In the past, band members dressed in outlandish makeup and costumes, and engaged in intentionally shocking behavior both onstage and off. Their lyrics often received criticism for their anti-religious sentiment and references to sex, violence and drugs, while their live performances were frequently called offensive and obscene. On several occasions, protests and petitions led to the group being blocked from performing, with at least three US states passing legislation banning the group from performing at state-owned venues. They released a number of platinum-selling albums, including Antichrist Superstar (1996) and Mechanical Animals (1998). These albums, along with their highly stylized music videos and worldwide touring, brought public recognition to Marilyn Manson. In 1999, news media, infamously, falsely blamed the band for influencing the perpetrators of the Columbine High School massacre.
As this controversy began to wane throughout the 2000s, so did the band's mainstream popularity. Despite this, Jon Wiederhorn of MTV, in June 2003, referred to Marilyn Manson as "the only true artist today". Marilyn Manson is widely regarded as being one of the most iconic and controversial figures in rock music, with the band and its lead singer influencing numerous other groups and musicians, both in metal-associated acts and also in wider popular culture. VH1 ranked Marilyn Manson as the seventy-eighth best rock band on their 100 Great Artists of Hard Rock. They were inducted into the Kerrang! Hall of Fame in 2000, and have been nominated for four Grammy Awards. In the U.S., the band has seen ten of its releases debut in the top ten, including two number-one albums. Marilyn Manson have sold in excess of 50 million records worldwide.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marilyn_Manson_(band)
Studio albums
Portrait of an American Family (1994)
Antichrist Superstar (1996)
Mechanical Animals (1998)
Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death) (2000)
The Golden Age of Grotesque (2003)
Eat Me, Drink Me (2007)
The High End of Low (2009)
Born Villain (2012)
The Pale Emperor (2015)
Heaven Upside Down (2017)
We Are Chaos (2020)
Great Big White World
Marilyn Manson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just glitters like a morgue
And I dreamed I was a spaceman
Burned like a moth in a flame
And our world was so fucking gone
I'm not attached to your world
Nothing heals, nothing grows
Nothing heals, nothing grows
'Cause it's a great big white world
And we are drained of our colors
We used to love ourselves
We used to love one another
All my stitches itch
My prescription's low
I wish you were queen, just for today
In a world so white, what else could I say?
And hell was so cold
All the vases are so broken
And the roses tear our hands open
Mother Mary, miscarry
But we pray just like insects
And the world is so ugly now
'Cause it's a great big white world
And we are drained of our colors
We used to love ourselves
We used to love one another
All my stitches itch
My prescription's low
I wish you were queen, just for today
All my stitches itch
My prescription's low
I wish you were queen, just for today
In a world so white, what else could I say?
'Cause it's a great big white world
And we are drained of our colors
We used to love ourselves
We used to love one another
All my stitches itch
My prescription's low
I wish you were queen, just for today
All my stitches itch
My prescription's low
I wish you were queen, just for today
In a world so white, what else could I say?
Marilyn Manson's "Great Big White World" presents a picture of a world burned out and drained of color. The singer explores the theme of detachment and discontent with the world. The lyrics present a dream of being a spaceman engulfed by a flame, with the world around the singer damaged beyond repair. The stars, in this interpretation, represent a morgue, a place of death, rather than life or vitality. The singer seems to say that the world is cold, ugly, and hollow with nothing left to heal or grow. He repeats the phrase "nothing heals and nothing grows" to emphasize this point.
The world that the singer is rejecting, then, is one that has lost its color and vibrancy. The roses are torn and the vases that once held beauty are now broken. The darkness of the world is perhaps encapsulated in the mention of Mother Mary miscarrying. The world is a place of ugliness and death, where nothing grows and only insects go through the motions of prayer. The singer's wish for a queen for a day can be seen as the desire for an escape from this seemingly joyless, empty world. Overall, "Great Big White World" zeroes in on a dissatisfaction with the world, where beauty and love are lost, and only emptiness remains.
Line by Line Meaning
In space the stars are no nearer
Space, with its glittering stars, offers no comfort or hope.
They just glitter like a morgue
The stars provide an eerie, lifeless atmosphere, much like a morgue.
And I dreamed I was a spaceman
The singer dreams of escaping his current reality by becoming a spaceman.
Burned like a moth in a flame
His desire to escape is futile, similar to a moth being drawn to a flame.
And our world was so fucking gone
The artist's world is in a state of destruction and decay.
I'm not attached to your world
The singer feels disconnected from the world around him.
Nothing heals and nothing grows
Despite his detachment, the singer feels trapped in a stagnant, hopeless existence.
Because it's a great big white world
The world is cold, lifeless, and devoid of color.
And we are drained of our colors
The people themselves have lost their individuality and uniqueness.
We used to love ourselves
The artist longs for a time when people had self-worth and respect for themselves.
We used to love one another
He also yearns for a time when people had compassion and love for each other.
All my stitches itch
The artist is physically and emotionally uncomfortable.
My prescriptions low, I wish you
He desires companionship and a sense of purpose that medication alone cannot provide.
Were queen
The singer longs for someone to take control and bring order to his chaotic life.
Just for today
Even if only for a brief moment, he wants a respite from his pain and misery.
In a world so white what else could I say?
Given the bleakness of his surroundings, the artist feels hopeless and at a loss for words.
And hell was so cold
Even hell, a place traditionally associated with fire and heat, has become a frigid wasteland.
All the vases are so broken
All beauty has been shattered and destroyed.
And the roses tear our hands all open
Even beauty can be painful and cause harm.
Mother Mary miscarry
A symbol of purity and life, Mother Mary has lost her ability to give birth.
But we pray just like insects
In the face of despair, the artist and others like him cling to hope, no matter how small.
And the world is so ugly now
The artist believes that the world has lost its beauty and that ugliness prevails.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: Brian Hugh Warner, Jeordie White, Stephen Gregory Bier Jr., Timothy Michael Linton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
DrJKintobor
on (s)AINT
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SabrinaOnlineFan96
on Use Your Fist and Not Your Mouth
I woke up today and wished for tomorrow, I don't wanna be like anyone else!
DrJKintobor
on The Speed of Pain
This song reminds me of Shadow the Hedgehog falling to Earth. The lyrics "I hope we die holding hands, always" refers to him and Maria.
DrJKintobor
on Spade
This is the saddest song on the album.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on Cyclops
Correction, this song makes me think of the dark night.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on HALF-WAY & ONE STEP FORWARD
This song is so dark, it makes me think of Endora from Sabrina Online: Skunk's Day Out.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on I Want to Disappear
This is Zaphod Beeblebrox's theme from Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on Posthuman
This song reminds me of the Mike Teavee Oompa Loompa song from the 2005 Willy Wonka movie, which is funny since Johnny Depp is friends with Marilyn Manson.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on Tattooed In Reverse
This song gives me Blitzo from Helluva Boss vibes.
SabrinaOnlineFan96
on Long Hard Road Out of Hell
This song reminds me of Shadow the Hedgehog.