They released their debut album, Odd How People Shake, in 2003 on Rise Records, and after gaining some notoriety, were signed to Equal Vision Records, who re-released their debut in the January 2004. Their debut was primarily in the vein of post-hardcore, featuring a mix of screamed vocals on the part of David Marion and clean singing provided by Adam Fisher. The instrumental work on Odd How People Shake is best described as typical of that of most melodic metalcore artists of the day, and it is rumoured that every song on the album is based on a movie ("Sarah Goldfarb, Where are Your Manners?", for example, is supposedly about Requiem for a Dream, while on their sophomore album, Art Damage, "The Story of the Curious Oysters" has more to do with the Disney movie, Alice in Wonderland). It is interesting and worth noting that the band's cover art on all three of their albums feature skyscrapers.
Their sophomore album, Art Damage, was released on Equal Vision Records in September 2004, and was a marked change in direction for the band. Art Damage as an album was much heavier and darker than their debut; the band left behind the relative simplicity and, arguably, tiredness of the instrumental work of their debut in favor of the abrasiveness characterizing bands such as Converge and Every Time I Die. In addition, virtually all of the vocals are screamed, with the exception of an odd chorus or verse.
The critical consensus seems to favor their new direction, and in concert, the band plays few if any songs from their debut. On their website, they explicitly state that they will not play one song in particular from their debut, "On the Brightside, She Could Choke;" interestingly enough, this song also has the most prominent elements of emo of all the songs in their catalogue, which could be one of the reasons they have grown so adverse to playing it.
Their new album, The Always Open Mouth, was released on Tuesday, September 19, 2006. This album marks a considerably different sound from previous recordings. This album contains a much more experimental side, such as more emphasis on antiphony between the lead singer and guitarist and a considerable lesser amount of screaming. It features layered guitar chords (a second guitarist was added to the band before the recording of this album), and many electronic sounds used with heavily-distorted or otherwise-effected guitars and synthesizers, or sequencers and drum machines, giving it a more industrial feel. As a result, it is not as hard or fast as their previous two albums, but instead, is more experimental and well-crafted.
With newly added members and a new approach at performing music, they set off on numerous tours mid-2006 to promote their latest CD The Always Open Mouth, touring with bands such as Thursday, The Number Twelve Looks Like You, HeavyHeavyLowLow, The Jonbenet, and the Radio Rebellion Tour with bands The Fully Down, The Confession, blessthefall, Misery Signals, Between the Buried and Me, and headliners of the tour Norma Jean. During a show on November 4th in San Diego, California, bassist Mike Madruga accidentally hit singer Dave Marion on the side of his face with the headstock of his bass, knocking him unconscious on stage. When he awoke, there was a hole that went all the way through his cheek, and although the band continued to finish the set, he had to be rushed to the hospital to be treated for the injury, and because of this, the band missed the following 3 days of the tour, but Dave is now fine and has finished the rest of the Radio Rebellion Tour.
On 2008]-09-09, Fear Before the March of Flames officially shortened their name to Fear Before.
Current line-up
* David Michael Marion - vocals
* Adam (Rupert) Fisher - guitar, vocals, keys
* Michael Madruga - bass
* Clayton (Goose) Holyoak - drums
Former members
* Billy Johnson - guitar, keyboards
* Brandon Proff - drums
* Zachary (Binks) Hutchings - guitar
High As A Horse
Fear Before The March Of Flames Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They won't see the approaching ledge
Too much time and effort spent on just another bridge
We trust the local doctor
We trust the medicine
Our child gets a scratch
We give our child a brand new head
We drink what's in our cup
We like the shiny tv screen
It spits we lap it up
And so they push this product
And they know we'll buy it
They sing a song
We hum along
We sing
But we don't understand the words to the song
And they fill our heads
With sugar coated shit
Cause there's no need to talk
When we have medicine
There's a pill for every fucked up thought
And a cure for every fucked up child
When the mind starts running
Be sure it won't cross the finish line
And if it wanders
Bring it back and cage it for some time
And if it stretches
It will only one day rip
To prevent excessive thought
Just keep it up on the shelf
And when the shelves are full
And supplies are short
And quickly running out
You've got a thousand mindless zombies
And terrified horses on your hands
It was a damn good plan
It was a damn good plan
The lyrics to Fear Before The March Of Flames' song "High As A Horse" speak to the idea that people are often blind to the consequences of their actions, and are more likely to follow the crowd than to think for themselves. The opening line, "If we give the horses blinders, they won't see the approaching ledge," sets the tone for the rest of the song. The "horses" in this case could be seen as a metaphor for people blindly following what they are told, without questioning it.
