The Dope Show
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| "The Dope Show" | ||
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| Single by Marilyn Manson | ||
| from the album Mechanical Animals | ||
| Released | September 15, 1998 | |
| Format | 10" / CD single | |
| Recorded | 1998 | |
| Genre | Alternative metal | |
| Length | 3:47 | |
| Label | nothing/Interscope | |
| Writer(s) | Marilyn Manson (lyrics) Twiggy Ramirez (music) |
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| Producer(s) | Michael Beinhorn, Marilyn Manson | |
| Chart positions | ||
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| Marilyn Manson singles chronology | ||
| Long Hard Road out of Hell (1997) | The Dope Show (1998) |
I Don't Like the Drugs (But the Drugs Like Me) (1999) |
"The Dope Show" is a song from Marilyn Manson's 1998 album Mechanical Animals, released in September of that year as the album's lead single. It was written by Marilyn Manson and Twiggy Ramirez.
- "The Dope Show" by Marilyn Manson (file info) — play in browser (beta)
- 30-second sample of "The Dope Show".
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[edit] Song information
"The Dope Show" came at a point in the history of Marilyn Manson which saw the band shedding the dark, nihilistic trappings that had characterized the previous album, Antichrist Superstar. The single, a hard rock song styled after the 1970s work of T. Rex and David Bowie, acted as a sort of introduction to the band's new approach.
The song's verse and chorus structures, delivered in drastically different styles, give the song a "hybrid" feel: electronic sounds are juxtaposed with classic rock-derived guitar sounds for a tone that is both classic and futuristic. The verse is carried by a deep, rolling B-to-D walking bassline provided by Twiggy Ramirez and accented by repetitive, synthesized hi-hat. The chorus, on the other hand, features a 4/4 stomp that drummer Ginger Fish described as "a full bump and grind. . . stripper beat",[1] under major-key glam rock power chords also played by Ramirez, who also played the simple, but effective lead guitar parts in the final chorus. The song was written and recorded in 12/8 time, using a swing beat in the verses.
The lyrics are an admonition to a person who wishes to abandon his life for the "rock and roll" lifestyle:
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- There's lots of pretty, pretty ones
- who want to get you high.
- But all the pretty, pretty ones
- will leave you low, and blow your mind.
Further references are made to the obvious attraction to a world of fame, glamour, and drugs — and to the emptiness and lack of meaning in such a world. Ultimately, echoing Andy Warhol's prediction that everyone "will be world-famous for fifteen minutes", Manson declares that "we are all stars now, in the dope show".
"The Dope Show" was nominated for a 1999 Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.
An excerpt from the song was included in "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Polka Power" medley in 1999.
[edit] Music Video
"The Dope Show"'s single release was accompanied by a surrealistic music video directed by Paul Hunter, which was filmed in late July, 1998 and which premiered on August 20, 1998. In scenes reminiscent of The Man Who Fell to Earth, Manson appears — red-haired, with his entire body, including prosthetic rubber breasts, covered in white grease paint — as an androgynous extraterrestrial wandering around the Hollywood Hills. He is captured, studied in a laboratory, and eventually transported by limousine to a stage where he and the other members of the band — the fictional band Omega and The Mechanical Animals — perform the song in concert before hysterical fans who end up rioting and crossing the security barriers. Actor Billy Zane makes a cameo appearance in the limo sequence, as a recording industry executive. This same sequence features parodies of SPIN magazine and The National Enquirer.
The video won a 1999 MTV Video Music Award for "Best Cinematography", as well as the "Maximum Vision" award. It was filmed on standard cinema-grade Kodak 35 mm film stock; the contrast, saturation, and color tinting were all altered dramatically to obtain its vintage look. The video was filmed over two weeks — extreme in comparison to the industry standard of two days. Interscope Records funded the video, while HSI Productions produced and filmed it. Manson co-directed. Shooting began on Tuesday, August 8, 1998.
"The Dope Show"'s performance sequence was filmed in front of the Los Angeles Municipal Courthouse on North Hill Street. The Brutalist architecture of the Courthouse did not permit a reasonable angle or height from which to film; instead, the band was placed on top of the trailer of an 18-wheeler transport truck. Cameras situated on mechanical arms, and at a distance across the street, were used to film the dramatic concert shots. These scenes are interspersed with cuts of underground drag performer The Goddess Bunny dancing in a yellow, sequined dress, similar to that worn by Twiggy Ramirez in the same video. The costumes for the video, including the dresses and Marilyn Manson's red, diamond-patterned boots (which featured a 6-inch sole and heel) were designed jointly by Manson and Terri King. The Goddess Bunny's custom couture sequin gown (worn for the live MTV awards performance), was designed and hand sewn by Kris Hendrickson, aka littlemskris of San Francisco.
The video is available on the DVD included with some editions of Lest We Forget, as well as on the VHS compilation God Is in the TV, which also included "uncensored" outtake footage, such as Twiggy Ramirez and the Goddess Bunny undressing in the back of a limousine.
[edit] Formats and tracklistings
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[edit] Production credits
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[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Ginger Fish. DRUM! Magazine (interview), November/December, 1998. As reported by [1]. Last accessed December 6, 2006.
- ^ Marilyn Manson discography, as reported by The Heirophant. Last accessed December 6, 2006.
- MarilynManson.com — the official site of Marilyn Manson
- Paul Hunter — the official site of music video director Paul Hunter
