Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band formed in Tampa, Florida and cur… Read Full Bio ↴Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band formed in Tampa, Florida and currently based in Columbus, Indiana. They were formed in 1984 under the name the Rose, then Purgatory, by guitarist and main songwriter Jon Schaffer and original drummer Greg Seymour. Iced Earth released their debut album in 1990 and have since released twelve studio albums, four EPs, three compilations, three box sets, three live albums and eleven music videos.

After releasing the demo EP Enter the Realm (1989) and signing to Century Media Records, the band released two full-length studio albums – Iced Earth (1990) and Night of the Stormrider (1991) – before taking a two-year hiatus from 1992 to 1994, after which the band returned with new lead vocalist Matt Barlow. Iced Earth went on to release four studio albums with him in over half a decade: Burnt Offerings (1995), The Dark Saga (1996), Something Wicked This Way Comes (1998) and Horror Show (2001).

After Horror Show, Barlow quit the band and joined the police force, while Iced Earth continued on with Tim "Ripper" Owens, formerly of Judas Priest, on vocals. With Owens, the band released two studio albums (2004's The Glorious Burden and 2007's Framing Armageddon: Something Wicked Part 1). In late 2007, Barlow rejoined the band, and they recorded one more album with him: The Crucible of Man: Something Wicked Part 2 (2008). In 2011, Barlow once again left Iced Earth, and was replaced by Into Eternity frontman Stu Block. Dystopia, Block's first album with the group, was released that October; the album received a positive response, while some critics called it one of Iced Earth's best albums. The group recorded two more albums with Block: Plagues of Babylon (2014) and Incorruptible (2017).

Before arriving at their current lineup, Iced Earth has had numerous line-up changes, with founder Jon Schaffer as the only founding member remaining. As of 2021, there have been over thirty musicians in and out of Iced Earth since its formation in 1984.

The band is composed solely of Schaffer and drummer Brent Smedley, with all other band members having departed following Schaffer's January 2021 arrest by the FBI for his involvement in the Capitol riots. Schaffer is in FBI custody on felony charges, which has generated new publicity for Iced Earth and has resulted in the band being dropped from their longtime label Century Media.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iced_Earth

Studio albums
Iced Earth (1990)
Night of the Stormrider (1991)
Burnt Offerings (1995)
The Dark Saga (1996)
Something Wicked This Way Comes (1998)
Horror Show (2001)
The Glorious Burden (2004)
Framing Armageddon: Something Wicked Part 1 (2007)
The Crucible of Man: Something Wicked Part 2 (2008)
Dystopia (2011)
Plagues of Babylon (2014)
Incorruptible (2017)
A Narrative Soundscape (2022)

When the Night Falls
Iced Earth Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Look, out in the distant sky
Open, up your weakened minds
Feel, what's in store for you
The jackals howling at the moon
See, the curtain of the night
Falling, down into your life
Doom, is headed straight for you
The night comes shining through

Join us in our never ending journey
Into the burning lake of fire
Let us fill your helpless soul
Fill it with sweet desire
When the night falls
When the moon's full
Recall, the look in their eyes
The sign of hat, it burns
They've come for us, but we'll fight
Till death
Hypnotizing, paralyzing
Brings me to my knees
Tantalizing suicide
Drives me to the edge
When the night falls, when death crawls
Frozen in my sleep
Rippers slashing, terror laughing
Numbers burning deep
Join us in our never ending journey
Into the burning lake of fire
Let us fill your helpless soul
Fill it with sweet desire

When the night falls
When the moon's full

Overall Meaning

The song "When the Night Falls" by Iced Earth is a haunting and powerful exploration of the darkness that can lurk within the human soul. The lyrics evoke a sense of foreboding and imminent danger, with the jackals howling in the distance and the curtain of the night falling heavily upon the listener. The imagery of the burning lake of fire and the sweet desire that fills the helpless soul suggests that the journey this song invites us to join is not a safe one.

The chorus, with its repetition of the phrase "When the night falls, when the moon's full," creates a sense of inevitability, as if the darkness is something that cannot be avoided but must be faced head-on. The references to being hypnotized and paralyzed, along with the idea of tantalizing suicide, add to the feeling of helplessness and despair.

Overall, this song is a powerful meditation on the power of darkness and the struggle within each of us to confront and overcome it. It is a testament to the enduring appeal of heavy metal as a genre that it can tackle these difficult and sometimes uncomfortable themes so effectively.

Line by Line Meaning

Look, out in the distant sky
Take a moment to observe the far-off sky

Open, up your weakened minds
Allow your minds to become more receptive

Feel, what's in store for you
Become aware of what awaits you

The jackals howling at the moon
Ferocious creatures making their presence known

See, the curtain of the night
Observe the darkness of the night

Falling, down into your life
Enveloping your existence with its embrace

Doom, is headed straight for you
The inevitable destruction looms in your future

The night comes shining through
The darkness emerges, becoming more prominent

Join us in our never ending journey
Become a part of our eternal quest

Into the burning lake of fire
Venture into the fiery abyss

Let us fill your helpless soul
Allow us to satisfy your vulnerable spirit