Customer Reviews

Lest We Forget: The Best of (Bonus Dvd) (Coll)

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(9)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I have been familiar with Marilyn Manson for many, many years, having heard his songs both on the radio and from various friends who owned his CD's. However, I had never bothered to pick up any of his albums myself. When he finally came out with this "best of" compilation, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to finally get my hands on some of his music, and this CD has experienced heavy rotation in my CD player since. Furthermore, I have proceeded to buy many of his previous albums as well. I'm kicking myself in the bum for not buying more of his material sooner.

This particular compilation shows just how far Manson has come, and how much his music has evolved, with included songs spanning the breadth of his career. Songs such as "Disposable Teens," "Beautiful People," and "Dope Show" have enjoyed a tremendous amount of radio play over the years, and should be recognizable to most people immersed in the hard rock genre. The covers, "Personal Jesus," "Tainted Love," and "Sweet Dreams," are great, as Manson has an incredible way of slightly twisting and, some may say, tainting the well-known material, making it uniquely his own. Thus making this one of Manson's more accessible albums, serving to "rope in" those who haven't yet jumped on the bandwagon. With the sales of this album still soaring, it's easy to see that Lest We Forget has done just that.

As for Manson and his music itself, there is much more to his songs than loud, thumping, head-banging beats and good guitar riffs. The intricate layering of harsh, though never grating, sounds is near brilliance. His witty and, at times, bitterly caustic, in-your-face social commentary noticeable in his lyrics is incredible and brutally honest. Though many have come to see him as a mere poster boy for disenchanted youth, nonconformity and vehemence towards "the establishment" and many of it's practices, there is much more to Manson than that. If nothing else, you've got to admire his individualism and willingness to show his true colors despite constant criticism by the more prudish members of society. This courageous and cavalier attitude shines through in everything Manson produces.

The bonus DVD is a great addition. It's too bad that the "Personal Jesus" video, as well as the banned (s)aint video (available only through his website) didn't make this cut, but the videos that are included are great. Mason's videos reek of lush creativity and vividly artistic individualism that, for the most part, really serve to accentuate the messages put forth through his lyrics. This near-complete video collection is definitely a must-have.

Overall, this album serves as a great addition to anyone's hard rock/industrial repertoire, as well as a great introduction to Marilyn Manson himself. However, know that these selections are mere highlights and just gently graze the surface of Manson's capabilities. This album will probably leave you craving more of what he has to offer.

I gave this disc four stars because of the unclear void of the (s)AINT video, that and the Personal Jesus song is nothing spectacular. The DVD is also lacking 2 other videos to make this the complete Manson collection: Tainted Love and Astonshing Panarama of the Endtimes, both were soundtrack songs and should be in the section of soundtracks and eps. (APotE was added onto The Last Tour on Earth after sales for the Celebrity Deathmatch CD tanked).

Here is everything on the DVD, and how to find it.

1. End Credits - from the main menu, press the left button while play all is highlighted.

2. Alternate Version of Disposable Teens - from the video selection screen, go to Holywood, highlight video index and press left.

3. Making of mOBSCENE - from the video selection screen, go to GAotG, highlight next album and press right.

4. Autopsy - from the special features screen, highlight photo gallery and press left.

That's all, besides the alternate cut of Disposable Teens, the hidden features are boring. I was very dissapointed in the lack of those 2 videos plus the (s)AINT video scam. So buy this disc if you are a true Manson fan (and haven't burned all of these songs onto a CDR yet) but don't buy it if you are expecting to see the "banned" (s)AINT video.

"Lest We Forget" is an adequate compilation for fans, and should also please those who are "casual fans" that simply want a greatest hits compilation (as opposed to picking out these songs from Manson's entire catalog). Yes, some songs are missing that I would like. However, we all have our own tastes, and I have yet to find a greatest hits/best of... that includes all of MY PERSONAL FAVORITE TRACKS from an artist I love.As you've most likely read in previous posts/reviews, the US Deluxe Edition does NOT contain the (s)AINT video on the DVD. One can either a.) buy it off of Manson's website, b.) eBay it, c.) order it from Amazon's UK site, or get the most expanded, wallet-gouging version available off of Amazon's Japan site (it cost me $42 USD, which included shipping). The Japanese edition contains 3 bonus tracks on the CD ((s)AINT, Irresponsible Hate Anthem, & Coma White ("Coma" is exclusive to the Japanese release)), a BONUS CD with 8 b-side tracks (this is also exclusive to the Japanese release), and the DVD contains 2 extra videos not on the US release (Personal Jesus & (s)AINT).

