Anthrax: "Indians"

Among The Living, 1987

Back in the '80s, a valid observation could be made that when it came to heavy metal lyrics, it was largely limited to only a handful of topics – partying 'til you puke, swords and sorcery, or being in league with Lucifer. But bands such as Anthrax began exploring more thought-provoking lyrical topics by their third studio effort overall, Among The Living – and in particular, "Indians," which has been known to ignite many a mosh pit when performed live (particularly, when guitarist Scott Ian suggests to the crowd, "WAR DANCE!").

Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante:
"I remember going over to Scott's house in Queens. I drove over the Throgs Neck Bridge to Bayside. I had a lot of ideas for the Among the Living record, and the song that came to be known as 'Indians' was one of the highlights on my riff tape. We wanted to make the song heavy in the content of the lyrics – it had to equal the style and heaviness of the music. We spoke about the plight of the American Indian – the way their land was stolen from them and other atrocities. The song came together quickly, and back in those days things seemed to move fast – we knew what we wanted. The song has never left the setlist – it's been a staple since conception."

Dig Deeper:
"Among The Living," "Caught In A Mosh," "I Am The Law"

Cro-Mags: "We Gotta Know"

The Age Of Quarrel, 1986

Looking back at the '80s, the two metal styles that seemingly enjoyed the most media coverage and chart success were glam and thrash. But it's not to say that there weren't other notable approaches that emerged around the same time, such as "crossover" – which saw bands boldly merge the riffing of metal with the speed and intensity of hardcore. And one of the best examples of this approach was "We Gotta Know" – the lead-off tune from the Cro-Mags' classic debut, The Age Of Quarrel.

Cro-Mags guitarist Parris Mayhew:
"The Cro-Mags, and when I say Cro-Mags, I mean JJ, Parris, Harvey, Mackie, and Doug, the actual Cro-Mags (accept no cheap imitations kids) were in rehearsal, and we were playing the song 'Malfunction,' but I realized I was out of tune. The band was just about to play the part where JJ sings, 'I'm walkin' and I'm talkin',' so I knew that part had chords I could let ring out and would afford me the opportunity to tune while continuing to play.

So, I hit the G chord into the F#, then held the F# and I quickly reached up and turned the tuning peg. I almost got it, but not quite. Everyone was startled by the unexpected change in the song and looked up at me, then I hit those chords again so I could continue tuning, and Mackie also looked up surprised, and as a knee-jerk reaction to the chords ringing out, Mackie joined in with me with big cymbal crashes. Then the band rang out the resolving E chord as usual. While the E chord rang out, I was successful in making the last turn of my tuning peg up to pitch. It did sound incredible so, we ended up adding it to a new song that was taking shape at the time and needed an intro, 'We Gotta Know.'"

Dig Deeper:
"World Peace," "Malfunction," "Hard Times"

Girlschool: "Race With The Devil"

Demolition, 1980

The New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement certainly brought things back to basics for headbangers – concerning aspects of the music (adios to 20-minute jams), lyrical themes (gone were tales of wizards in favor of more street-wise themes), and fashion (denim n' leather became the universal uniform). And while the movement was largely male-based, Girlschool (singer/guitarist Kim McAuliffe, singer/guitarist Kelly Johnson, singer/bassist Enid Williams, and drummer Denise Dufort) rocked just as hard as the boys – particularly on the album-opening keister-kicker, "Race with the Devil," off their debut LP (Demolition).

Girlschool frontwoman Kim McAuliffe:
"One of our favorite... or Kelly [Johnson] and my favorite albums, was the Sex Pistols' Never Mind the Bollocks. That was the 'top album' for us at the time. Whereas Denise [Dufort], our drummer, was into Rainbow at the time. So we had quite diverse musical tastes. I think also the older heavy metal bands had still... not an old-fashioned sound, but still the 'older heavy metal sound,' if you know what I mean. Whereas us young whippersnappers – as we were then – came out with a different take on it."

Dig Deeper::
"Please Don't Touch," "C'mon Let's Go," "Demolition Boys"

Rush: "Anthem"

Fly By Night, 1975

Although 2112 seems to get the nod as the "most important album in Rush's career" (as it was a seemingly make-or-break offering), their sophomore effort Fly By Night was extremely significant as well – as it signaled their first album with drummer Neil Peart. As a result, it showed the band moving away from the distinct Zep direction of their debut and more towards the prog metal trailblazing style we all know and love from the trio. And "Anthem" remains one of Rush's heaviest rockers – with superb instrumental interplay between all three members, and one of Alex Lifeson's best guitar solos.

Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson:
"Fly By Night was quite a departure from the first album and 'Anthem' is a good example of that transition. It displayed the evolution of our approach to songwriting with a more dynamic sense of construction. Playing the intro in 7/4 was a revelation and a precursor to writing some songs in 1,000,000/4. We all loved playing it."

Dig Deeper:
"By-Tor and the Snow Dog," "2112," "Bastille Day"

Faith No More: "Surprise! You're Dead!"

The Real Thing, 1989

Throughout their career, Faith No More took on a variety of different musical styles, and made each one their own. And on what would be their breakthrough album, The Real Thing (thanks to the surprise rap-rock hit, "Epic"), death metal was even homed in on – in the form of "Surprise! You're Dead!" The album's shortest tune (racing by at a breakneck 2:27), a rarely-seen video was created for the track – comprised of mostly hand-held camera footage apparently shot by the band while on tour.

Faith No More bass player Bill Gould: "'Surprise! You're Dead' was all Jim [Martin] – he wrote every note. Originally, we used the title for a very early song of ours but it never was recorded properly. The working title was 'The Sailor Song' or 'Barnacle Balls the Sailor' – because it had a 'sea shanty feel' to it. When it came time for Patton to write his part, if I remember correctly he suggested resurrecting that old title. All I can say is, it worked. Great song, and I have always loved playing it live."

Dig Deeper:
"Be Aggressive," "Digging the Grave," "Introduce Yourself"

You want a special bonus? You got a special bonus! Here's a preview of The 100 Greatest Songs of Punk Rock:

Death: "Rock-N-Roll Victim"

...For the World to See, 2009 (recorded in 1975)

The history of rock has seen several instances where a potentially significant album was shelved and sat lonely for decades – before eventually being dusted off and receiving its proper props. Case in point, what should have been the arrival of the first all-black punk band, Death (not to be confused with the death metal band of the same name), in 1975 – beating the likes of the Ramones to the record store racks by a year. And as heard from such tunes as "Rock-N-Roll Victim," they coulda been a contenda.

Death lead singer Bobby Hackney: "People always say that we preceded the punk sound, and they call us 'proto-punk.' We appreciate and accept that, but back in Detroit, in 1974/1975, when we made this music, if you called someone a 'punk' in Detroit during that time, you got either one of two things – a black eye or a bloody nose. Because those were 'fighting words.' So we just called our music 'hard driving Detroit rock n' roll.' We had no idea that we were laying down the groundwork for what would later be called 'punk music,' but we appreciated it."

Dig Deeper:
"Keep On Knocking," "You're a Prisoner," "Freakin' Out"

April 25, 2023

Order The 100 Greatest Songs of Heavy Metal at Amazon

Further Reading:
Fact or Fiction: Classic Metal
Heavy Metal In The '90s
Interview with Charlie Benante of Anthrax
Legends of Songwriting: Neil Peart
Interview with Bill Gould of Faith No More

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