Fu Manchu's first album, No One Rides for Free (1994), was released by Bong Load Custom Records, an independent label. No One Rides for Free marked the beginning of the band's heavy focus on muscle cars and drag racing, common themes in the stoner rock genre.
Abshire left Fu Manchu before they recorded their second album, Daredevil, in 1995. He was replaced by Brad Davis. The band promoted Daredevil with extensive touring throughout the US and Canada, and reached a wider audience thanks to an opening slot with Monster Magnet, who at the time were the commercial darlings of the stoner rock genre.
Romano and Glass left shortly after the release of Fu Manchu's third album, In Search Of... (1996), citing personal and musical differences with Hill. They were replaced by Brant Bjork and Bob Balch, respectively. Glass, Romano and Abshire soon regrouped to form Nebula, a power trio that took the jam-influenced side of Fu Manchu and expanded on it. Members of Nebula have commented that "we're all family" to fans wearing Fu Manchu shirts at their concerts.
Fu Manchu went on to release several successful albums and reinforce their reputation as a powerful live act. The band had gained this reputation over the years due to their performance when touring with notable bands such as Kyuss, Monster Magnet, Marilyn Manson, Clutch, Corrosion of Conformity, White Zombie, Sevendust, and P.O.D., among others.
In 2001, the band released an album, California Crossing. Brant Bjork left the band soon after to pursue a solo career and was replaced by former Sunshine and Smile drummer Scott Reeder (often confused with bassist Scott Reeder, of Kyuss, Unida, and Goatsnake fame). In 2004, Fu Manchu released their eighth album, Start the Machine.
Fu Manchu's ninth album is called We Must Obey which was released on February 19, 2007. The band spent most of 2007 and 2008 on tour, playing several shows in North America and Europe.
In February 2008, the track "Mongoose" (from the California Crossing album) was featured in a Super Bowl ad for the Toyota Sequoia.
Their tenth album Signs of Infinite Power was released on October 19, 2009, in Europe and October 20 in North America.
On March 10, 2010, it was announced that Scott Reeder would play drums for Social Distortion for the South American tour dates in April. In June 2012, the band stated they had begun writing for a new record. In 2014, the band released its eleventh album, Gigantoid.
In December 2017, they announced their twelfth album, Clone of the Universe, which released on February 9, 2018.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fu_Manchu_(band)
Studio albums
No One Rides for Free (1994)
Daredevil (1995)
In Search Of... (1996)
The Action Is Go (1997)
Godzilla's/Eatin' Dust (1999)
King of the Road (2000)
California Crossing (2001)
Start the Machine (2004)
We Must Obey (2007)
Signs of Infinite Power (2009)
Gigantoid (2014)
Clone of the Universe (2018)
Eatin' Dust
Fu Manchu Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Spinnin' last four speeds
Convoy says lets roll
Inner state, time to go
King of the mountain screams
Pedal down, seven three
Driver rolled his eyes
Land controller
All seer, all knower
Dual freak lies
Headfirst downside
It's overblown
By now, they know
5 miles to go
In 20 years, they'll show
Engines die down
Slow paced, low ground
Crowd gathers near
What they saw? What they hear?
Had a job to do
Right side, straight through
The light starts to rise
Some left, hell of a ride
In Fu Manchu's song Eatin' Dust, the lyrics paint a picture of a high-speed car chase or race. The song starts with the "road demon" seeing "spinnin' last four speeds," indicating that the car is going as fast as it can. The "convoy" shouts to "let's roll" and get on the "inner state" to start the race. The "king of the mountain" screams and speeds up, while the driver rolls their eyes and the search lights shine.
The next verse talks about a "land controller" who knows everything and a "dual freak" who is headfirst "downside." The chorus says that it's all "overblown" and that they know now that there are "5 miles to go" before the race is over. The final verse talks about the engines dying down and the pace slowing as the crowd gathers to see what happened. The race ends with the cars going right through to the finish line as the light starts to rise.
Overall, the song is about the thrill and danger of a high-speed car race or chase. The use of vivid language paints a picture of the action, with the "road demon" and "king of the mountain" representing the intense competitiveness of the racers. The "land controller" and "dual freak" add a sense of mystery and intrigue to the story.
