The Oakland, California band formed in 1998 and released 'The Art of Self Defense' on Man's Ruin Records, in March 2000. After Man's Ruin Records folded, the album was re-released via Tee-Pee Records on CD and vinyl with new artwork and two bonus tracks: Steel Shoe (an original) and The Ursurper (Celtic Frost).
Following, the band signed with Relapse Records and released 'Surrounded by Thieves' in 2002, with production help from Billy Anderson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Anderson_%28music%29). Founding member and bass player George Rice, would leave the band shortly before recording the next album.
In 2004, Relapse and Throne Records released the 'Live from the Contamination Festival' CD and LP (respectively) which was recorded in Philadelphia, PA. The CD is limited to 2000 copies and the LP only 1000.
'Blessed Black Wings', produced by Steve Albini, was released in early 2005, and was their first and only to feature Joe Preston (Earth, Melvins, Thrones) on bass. The vinyl version as well as the Japanese CD version of this album had the Judas Priest song Rapid Fire as a bonus track.
In early 2006, Joe Preston left the band and was replaced by Jeff Matz of Zeke. High On Fire then went on to release the Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden) produced and recorded album, 'Death is This Communion,' in September 2007. To celebrate this release, and the start of their tour for the album, the band played a free show at San Francsico's Amoeba records.
The band released their fifth full-length album Snakes For The Divine in February 2010 through E1 music. The album was produced by Greg Fidelman and stripped away much of the acoustic textures and layering of the previous album, leaving a monolithic heavy sound to the record.
On April 3rd, 2012, High on Fire released their sixth studio album, De Vermis Mysteriis.
Sons of Thunder
High on Fire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
and blacken your eye
Unearthly sounds rumble guts
and stomp your insides
Riffs have come, your fate is sung,
don't even try
Blacks the set, kills all the rest,
the slay masters fly
Enter in the battle ground,
you've come to my time
Black arena, till the death,
a game we play blind
You've stepped your bounds, beg for life,
if we'd be so kind
Drive the fist into your face
and blacken your eyes
The lyrics to High on Fire's "Silver Back" describe a brutal and violent battle that takes place in a black arena until death. The use of words like "fist" and "blacken your eyes" create a vivid image of physical violence. The guitar riffs in the song build up the tension and amplify the intensity of the lyrics. Furthermore, the idea of "slay masters" flying and the battle participants begging for their lives highlights the theme of power and dominance in the song.
The language used in the lyrics creates a dark and ominous atmosphere. The music reinforces this mood by being heavy and aggressive. The lyrics may be interpreted as a metaphor for life, where one must fight to survive, and only the strong will prevail. However, the song's violent imagery and the repetition of "Drive the fist into your face" can also be seen as problematic and promote unnecessary violence.
Line by Line Meaning
Drive the fist into your face
Attack with a punch to your face with force
and blacken your eye
Cause damage by hitting one of your eyes leading to bruising
Unearthly sounds rumble guts
Noises that are beyond human that create vibrations in your stomach
and stomp your insides
Cause significant internal damage by stepping on your insides
Riffs have come, your fate is sung,
The guitar riffs have arrived, and the fate or destiny of the listener is determined
don't even try
Don't make any attempts to resist or escape
Blacks the set, kills all the rest,
The darkness prevails, and it's lethal for anyone else
the slay masters fly
The conquerors have the upper hand and are taking over with ease
Enter in the battle ground,
Step into the location of the fight
you've come to my time
You're in the realm of the artist and have entered their era
Black arena, till the death,
The battlefield is dark, and the game will only stop with your death
a game we play blind
The game is played without any prior knowledge or understanding of the rules
You've stepped your bounds, beg for life,
You've crossed the line and violated the limit, request for survival
if we'd be so kind
Asking for mercy from the opponent, doubtful whether it will be received
Drive the fist into your face
Attack with a punch to your face with force
and blacken your eyes
Cause damage by hitting one of your eyes leading to bruising
Contributed by Isaac F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.