Err on the side of caution

So. Marilyn Manson is now a record mogul, and Godhead is his inaugural signing. Does this band give Orgy a run for its money?

Maybe. Maybe not.

2000 Years of Human Error has been described (by Wall of Sound, I believe) as a “connect-the-dots Goth rock album,” a predictable sort of album full of thundering guitars, synthetic effects and robotic rhythms. And pretty dang enjoyable if you let it entertain you.

Make no mistake — Godhead’s debut for Manson’s label is no grand artistic statement on the level of Antichrist Superstar or, stepping back further in time, Nine Inch Nails’ The Downward Spiral.

If anything, 2000 Years of Human Error almost seems to be following in the footsteps of Orgy’s Candyass, right down to the cover of the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby”, reimagined as a four-on-the-floor, hard-rocking exercise in studio glitz.

Perhaps the eeriest thing about this comparrison is that Godhead’s version of “Eleanor Rigby” doesn’t come across as crass as it could have. If New Order’s “Blue Monday” worked for Orgy, how can Godhead go wrong with McCartney and Lennon?

2000 Years of Human Error is the sonic equivalent of a formulaic Hollywood movie. You know there’s a scream coming after the quiet bridge. You know the big guitar riff gives way to the singer during the verses. You know the larger-than-life drums pause dramatically before the chorus hits.

And like a formulaic Hollywood movie, you can either despise the album or love the album for how well — or even how badly — it executes that formula. Godhead doesn’t fuck with said forumla too much, and it even delivers hooks that are immediate, memorable, even pleasing.

But in the end, 2000 Years of Human Error won’t change your life or enrich your soul. It definitely won’t get you on Oprah. It does, however, provide a good 40 minutes or so of escapist entertainment.

Hmmm. Goth-rock as escapism. Gotta think that one over.