Heaven Upside Down

Marilyn Manson - Heaven Upside Down
Critic Score
Based on 23 reviews
2017 Ratings: #812 / 940
User Score
Based on 233 ratings
2017 Rank: #817
Liked by 9 people
October 6, 2017 / Release Date
LP / Format
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CRITIC REVIEWS

80
AllMusic

Heaven Upside Down is Manson at his most human. If Pale Emperor was a welcome return to form that signaled a new day for the band, its successor is just as satisfying, if not better.

80
The Line of Best Fit
Modern Manson is certainly a very different prospect to the artist that once proclaimed himself the God of Fuck and bragged about grave-digging in New Orleans. Yet now aged almost 50, musically he seems to be entering a second golden era. Proof there’s life in the Goth Father yet.
80
Alternative Press
Where other bands of his generation are reducing their previous work into karaoke, Manson is keeping things exciting and crucial the only way rock’s long-running antihero can.
80
Clash
Manson doesn’t completely rest on his laurels here ... proving that while he’s aware of the importance of his discography, there’s more than enough life in his work to shock, provoke thought, and inspire for another two decades.
75
Consequence of Sound

This is a record that should please both the Hot Topic kiddie-creep contingent and Manson’s more seasoned and sophisticated fans sonically. Lyrically, it captures a lot of his oddball charm, too.

60
Drowned in Sound

We’re unlikely to see the power or the passion of Manson’s classic run again - it’s very difficult to bottle lightning twice - and you shouldn’t come to Heaven Upside Down expecting anything as textured, interesting or frightening as those early releases. That said, the artist known to his mum as Brian Warner seems to have settled after many years of free-fall.

60
Rolling Stone

Two years after releasing the surprisingly mature goth-metal offering The Pale Emperor, Marilyn Manson has returned to straight-ahead shock.

60
NME
For Manson fans this is familiar territory: the same mechanical riffs, same whisper/scream vocals heard on his regular stream of albums. Here, most songs are entertaining rather than groundbreaking.
59
Pitchfork
In 2017, the open horror of the world easily eclipses anything Manson’s recorded in years. Whatever value his music still holds derives from what you remember of him, and how sweet the memory of your thrill or disgust now rings.
50
Crack Magazine
Longtime devotees won’t care, but Manson’s last album seemed to prompt a wider audience to sit up and take notice at the potential for stylistic maturity, and this feels like regression.
50
PopMatters

Heaven Upside Down finds Manson struggling for meaning.

Quet
NR

He do look like a 1930s sexual abuser though

MAN
60

A surprisingly enjoyable record! I didn't expect to say that a Marilyn Manson project from the 2010s was good but I genuinely have to admit this! Genuinely surprised by the quality of some of the songs in here!

PipePanic
39

Uuuuuuggggghh. It's just another sloggy, boring, by the numbers, """"shocking"""" record by someone who used to be great at creating dark, dingy and meaningful music. Marilyn Mason seems more then contempt in being what everyone thinks he is: shocking for the sake of shocking. Which is a real shame, because when you go through the mans discography, there are more then a few moments of genuine talent and intellect. But here, it's just a collection of cool ... read more

Rafamaru
75

Kinda underrated imo, this album has a really good flow, no bad songs at all
But also the majority of them are around a 70-80 for me, so there's nothing very remarkable here
And I know it's an unpopular opnion but I think Heaven Upside Down is slightly better than The Pale Emperor, despite TPE having Deep Six, which is an amazing song

GIF__
70

this ones pretty solid tho

MrSmellis
59

After 'The pale emperor' showed great promise for the return of a great Marilyn Manson era he decided to make this, a (for the most part) pretty uninteresting record. There are definitely some good stuff here in terms of hooky melodies and basslines, which is something that I've come to expect from this man. But a lot of the tracks just fall under the term 'mediocre'. Also has some of the worst lyrics that this man has ever written, listen to 'Jesus Crisis' and try to tell me otherwise with a ... read more

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Added on: September 4, 2017