The lyrics then go on to describe how people trust authority figures like doctors and advertisers, without questioning their motives. They eat what they are served, drink what they are given, and watch whatever is put in front of them. They are content to follow the crowd, even if they don't fully understand what they are doing. The line "And they fill our heads with sugar coated shit, cause there's no need to talk when we have medicine" speaks to the idea that people are often given easy answers, instead of being encouraged to think for themselves.
The final section of the song speaks to the consequences of this type of thinking. If people are discouraged from thinking for themselves, they become mindless zombies, incapable of making decisions or taking action when it is needed. The line "And if it stretches, it will only one day rip, to prevent excessive thought just keep it up on the shelf" speaks to the idea that when people are discouraged from using their minds, they may one day find themselves incapable of doing so.
Line by Line Meaning
If we give the horses blinders
If we restrict people from seeing the whole picture
They won't see the approaching ledge
They won't notice the danger ahead
Too much time and effort spent on just another bridge
We waste our time on things that don't really matter
We trust the local doctor
We put too much faith in authority figures
We trust the medicine
We rely too much on easy fixes
Our child gets a scratch
We overreact to minor problems
We give our child a brand new head
We jump to extreme solutions
We eat what's on our plate
We blindly accept what's given to us
We drink what's in our cup
We consume whatever is available without questioning it
We like the shiny tv screen
We are easily distracted by entertainment
It spits we lap it up
We are passive consumers of media
And so they push this product
The media and corporations manipulate us
And they know we'll buy it
They take advantage of our mindless consumption
They sing a song
They tell us what we want to hear
We hum along
We mindlessly follow along
We sing
We participate in the manipulation
But we don't understand the words to the song
We are unaware of the true intentions behind the message
And they fill our heads
They inundate us with information
With sugar coated shit
With pleasant but false messages
Cause there's no need to talk
They don't engage in honest communication
When we have medicine
When we have easy solutions
There's a pill for every fucked up thought
We expect a quick fix for every problem
And a cure for every fucked up child
We believe there is a simple solution to every issue
When the mind starts running
When we start to think for ourselves
Be sure it won't cross the finish line
We won't be able to complete independent thoughts
And if it wanders
If our thoughts become too expansive
Bring it back and cage it for some time
We are encouraged to suppress our creativity and independent thought
And if it stretches
If our ideas become too innovative
It will only one day rip
Our independent thought will be discouraged
To prevent excessive thought
To prevent true creativity and innovation
Just keep it up on the shelf
We are expected to conform and not think outside the box
And when the shelves are full
When there are too many conformists
And supplies are short
And true creativity and innovation is lacking
And quickly running out
And it becomes difficult to think independently
You've got a thousand mindless zombies
You have a society of people who are unable to think for themselves
And terrified horses on your hands
And they are driven by fear rather than rational thought
It was a damn good plan
It was a successful attempt at manipulating society
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@kentallard589
a huge part of my life! thank you for these uploads!
@tehmodestmouse6275
Absolutely. Thank you for your taste in music
@hussguy1990
Not only is this album absolutely incredible and unique and underappreciated, but like damn are these lyrics relevant right now.
@tehmodestmouse6275
You couldn’t speak any more truth
@tehmodestmouse6275
And holy shit it speaks more truth than I even thought
@Zimx02
they were always relevant. it's just a shame that it took 16 years for people to realize. it's crazy how many people thought these bands were saying things like this to be cool or something.
@Titantitan001
They were relevant then too
@hussguy1990
@@Titantitan001 I couldn't agree more. But they have aged like fine wine unlike some other important songs from the time.
@NebUlaDeigns
These lyrics are so relatable it is scary
@Zimx02
do you think that maybe that's why they wrote them lmao