The Men Who Rule the World

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"The Men Who Rule the World" is a song by American

"The Men Who Rule the World" is an electronic-rock song^[1] that opens with a slot-machine sample and features trademark elements of the Garbage sound, such as keyboards, loops, distorted guitars, as well as industrial beats.^[4][5][6] The song features bass by Justin Meldal-Johnsen.

The song originated from one of the many jams the band created in mid-2018 in Palm Springs. Initially, the song started with a simple

The song's lyrics revolve around racism, the blind quest of men for social and economical power, environmental abuse, and misogyny.^[9] Manson called the song an anti-racist, anti-capitalist and anti-patriarchal statement of intent^[10] and explained the song's focus was to question the "one old-man perspective", by not only having more women, but also more "black people [...], more brown people, more indigenous, trans, and non-binary people" in position of power to tackle the complex issues of modern society.^[5] Unlike the rest of the tracks, which she usually writes over time, Manson said the lyrics and the melody of "The Men Who Rule the World" came to her "like God, or whatever you consider God, sent [them] down".^[10]

The lyrics were also inspired by the movements of South American women for equal rights, legalizing abortion and stopping violence against women.^[11] In particular, the lyrics "hate the violator / destroy the violator", were inspired by the movements of Argentinian women, who stood outside the government building "with their fists in the air, screaming [...] "you are the violator, we want to destroy you" kind of thing".^[10] Manson said the violator "is anyone who is doing harm, harm to the environment, to other people’s bodies, to animals."^[5]

Drummer Butch Vig suggested the track to be the No Gods No Masters album opener. After some hesitation, Manson agreed reflecting on its potential as "mood setter" for the record and the relevance of its themes, adding "it has a lot of humor in it, and also a lot of outrage. To me, that's the perfect combo."^[12]

The single cover is a black and white edit of The Battle of La Hogue painting by Benjamin West.

Release and promotion

"The Men Who Rule the World" was first teased in a snippet on social media on March 29, 2021.

A live performance of the song was filmed at Mates Rehearsal Studios in North Hollywood on May 19, 2021, for World Cafe.^[15] The song was also performed live extensively at the band's 2021 and 2022 tour dates.

In 2022, "The Men Who Rule the World" was remastered and included in the band's third greatest hits compilation Anthology.^[16]

Music video

The music video of "The Men Who Rule the World" was directed by Chilean artist Javi Mi Amor and premiered on March 30, 2021, on the Garbage YouTube channel.^[3] The video relies heavily on animation realized using the rotoscoping technique and features male figures of power, such as Charles II of England and George II of Great Britain, as well as Donald Trump as the "violator". The video also features animated versions of Manson, inspired by the 1927 sci-fi film Metropolis, and Manson's own dog Veela.

Reception

Barney Townsend praised the track as "a forceful protest song and a clear statement of intent from a band that still believes in the power of dissent"