Throughout the 1970s, the band generally played a style of heavy metal heavily rooted in hard and progressive rock. The band's first studio album, Frost and Fire (1981), featured a heavier sound, generally regarded as an early example of American power metal. By the band's second studio album, King of the Dead (1984), the band had solidified their power metal style of playing while gravitating toward a much 'darker' sound, with many considering the album among the first doom metal releases. The band took their name from the mountain pass Cirith Ungol in J. R. R. Tolkien's epic fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. The name is Elvish and means "Pass of the Spider." While the place in Tolkien's book is pronounced "kirith ungol," the band pronounced it "sirith ungol. Each studio album's cover art is taken from the cover of a DAW Books edition of a book in Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melniboné saga; the art is by Michael Whelan.
Greg Lindstrom, Robert Garven, Jerry Fogle and Pat Galligan (later a guitarist in Angry Samoans) played in Titanic, their first band in junior high school. With a desire to play heavier music similar to that of Mountain and Grand Funk Railroad, the rest of the band parted with Galligan and founded Cirith Ungol in late 1971. After forming in late 1971, the band played their first gig on January 1, 1972 at an anti-Vietnam war peace rally.
In 1980, they were signed by Liquid Flames Records, and released their first album, Frost and Fire, with Tim Baker on vocals and songs written by bassist and guitarist Greg Lindstrom. Their second album, King of the Dead was released in on July 2, 1984 and contained lyrics primarily written by vocalist Tim Baker and drummer Robert Garven. The album was then followed by One Foot in Hell on August 12, 1986, and Paradise Lost on August 23, 1991.
They played their last live show on December 13, 1991 and disbanded in 1992, following frustration with their record label.
In 2001, Metal Blade Records released in Germany Servants of Chaos, a compilation album of unreleased demos and live songs. With old tapes and assistance from Lindstrom and Garven, it was an attempt to give fans a wealth of archival and previously unheard material before the tapes deteriorated beyond retrieval. This double-CD was later re-released worldwide, with a rare 1984 live DVD recorded at Wolf & Rissmiller's Country Club in California. Founding guitarist Jerry Fogle died from liver failure on August 20, 1998.
The band was reformed by members Tim Baker, Robert Garven, Jim Barraza, and Greg Lindstrom on October 8, 2016 at the 2nd annual Frost and Fire Festival in Ventura, California. Throughout 2017, the band had set out to headline and co-headline several European and US festivals, including Keep It True (Germany), Up The Hammers (Greece), Defenders Of The Old (US), Chaos Descends (Germany), Psycho Las Vegas (US), Days Of Darkness (US) and Hammer of Doom (Germany). In April 2018, Cirith Ungol performed at the Hell's Heroes Festival in Houston, Texas and at the NYDM Spring Bash in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In August 2018, Cirith Ungol released the single "Witch's Game". Their latest record Forever Black was released on April 24, 2020.
Before The Lash
Cirith Ungol Lyrics
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The bane of man immortal - the parade of broken dead.
With greed our worldly master, so now pain will be our guide,
As the fallen ones await us all to welter by their side.
Iron dreams of human jackals and our final fate is cast
To slave in endless fire as you cringe before the lash.
Blinded by the darkness, as you pray for his return.
With greed our worldly master, now pain will be our guide,
As the fallen ones await us all to welter by their side.
Iron dreams of human jackals - our final fate is cast,
To slave in endless fire, as you cringe before the lash.
Does evil lie in waiting to extract his heavy toll.
Will bowing to the pulpit bring the cloven to their goal,
But if he s the work of mankind, and the beast our morbid dream,
This dying planet is our heaven, and our hell remains the same.
The lyrics of Cirith Ungol's "Before The Lash" depict a world consumed by greed and corruption, where pain has become a guide for humanity. The imagery suggests a descent into Hell, where the fallen ones await, and the fate of mankind is cast. The opening lines, "In Hell's corrupt and sunken halls the rising shall begin," imply that something dark is about to happen, and the following lines reinforce this impression with the image of "the parade of broken dead."
The second stanza indicates that humanity's fate has been sealed, as "Iron dreams of human jackals" have taken hold, leading to eternal servitude and suffering. The imagery of "endless fire" and "the lash" reinforces the sense of hopelessness and despair. The third and final stanza raises thought-provoking questions about the nature of evil and whether humanity's actions have brought about their own downfall. The lines, "But if he's the work of mankind, and the beast our morbid dream, this dying planet is our heaven, and our hell remains the same," suggest that humanity may be responsible for their own suffering, either through their actions or their beliefs.
Overall, the lyrics of "Before The Lash" are a powerful commentary on the nature of humanity and the consequences of their actions. It suggests that the human race may be spiraling towards their own destruction, either through their own actions or due to external forces beyond their control.
Line by Line Meaning
In Hell s corrupt and sunken halls the rising shall begin,
The beginning of a new era in Hell's corrupted and sunken halls is imminent.
The bane of man immortal - the parade of broken dead.
The unending curse that haunts humanity is the showcase of lifeless and shattered souls.
With greed our worldly master, so now pain will be our guide,
The obsession with wealth has blinded us, hence, pain now acts as our guiding force.
As the fallen ones await us all to welter by their side.
The fallen beings are anticipating our arrival to drag us down and make us suffer alongside them.
Iron dreams of human jackals and our final fate is cast
People's insatiable desires have led to their downfall and now their destiny is predetermined.
To slave in endless fire as you cringe before the lash.
Endlessly laboring in burning flames while fearing the whip is the dreadful fate that awaits us.
Blinded by the darkness, as you pray for his return.
In darkness, we plead for the return of our savior, but in our hearts, we doubt his existence.
But in your soul you fear he s just another one who'll burn.
Deep down, we dread the possibility of our supposed savior being condemned to the same fate as us.
Does evil lie in waiting to extract his heavy toll.
Is evil preparing to exact a hefty price from us?
Will bowing to the pulpit bring the cloven to their goal,
Submitting to religious institutions could be playing into the hands of evil.
But if he s the work of mankind, and the beast our morbid dream,
If our savior is a human creation and the devil a figment of our imagination,
This dying planet is our heaven, and our hell remains the same.
Then, our dying planet is our only hope for glory, as our fate remains unchanged.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JAMES BARRAZA, JOSEPH MALATESTA, ROBERT GARVIN, ROBERT WARRENBURG, TIMOTHY BAKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind