Coma White
Encyclopedia
"Coma White" is a song by the band Marilyn Manson
. It is the last track from the album Mechanical Animals
. Despite only being released as a promo single, a video was shot in the wake of the Columbine
tragedy controversy surrounding the band, and it also provided a preview of the Holy Wood
project. The video generated significant controversy and became a highly requested clip on MTV. It is considered a fan favorite, and one of Manson's most critically acclaimed songs off of one of the band's most critically acclaimed albums.
." It starts with an acoustic guitar-sounding riff played mostly on the B string; after the riff is concluded once, a simplistic drum pattern and very minimalist bass line supports it, and the lyrics begin after the riff is played a second time. The last repeat of the verse section includes a few distorted guitar overlays that build to the chorus, a straight-up set of power chords that follows the previous bass line (which now plays something completely different). There is an accompanying keyboard effect playing during this section. After this a bridge plays consisting of one guitar playing an extrapolation from the chorus, with a second overlayed guitar playing the bass notes of each chords at a very high pitch. The verse then repeats, although there is now considerably more keyboard effects that do not feel "musical" so much as ambient sound. The chorus then plays twice, followed by the bridge. It is played once with just the rhythm guitar on the very left of the soundscape, a second time adding the high guitar on the far right, and a third with the full band and lyrics repeated from the verses. The rhythm section then plays the first half of the chorus before the guitar kicks in to finish it, then the chorus plays three more times. The last time it is played, another layered guitar bit based on the G string is added; this progression continues after the rest of the chorus ends, looping itself until it, and the album, fades from perception.
Referring to "Coma White" and "Great Big White World" Manson told the Los Angeles Times
, "The color white comes up a lot. It kind of represents to me the numbness I had. That numbness is manifested in drugs...in all the people who want to suck the life out of you when you become a rock star." One analysis held that the song "describes a girl that Manson loved and compares the girl to a drug, so the singer isn't sure what he's on or whom he's in love with." While originally intended by Marilyn and his superiors at Interscope Records
to be the fourth and final single from the Mechanical Animals
album, its release in such a format—including radio airplay—was pulled following the untimely JFK Jr. controversy which involved more relevantly, the video. The manufacturing of the CD-format of this single was underway when the release was scrapped. All copies by then produced were destroyed and collectors have found none surfacing since. Supposedly, the four-track bonus disc featuring two renditions of "Coma White" and two B-sides of the Mechanical Animals album that comes with the limited edition of the 1999 live album The Last Tour on Earth
is the product of this scrapped single.
The track is presently also available on the Japanese version of the band's compilation album, Lest We Forget
and premiered on MTV on September 13, 1999. The video generated controversy as it featured a reenactment of the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy
. Manson and his then-fiancée Rose McGowan
play JFK and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, respectively. Its debut release was through the band's official website MarilynManson.com, and was delayed twice until mid-September due to the Columbine Massacre and the death of JFK Jr.
The video is oddly "clean" given the gore of the actual events. The director, Samuel Bayer
, says there was no blood used during the filming. "We didn't feel like it was appropriate to actually act out the assassination." One Canadian reviewer remarked that the video, which was expected to shock, was "More Fellini-esque
death march than blasphemous rewrite of history, [and] it caused little commotion."
The video is also notable for the appearance of the late, 7 foot 6 actor Matthew McGrory
.
, and the coincidental death of John F. Kennedy, Jr.
In a statement released by his publicist, Manson said the video used the Kennedy assassination "as a metaphor for America's obsession and worship of violence. My statement was always intended to make people think of how they view and sometimes participate in these events." Further, the video "is in no way a mockery. In fact, it is a tribute to men like Jesus Christ and JFK who have died at the hands of mankind's unquenchable thirst for violence."
He said that when he filmed the video, "little did I know that the tragedy at Columbine and the accidental death of JFK Jr. would follow. But it was telling to see the [news] media shamelessly gorge itself on these events, which ultimately made my observations in the video even truer than I had originally imagined."
MTV
Total Request Live
host Carson Daly
read the statement before MTV debuted the video; subsequently, the station would offer Manson's insights on its Web site and several more times on the air. "Coma White" would become one of the station's most requested clips. Kennedy family representatives declined to comment on the video.