Quite the bargain for new and old fans alike. If you're the kind of newbie listener who's unsure about Manson and his music, then I highly recommend picking this album up and experience some of the best songs Marilyn Manson has to offer. For old fans, the extra DVD found in the limited edition is worth the price tag alone. With the exception of four music videos ("Personal Jesus"/"(s)AINT"/"Tainted Love"/"Astonishing Panorama of The End Times"), you get the entire Marilyn Manson music video catalogue on DVD for the very first time. That itself was enough to justify purchasing an extra CD full of songs I myself already own.

...of course, I'd be lying if I told you that the CD REALLY contained songs that Manson fans already have. No, that wouldn't be entirely accurate, because old fans will find that some of the older songs, particularly ones from the AntiChrist Superstar era and past, have been remastered! "The Beautiful People", "Tourniquet", "The Reflecting God", etc all have been retouched (some subtle, some obvious), with the result being the songs now sounding twice more powerful than they were before.

Lastly, the album does contain one new material, that being "Personal Jesus", a cover of the original Depeche Mode hit. Manson manages to grab a hold of Depeche Mode's original intentions in the song and twist 'em to further display the utter irony in mainstream celebrities and their fans. It's an intriguing [re]take and definitely not a song to be missed, so if you liked Depeche Mode's original, you'll probably enjoy Manson's harsher version.

Summary: newbie fans = buy now, and enjoy the familiar/unfamiliar music. Old jaded Manson fans = buy now, and rejoice in having Manson's video catalogue on DVD.

I am a huge fan of Manson, his music is something you can sing to and enjoy, he likes to put on a show and his life seems to be full of excitment and torment.

Yeah this CD seemed like an attempt at brining in the dough and I am pretty sure it did, if your a fan you bought it, he should have waited a few more years to put out a Greatest Hits, like when he's too old to dress in his manly corsets and wear his platforms and his hair starts to fall out.

I really really love this CD/DVD set because well, you got the DVD, but ALAS I was fooled into thinking I would get the S(aint) video... I didn't. It said so on the sticker on the wrapper, but did I get it? NO!
If you like videos and you love Manson this is a good CD, it's fun, you can listen to a few of your favorite tunes without changing CD's, and it's fun.

Being a personal fan of Manson and owning all of his albums i went out and bought this cd mostly for the booklet and the dvd. The cd is fantastic,a really great collection of songs even though some songs like Coma White are missin...still,its all top stuff and a great intro into Mansons world if u dont have any of his previous cd's. A word of advice though:go for the Deluxe version with the dvd,it's a real bargain and it's more than worth the extra dollars,u get almost his entire video collction minus 2-3 songs.Oh, and something about the missin (s)AINT video that most people are talking about:if you go to the UK site of amazon.co.uk, the tracklisting of the dvd include (s)AINT AND Personal Jesus plus anothe clip(not Tainted Love)!!I dont know if there was a mistake but it's been there for weeks now..also the european version of the album has 2 bonus tracks,(s)AINT and Irrisponsible Hate Anthem(for these 2 songs i am sure cause i checked the back of the cd. It seems very unfair that the european version includes these videos and songs while they arent in the US version.Still,if you cant get it on import(or dont have Region2 dvd) the US deluxe version still rocks!

I enjoyed this cd very much until after 2 days after my purchase I saw there was a version on his site with the sAINT video and personal jesus one. I wanted to see the saint one not really caring for the personal jesus but I was still very angry. I was upset that foreign countries got the goods and we were banned. The cd was good except for 2 songs but thats ok. I'm still grieving over my loss and how I should have ordered on amazon.co.uk. Just make note before buying that we get ripped in the states.

Reasons the 90's needed Marilyn Manson:

Boybands. American Idol. Brittany Spears. Cher makes a comeback. So does Bon Jovi. Not to mention the Religious Right really needed an act to pin rock and roll as the devil's music on. So along comes a skinny disaffected young man with enough greasepaint to make Kiss blush and a stage show that would make Alice Cooper proud. Trent Reznor heard the news and jumped on board, and after a couple of interesting but inconsequential CD's, Manson hit paydirt with "Anti-Christ Superstar." Using the media to bend and distort the image of both the band (with the schizophrenic first/last psuedo-names) and the staged anger of "Beautiful People," Manson became an instant celebrity and a lightning rod.