Line by Line Meaning
The road demon sees
The driver of the vehicle is heavily focused on the road before them, and is experiencing a certain level of urgency.
Spinnin' last four speeds
The vehicle is going high speeds, relying on the last four gears of the transmission.
Convoy says lets roll
The group traveling together informs the driver that they are ready to move on to the next location.
Inner state, time to go
The group is now traveling through the inner state of the country.
King of the mountain screams
The driver is completely focused on the task at hand and commanding the road in front of them like a king.
Pedal down, seven three
The driver is pushing the gas pedal all the way down and exceeding speeds at 73 miles per hour.
Driver rolled his eyes
The driver shows a level of annoyance or perhaps discomfort at his traveling companions.
Search light, they shine
The group encounters a search light shining upon them, adding to the risk and excitement of their journey.
Land controller
The driver feels in control of the entire situation, continuing to press on with confidence.
All seer, all knower
The driver has a sense of confidence that he can avoid any obstacles and sees them before they arise.
Dual freak lies
There are two strange people traveling with the group, perhaps adding to the danger of the trip.
Headfirst downside
The driver and his group continue on at a fast and reckless pace, ignoring any potential danger that may lie ahead.
It's overblown
The excitement of the journey is beginning to wear off and the risks seem less and less as they go on.
By now, they know
The group is fully aware of the risks and is pushing through the journey with their eyes wide open.
5 miles to go
The group is nearing their destination, only five miles away.
In 20 years, they'll show
Although the journey is exciting now, it may not be looked upon as favorably in the future.
Engines die down
The group is slowing down as they approach their destination.
Slow paced, low ground
The group is now moving at a much slower pace and is on flat terrain.
Crowd gathers near
A group of onlookers is now near the scene of the group's arrival, perhaps giving them an audience to admire their achievement.
What they saw? What they hear?
The group may be curious as to what the onlookers saw or heard while they were traveling.
Had a job to do
The journey was an important task or goal that the group needed to accomplish.
Right side, straight through
The group took a right on their path, and are continuing straight through towards their destination.
The light starts to rise
Daylight is beginning to emerge, and the group's journey is coming to an end.
Some left, hell of a ride
Some in the group may have parted ways at the end of the journey, and the entire experience was thrilling and exciting.
Lyrics © WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JerryMane69
The road demon sees
Spinnin' last, four speeds
Convoy says let's roll!
Innerstate, time to go!
King of the mountain screams
Pedal down, seven three
Driver rolled his eyes
Search light, they shine
Land controller
All seer, all knower
Dual freak lies
Headfirst downside
It's overblown
By now, they know
5 miles to go
In 20 years, they'll show
Engines die
Slow paced, low ground
Crowd gathers near
What they saw, what they hear
Had a job to do
Right side, straight through
The light starts to rise
Some left, hell of a ride
JerryMane69
The road demon sees
Spinnin' last, four speeds
Convoy says let's roll!
Innerstate, time to go!
King of the mountain screams
Pedal down, seven three
Driver rolled his eyes
Search light, they shine
Land controller
All seer, all knower
Dual freak lies
Headfirst downside
It's overblown
By now, they know
5 miles to go
In 20 years, they'll show
Engines die
Slow paced, low ground
Crowd gathers near
What they saw, what they hear
Had a job to do
Right side, straight through
The light starts to rise
Some left, hell of a ride
Wes Bags
Just discovered these guys this year! Killer sound....I play guitar and found the tab....man the notes they play is what I always jam around so cool! Classic sounds...awesome....gotta make up for lost time.
Fun videos 2022
Me and my guys brought a speaker down to an empty quarry and were blasting this while dirt biking
BlueSpy81
MX Unleashed irl 😂
Vinyl Solution
One of the greatest circular crushing Riffs since Supernaut!
aphexapex
these guys are so fucking awesome, this music just makes me happy
Lil RanchBoi
this deserves 1 million views.
Benry
I'm doing my part.
Jack Fetterer
1 billion if had a video
Vinyl Solution
I've seen the Mighty Fu over 80 times, they Always crush it! Check em out if you've never had the pleasure.
Cant wait for the first Casbah show after the plague.
Unknown World!!!!!!!!