While the story shown is unrelated to the song’s lyrics, the video's contents foreshadowed some of the themes on the band’s next album, Holy Wood
.
Marilyn Manson (band)
Marilyn Manson is an American metal band from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Formed in 1989 by Brian Warner and Scott Putesky, the group was originally named Marilyn Manson & the Spooky Kids with their uniquely theatrical performances gathering a local cult following in the early '90s. This attention...
. It is the last track from the album Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals is the third full-length studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It was released on September 14, 1998, in Australia and on September 15, 1998, in the US, Germany and France through Nothing and Interscope Records and marked the beginning of the band's brief foray into...
. Despite only being released as a promo single, a video was shot in the wake of the Columbine
Columbine High School massacre
The Columbine High School massacre occurred on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Columbine, an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States, near Denver and Littleton. Two senior students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12...
tragedy controversy surrounding the band, and it also provided a preview of the Holy Wood
Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood is the fourth studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in November 2000 through Nothing and Interscope Records. The album marked a return to the industrial and alternative metal style of the band's earlier efforts, after the modernized glam rock sound of Mechanical...
project. The video generated significant controversy and became a highly requested clip on MTV. It is considered a fan favorite, and one of Manson's most critically acclaimed songs off of one of the band's most critically acclaimed albums.
Song
The song is considerably gentler than much of the album it concludes, "Mechanical AnimalsMechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals is the third full-length studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It was released on September 14, 1998, in Australia and on September 15, 1998, in the US, Germany and France through Nothing and Interscope Records and marked the beginning of the band's brief foray into...
." It starts with an acoustic guitar-sounding riff played mostly on the B string; after the riff is concluded once, a simplistic drum pattern and very minimalist bass line supports it, and the lyrics begin after the riff is played a second time. The last repeat of the verse section includes a few distorted guitar overlays that build to the chorus, a straight-up set of power chords that follows the previous bass line (which now plays something completely different). There is an accompanying keyboard effect playing during this section. After this a bridge plays consisting of one guitar playing an extrapolation from the chorus, with a second overlayed guitar playing the bass notes of each chords at a very high pitch. The verse then repeats, although there is now considerably more keyboard effects that do not feel "musical" so much as ambient sound. The chorus then plays twice, followed by the bridge. It is played once with just the rhythm guitar on the very left of the soundscape, a second time adding the high guitar on the far right, and a third with the full band and lyrics repeated from the verses. The rhythm section then plays the first half of the chorus before the guitar kicks in to finish it, then the chorus plays three more times. The last time it is played, another layered guitar bit based on the G string is added; this progression continues after the rest of the chorus ends, looping itself until it, and the album, fades from perception.
Referring to "Coma White" and "Great Big White World" Manson told the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
, "The color white comes up a lot. It kind of represents to me the numbness I had. That numbness is manifested in drugs...in all the people who want to suck the life out of you when you become a rock star." One analysis held that the song "describes a girl that Manson loved and compares the girl to a drug, so the singer isn't sure what he's on or whom he's in love with." While originally intended by Marilyn and his superiors at Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
to be the fourth and final single from the Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals
Mechanical Animals is the third full-length studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson. It was released on September 14, 1998, in Australia and on September 15, 1998, in the US, Germany and France through Nothing and Interscope Records and marked the beginning of the band's brief foray into...
album, its release in such a format—including radio airplay—was pulled following the untimely JFK Jr. controversy which involved more relevantly, the video. The manufacturing of the CD-format of this single was underway when the release was scrapped. All copies by then produced were destroyed and collectors have found none surfacing since. Supposedly, the four-track bonus disc featuring two renditions of "Coma White" and two B-sides of the Mechanical Animals album that comes with the limited edition of the 1999 live album The Last Tour on Earth
The Last Tour on Earth
The Last Tour on Earth is a live album comprising recordings from Marilyn Manson's Mechanical Animals and Rock is Dead tours. On the studio version of "The Dope Show", Manson says that drugs "are made in California", but in the live version, he says that "drugs, they say, are made right here in...
is the product of this scrapped single.
