Exit Wound Review

Marilyn Manson performing at the Van Buren in Phoenix, AZ. 9/28/2025. Photo by me.

New Zealand, the lucky bastards in the future time zone position of the Earth's rotation making it a day ahead of those in the Western hemisphere; got a new Marilyn Manson track off the upcoming One Assassination Under God Chapter 2 album. Presumably, tomorrow where for us over here will get the track as well. Nonetheless what I heard from the track entitled Exit Wound is a wonderful tune, far more groovy than anything off of Chapter 1, which includes its seeming predecessor Sacreligious where it takes to a similar sound as the delivery of the line, "and all of your ghosts are blind." With that it's a continuation of what some have deemed as Eat Me Drink Me fully realized, or in my personal opinion after listening to the gracious international uploaders sharing the track, is structurally reminiscent of the collaboration with Emigrate on the song Hypothetical mixed with the aforementioned predecessor atop an outtake from The Golden Age of Grotesque era. Continuing with the hollow vocal effects which bring to mind those heard on the title track of Mechanical Animals, with added in screams and growling similar to Born Villain songs or the b-side song Front Toward Enemy, which appears to be listed now on Chapter 2 as the third on its list. Altogether continuing with the atmosphere solidified on the prior chapter's title track and expanding into this grand-narrative of One Assassin-Nation Under God as Manson deep-diver Forever Dirt explored in a reaction to that song. Lyrically sharp as ever with lines like, "Ballerina bayonets, slice us up with pirouettes/ Mouth is shut on hand grenade," and, "Turn off the spotlight, whose god will you be?/ Will they want you if your hands are clean?/ Can't stop the bleeding, I'm not healing soon/ You shot the world, I am the exit wound..." it's far more aggressive than the majority of releases on Chapter 1, continuing in the harshness of Front Toward Enemy, but with more of a groove to it. All that to say it's an excellent example of Manson's musical accumulation.