The High End of Low - Composition

Composition

There are various lyrical references and evocations within The High End of Low. Film influences are a common thread, with the album being Manson's most celluloid-inspired record to date, as reflected within the album artwork and film reel disc itself. The lyrics however mark a vitriolic return to scathing diatribes against wanton American blindness and occult themes which have not as prominently been explored since Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) and Antichrist Superstar.

One of the most enthralling tracks on The High End of Low simultaneously serves as one of the most laden with multi-faceted imagery. Prior to the album release it was erroneously referred to as "White Spider"; however, the difference of just a few letters largely sets the tone for the rest of the piece. Fans of fantasy and etymology may already be aware of the significance. A "wight" is an archaic terminology that originally derived from Old English "wiht", and its meaning was a creature or otherwise living thing. Through centuries of poetry and fantasy it managed to acquire its more recognizable meaning, which stands at odds with its original definition. The wight is a form of a supernatural entity, somewhat comparable to that of a wraith-like, ghostly figure. They’re akin to that of a shadowy remnant, ultimately being a poor reflection of their former self. As wights are continually trapped in an existence of nonexistence, it is unsurprising that they were portrayed as aggressive, and violently filled with bile and hatred.

The seventh track from The High End of Low, entitled "Running to the Edge of the World", contains a lyric which first arose publicly during the lead up to the abandoned Celebritarian era: "I don't seek death, I seek destruction, Until death we seek destruction, We don’t seek death, we seek destruction, Until death we seek destruction". Similarly, the lyric "United as one against all others" is a notable parallel to what is said by Manson and Evan Rachel Wood in the "Heart-Shaped Glasses (When the Heart Guides the Hand)" music video before plummeting their vehicle off the side of the cliff. The title of the song itself may be a reference to the 1937 Michael Powell film, The Edge of the World. The twelfth track off of The High End of Low, "We're From America", opens with the lyrics "We’re from America/We’re from America/Where we eat our young." Apart from the analogy's condemnation of the way children are reared, exploited and ultimately destroyed, it is also a reference to a piece of artwork by Franciso de Goya entitled 'Saturn Devouring His Children'. The painting itself can be seen during the final scene of "The Nobodies" music video. The painting and Manson's usage of it are largely tied to a series of alchemical concepts which played an integral role throughout Holy Wood, and the perpetual evolution of Marilyn Manson. "Unkillable Monster" contains an open reference to a film by Luis Buñuel in the lyrics: "Sometimes I dream I'm an exterminating angel, A travelling executioner from heaven".

"Blank and White" is about censorship and about the day that the New York Times said "God is dead" and that the suffragettes protested. One particular line in the song, "all you fuckers vote beep beep beep" may be a sarcastic political indictment of the "voters" that seek to effect change through ineffectual means. As Manson mentioned in the same Shockhound interview, the fact that this very line is echoed in the long censoring "beep" replacing " president of whatever" made him quite happy artistically. The second track of the album is called "Pretty as a Swastika". "It's something I said to a girl because of her complexion, with black hair, red lips and pale skin. I mean, it was a complex and poetic comment that soon led to intercourse, so I felt no reason for it to be seen as confusing, hateful and destructive. The record label, take it off the album. Rather than do so, I decided to produce it on the inside of the sleeve with a different name, so it'll be sold in Wal-Mart or wherever stores sell guns but are afraid to deal with lyrics. So, I put "Pretty as a ($)" because all of their motivations are based on money."