And like the best shock-rockers and gender benders, Manson fed right off it. This is the kind of masterful heavyrock that scared the crap out of parents and gave adolescent rebellion a howling chariot of thud to ride off to school with. The darkness is for real here, but so is the musicianship. Manson's "Mechanical Animals" was his "Billion Dollar Babies," his "Diamond Dogs." The slinky "Dope Show" is as much a warning against overindulgence at the same time "Rock Is Dead" sardonically proved Manson's brand of bone crushing was definitely not!

Even better is that Manson is nowhere near as foolish or demonic as his biggest critics would make him out to be. The cheerleader hooks in "Fight Song" and "mOBSCENE" will bring a smile or two to the most jaded hard rocker, and covering new-wave dance staples like "Tainted Love" or "Sweet Dreams" takes more than a little chutzpah. (The cover of "Personal Jesus" doesn't stray far from Depeche Mode, nor is it near the revelation Johnny Cash's version is.) For those who ever caught him on "Politically Incorrect" or the occasional talk show (as well as Michael Moore's "Bowling For Columbine") would be able to tell you, the former Brain Warner is thoughtful, articulate and politically astute. The man who rakes society over the coals for creating a culture of "Disposable Teens" is also his own best defender.

"Lest We Forget" takes 17 statements and proves that Marilyn Manson (both the band and the singer) helped keep rock vital in the last decade and a half. That there are still factions out there that consider him "dangerous" matters plenty to me...not every maker of music needs to host a slick variety show to get a message out. If you don't have all the CDs, this is a great starter collection. In fact, it holds together with the muscle of a regular album. There aren't too many folks you can say that about.

As for the DVD - we already know that if you want "S'aint," you need to buy this set from The Manson website or Amazon UK. I'll wager that, if you're patient enough, the whole DVD set will show up as a stand alone package. If not, it's worth it for the riotous "Dope Show" and the "Alien Autopsy" parody easter egg.

Marilyn Manson is a master at music imagery and rock and it truly shines in this two disc set. The first disc is a audio disc with some of Manson's biggest hits including 1994's Lunchbox from the Portrait of an American Family album, their breakthrough hit Sweet Dreams a cover of the Eurythmics version, The Beatiful People off of Antichrist Superstar, The Dope Show off of Mechanical Animals, the Nobodies off of Holy Wood, and mOBSCENE off of his latest release The Golden Age of Grotesque.

Manson's unique vocal style and the thrashing guitar hooks from gutarists like Daisy Berkowits and John 5 blend perfectly to create a sound that no other can duplicate. The songs range from anthems for kids being bullied everywhere in Lunchbox delving from Manson's painful and unique past to a song about drugs and how we use them to numb ourselves in The Dope Show. The lyrics at times are very dark but also are very upbeat. Anything but happy.

The second disc is a DVD of all of Manson's videos except for (s)aint, Personal jesus, and Astonishing Paranorma of the Endtimnes. It shows how Manson's look has changed throughout the years. In mOBSCENE we get to see Manson's enormously attractive burlesque queen wife Dita Von Teese. The videos can be shocking in that of Tourniquet and at times sad in Coma White but are basically what you would expect from Manson. All of his videos are unedited and raw. They give you a whole history of Manson's career throught videos.

Basically this set is a must have for any Manson fan. It will not disappoint. Trust me.

(s)AINT video aside, this is still a very good album, however... It's hard not to notice that some songs that are truly deserving of being classified as "great hits," are not actually on this cd. Songs such as "Coma White", "I Don't Like the Drugs," and "(s)AINT" fail to make an appearance. There are also songs that, although they are good, aren't really "hits," such as "The Love Song." Manson would have been better off releasing a "singles" album, although maybe then people wouldn't bother buying his other albums if they have all of his singles, but if "No Doubt" could do it, so could Manson. Overall however, there is a good variation of songs on this album, including most of the singles from Manson's albums. If you already own all of Manson's previous albums, there is not a large reason to buy this cd, except for the DVD and single "Personal Jesus," which for me, justify the purchase of this album. My only real qualm with this album, is the bad advertising strategy which led many people to believe that they were getting the uncut "(s)AINT" video, such as myself. There is a simple solution to this however. Download the clip off the net. Overall, this album is a worthy purchase. Oh yeah, and the guy below (Judas666) who wrote about the "(s)AINT" video is wrong. Its not Pogo wearing a dress, its "Tim Skold" the bass player.