The track is presently also available on the Japanese version of the band's compilation album, Lest We Forget
Lest We Forget (album)
-Notes:*Tracks 1, 4, 8 and 14 are from Holy Wood *Track 2 previously unreleased*Tracks 3, 7 and 18 are from The Golden Age of Grotesque*Track 5 is from the Not Another Teen Movie ...
Music video
The music video was directed by Samuel BayerSamuel Bayer
Samuel David Bayer is an American commercial, music video and film director, and cinematographer.-Early life:Bayer was born in Syracuse, New York...
and premiered on MTV on September 13, 1999. The video generated controversy as it featured a reenactment of the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy
Assassination of John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the thirty-fifth President of the United States, was assassinated at 12:30 p.m. Central Standard Time on Friday, November 22, 1963, in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas...
. Manson and his then-fiancée Rose McGowan
Rose McGowan
Rose Arianna McGowan is an actress and singer. She is known for her role as Paige Matthews in The WB Television Network supernatural drama series Charmed. She played Ann-Margret alongside Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Elvis Presley in the CBS mini-series Elvis...
play JFK and First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, respectively. Its debut release was through the band's official website MarilynManson.com, and was delayed twice until mid-September due to the Columbine Massacre and the death of JFK Jr.
The video is oddly "clean" given the gore of the actual events. The director, Samuel Bayer
Samuel Bayer
Samuel David Bayer is an American commercial, music video and film director, and cinematographer.-Early life:Bayer was born in Syracuse, New York...
, says there was no blood used during the filming. "We didn't feel like it was appropriate to actually act out the assassination." One Canadian reviewer remarked that the video, which was expected to shock, was "More Fellini-esque
Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI , was an Italian film director and scriptwriter. Known for a distinct style that blends fantasy and baroque images, he is considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers of the 20th century...
death march than blasphemous rewrite of history, [and] it caused little commotion."
The video is also notable for the appearance of the late, 7 foot 6 actor Matthew McGrory
Matthew McGrory
Matthew McGrory was an American actor, known for his great height.-Early life:McGrory was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania. McGrory studied pre-law at Widener University, where he resided in campus housing on the first floor of Howell Hall. Studied Criminal Justice at West Chester University....
.
Controversy
The release of the video was hampered by two coinciding events: the Columbine High School massacreColumbine High School massacre
The Columbine High School massacre occurred on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School in Columbine, an unincorporated area of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States, near Denver and Littleton. Two senior students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, embarked on a massacre, killing 12...
, and the coincidental death of John F. Kennedy, Jr.
In a statement released by his publicist, Manson said the video used the Kennedy assassination "as a metaphor for America's obsession and worship of violence. My statement was always intended to make people think of how they view and sometimes participate in these events." Further, the video "is in no way a mockery. In fact, it is a tribute to men like Jesus Christ and JFK who have died at the hands of mankind's unquenchable thirst for violence."
He said that when he filmed the video, "little did I know that the tragedy at Columbine and the accidental death of JFK Jr. would follow. But it was telling to see the [news] media shamelessly gorge itself on these events, which ultimately made my observations in the video even truer than I had originally imagined."
MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
Total Request Live
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
host Carson Daly
Carson Daly
Carson Jones Daly is an American television host. He is the host of NBC's Last Call with Carson Daly, a late-night talk show that began airing on January 7, 2002. Before his role as host of that program, Daly was a VJ on MTV's TRL, and a DJ for the Southern California based radio station KROQ-FM...
read the statement before MTV debuted the video; subsequently, the station would offer Manson's insights on its Web site and several more times on the air. "Coma White" would become one of the station's most requested clips. Kennedy family representatives declined to comment on the video.
While the story shown is unrelated to the song’s lyrics, the video's contents foreshadowed some of the themes on the band’s next album, Holy Wood
Holy Wood (In the Shadow of the Valley of Death)
Holy Wood is the fourth studio album by American rock band Marilyn Manson, released in November 2000 through Nothing and Interscope Records. The album marked a return to the industrial and alternative metal style of the band's earlier efforts, after the modernized glam rock sound of Mechanical...
.