How I Hear It: Marilyn Manson tops list of most frightening musicians

Posted on Oct. 30, 2011, at 11:42 p.m.

Halloween is a day for the glorification of things that go bump in the night and other various monstrosities. For some musicians, Halloween is a yearlong event, as they aim to constantly shock and be freaky.

Let’s examine the creepiest of the creepy in the world of music, starting with who I assume the most obvious:

1. Marilyn Manson

Ask anybody who the biggest freak in music is, and their knee-jerk reaction will likely be to say, “Marilyn Manson.” Just in his music video for “The Beautiful People,” we see squirming worms, people attached to strange machinery, creepy science experiments and Manson himself, in white makeup, black lipstick and eye makeup, wide eyes and long, dirty hair.

Manson supposedly had some of his ribs removed so he could pleasure himself orally. Whether or not this rumor is true, the fact that someone made this up about him and it sounded feasible enough for people to believe says something about Manson.

2. Slipknot

This band has done most of their scaring in a live setting. When they perform, they always wear frightening masks and orange jumpsuits while stagediving from balconies, fighting with each other and the audience and setting each other on fire.

Yes, intentionally setting each other on fire.

Musically, their songs have been attributed to some horrible things, like two murderers who claimed they were inspired by the lyrics of the Slipknot song, “Disasterpiece.” The lyrics of their song “Surfacing” were found at the site of a graverobbing. Although the band denied any connection to these crimes, a lot of twisted people seem to listen to their music and then act on it.

3. Ozzy Osbourne

First off, the man is nicknamed “The Prince of Darkness,” which ought to be an immediate red flag, indicating that Ozzy is a twisted dude.

During his tenure with Black Sabbath, he often sang about satanic things, which led to his condemnation by Christian groups. Where things get scary, though, is at the signing of his first post-Sabbath record deal. After signing the deal with record company executives, he bit the head off a dove during the meeting and, with blood dripping out of his mouth, spat it onto the table. His original plan was to release doves as a sign of peace, but his drunkenness caused him to do otherwise.

Just a year later in 1982, he infamously bit the head off a bat on stage at a concert in Des Moines, Iowa, thinking the bat was rubber.

It’s hard to imagine Osbourne as a terrifying man now — since he’s been reduced to a fried, blabbering shell of his former self — but plenty of ’80s kids went to sleep with visions of Ozzy tearing apart small animals with his teeth dancing in their heads.

4. Insane Clown Posse

Most people who are afraid of clowns seem to be that way irrationally. That is, unless they’re referring to the Insane Clown Posse.

The Detroit rap duo is always seen with creepy, painted clown faces and usually rap about murder, necrophilia and cannibalism, all of which nonfans like myself assume they participate in, in that order.

The lyrics of their albums are set in a self-created mythology they call “The Dark Carnival,” a sort of purgatory where souls wait until it is decided whether they go to Heaven or Hell. This does help reveal something most people wouldn’t suspect about the band — they are devout Christians, using their themes of violence to draw in fans and use those brutal lyrics as examples of wrongdoing.

Regardless of their intent, Insane Clown Posse still comes off terrifying to the ignorant observer.

5. Every heavy metal musician

Just calling it how I see it, people.

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 30th, 2011, 11:42 pm. You can follow any responses to this article through the RSS feed.