence of death surrounding me. I wasnt sure how safe I was because there were a lot of people who had laid blame on me for something that I wasnt responsible for.
"On a personal level, I had to tear down everything I was and start from scratch. I was attacked and felt that the whole world wanted to destroy me. I was finally in the shoes of the dream that inspired Antichrist Superstar. The dream came to pass like a prophecy and I had to rethink everything."
Mansons response to Joe Lieberman, and the even more hysterical Catholic League, came last year in the form of Holy Wood (In The Shadow Of The Valley Of Death). Far from being a rearguard action, the likes of Burning Flag, Disposable Teens and Godeatgod signalled the launch of a new attack on the Christian Right.
"Where I started Antichrist Superstar by pointing Out everything that was wrong about religion, on this record I decided to point out things I could relate to," he volunteers. "And I related to Christ being a revolutionary and being someone who was the blueprint for the celebrity, the first rock star. He had a lot of dangerous ideas that people were afraid of. He eventually became merchandised so that they could hang his image on a wall or wear it as a necklace, and he was sacrificed for what he believed in."
An interesting theological viewpoint that the Family Values brigade chose to ignore. The same wasnt true of the cover, which had one Memphis pastor threatening to go on hunger strike unless it was pulled from the shelves. "Its a combination of my jawless face with the statue of Christ taken from a church," he explained at the height of the furore. "The image was supposed to suggets that something we've take for granted all our lives can be looked at as something violent and sexual as well. So religious people who indict entertainment as being violent, it's kind of ironic because Christ was the first celebrity and all entertainment comes from religion. And my jaw being removed is to represent the silencing of people with dangerous opinions."
Death threats or not, it must be great fun winding these loolahs up.
"Theres a whole bunch of people wholl never understand what Im saying and, yeah, I like to take the piss out of them. Its my job to represent chaos in the world, and to be the one that turns things upside down."
While other artists choose to ignore the past, or are even revisionist about it, Manson recognises that hes not the first rock n roller to fight these battles. "Ive seen a lot of parallels between the years 1969 and 1999," he proffers. "Ive tried to point some of them out on Holy Wood. 1969 is very relevant to me numerologically. It was also the year I was born, and the year of the (Charles) Manson murders and Altamont. All this reminds me very much of Columbine and the problems of Woodstock 99. Also, the fact that the words Helter Skelter were written on the wall of a crime scene and [The Beatles) White Album was blamed for the violence made me think that Im part of something bigger than I can understand. I started to draw a lot of inspiration from that period."
So much so that hes bought the house where the Stones wrote Let It Bleed, and recorded covers of John Lennons Working Class Hero and Charlie Mansons Sick City, which are downloadable from his .net website. Given his previous haranguing of Guns N Roses, was Manson worried that his psychopathic namesake would try and get in touch?
"No. Wed already warped another of his songs, Mechanical Man, into a track on our first album, My Monkey, and heard nothing. It was just my way of acknowledging his role in pop culture, as much as if Id covered Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend."
Prior to his reinvention as Marilyn Manson, the teenage Brian Warner was a stringer for a Florida music magazine. Despite the numerous hatchet jobs hes been subjected to, he still maintains a degree of respect for the profession.
"1 feel like theres a lot of journalism in what I do," he acknowledges.
"Journalism is seeing the world and reporting itthats what Ive always done. As a writer I had a lot to say. I also looked at what other bands doing and thought that my ideas were better. Thats essentially how all this began." While dismissive of Cameron Crowes Almost Famous "It didnt ring true with me" Manson is a big fan of another Rolling Stone old boy.
"You hear all this stuff about Hunter S Thompson and you think 'this can't be true', but no, he's the real thing. I met him at around 4 in the morning in The Viper Room with Johnny Depp. Did he have a handle on what I do? He had a handle on drugs, which is pretty much where our conversation began and ended."
The difference between now and when Marilyn Manson was being crucified for Antichrist Superstar, is that now there's somebody on the cross next to him. "Its good that I opened the door for Eminem, and once through it he was able to take things to a bigger, almost unbelievable level. With me attacking from one angle, and him another, theyre really kept on their toes."
As someone who professes to be a spokesman for the disenfranchised, whats Marilyn Mansons take on the rappers blatant homophobia?
"Part of me thinks that people should lighten up and realise that a lot of what he says borders on stand-up comedy. Another part doesnt agree with everything hes singing about, but supports his right to have those opinions. I tend to focus on the fact that hes a brilliant entertainer."
The admiration is by no means one-way, with Mathers informing MTV that, "Theres a mutual respect between us. Its not like me and Manson go out as best friends. We just stand strong in the belief that artists should be able to express themselves without harassment."
Faint praise, though, compared to Brian Molko describing him in the last, Hotpress as, "Ruthless, Machiavellian and great fun to be around. Humour isnt something thats normally associat-ed with Marilyn Manson, but hes got an extremely dry wit."
"Thats very complimentary." And accurate?
"Pretty much so,"
Okay then, tell us a joke.
"Thats kind of put me on the spot. Me existing end getting away with most of whet I do, is the ultimate joke on the world."
Him not being the living embodiment of evil asides, is there anything else about Marilyn Manson, which might surprise people?
"There not being a single episode of the Teletubbies I havent seen," he divulges. "Not only do they have some strange knowledge of drugs that Im not privy to, but that baby definitely has his eye on me."
Another staggering revelation is Manson being pleased that George W. Bush has made it to the White House.
"I think that art of all sortswhether its music or comedy or literature flourishes under conservative rule because it gives people something to rail against. Bill Clintons attempts to be friends with young people, to come on MW, did something to the rebellion barometer. It didnt give kids any authority to go against. I think thats why theres been a lot of bland and happy-go-lucky music created over the past six or seven years.
"I didnt really support Bush, but I hope we get some good right-wing.
Manson-hating people in office so I can piss them off."
Time now for my serious rock journo question. In the same way that David Bowie killed Ziggy Stardust off, might there be a time when Brian Warner decides to terminate Marilyn Manson?
"I dont think so. There may be a day when I do something else, but it always seems like its going to be Marilyn Manson. The name was never meant for me to be a persona. You know how Cassius Clay became Muhammad All when he changed religion? Its the same sort of deal. It defined me when I adopted it, so even if I stop making music, Ill hang on to the name."
Originally the preserve of spotty lads who wanted something to listen to while their testicles dropped, Manson has recently started to make forays into Smash Hits territory. While unlikely to put Louis Walsh Out of business, he certainly livens things up when he appears on Top Of The Pops.
"Theres something very punk rock about a counter-culture figure like me infiltrating the mainstream," he beams. "I dont know who I scare the most the parents whove got kids watching, or the other artists on the show.
Which celebs has he put the willies up recently, then?
"Sade didnt seem overly enthused when our paths crossed at the BBC. We fixed her, though, by changing the sign on her door to the Marquis de Sade!"
The little scamp. Although perfectly amiable, theres an edginess to Manson this afternoon which I put down to him being knackered from the American leg of his Guns, God And Government tour. Its only after weve said our goodbyes that an industry dickie-bird tells me that hes just split from his actress fiancee Rose McGowan. Its been slim pickings for the tabloids since, with the singer maintaining a discreet silence and McGowan simply stating that, "There is great love, but our lifestyle difference is, unfortunately, even greater."
Curiously enough, one of the last things Id asked Mazza was how he rated in the woman department.
"Ive always been one to feign disinterest and let them do the hard work," hed laughs "Do I have a romantic bone in my body? Yeah its between my legs!"