Machine Head's first four albums earned the band a growing fan base in Europe, however the band would not have success in their native United States until later releases. The band drew controversy with its fourth album, Supercharger (2001), released three weeks after the September 11 attacks, which resulted in the album's only single, "Crashing Around You", and its music video (which featured burning buildings) being pulled from all media outlets. The band nearly disbanded in 2002 after negotiating off its label Roadrunner Records as a result of the controversy, however the band would eventually re-sign with the label.
Having experimented with elements of groove metal and nu metal in its early releases, Machine Head changed to a more traditional thrash metal sound and longer songs with its sixth album, The Blackening (2007), which drew critical acclaim and was chosen as Album of the Decade by Metal Hammer in 2010; the album's first single, "Aesthetics of Hate", also earned the band its first Grammy Award nomination. The band achieved similar success with its following two albums, Unto the Locust (2011) and Bloodstone & Diamonds (2014), before returning to its nu metal roots with the release of its ninth album, Catharsis (2018).
Machine Head has released nine studio albums, two live albums, one video album, 13 singles and 15 music videos. Four of the band's studio albums have been certified silver in the United Kingdom, and the band's highest peak on the Billboard 200 came with Bloodstone & Diamonds at number 21. To date, the band has sold over three million records worldwide.
Studio albums
Burn My Eyes (1994)
The More Things Change... (1997)
The Burning Red (1999)
Supercharger (2001)
Through the Ashes of Empires (2003)
The Blackening (2007)
Unto the Locust (2011)
Bloodstone & Diamonds (2014)
Catharsis (2018)
Darkness Within
Machine Head Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Depression heavy in its weigh
And how my body aches to leave
To sing its final eulogy
My sons I love you evermore
And though the road beckons once more
I see the damage that I've done
In search for redemption
Whose souls cries out to understand
How the madness shatters me
Upon the stage on bended knee
I scream out loud at skies above
That answer mute bereft in love
I struggle not to fall from grace
Or sing the hymns of my disgrace
We build cathredrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
Mysterys forgotten chords
I strum in vain to please the lord
But he has never answered me
My faith has waned eternally
In empty men who pass along
The woes of all religions wrong
But now the shadowed veil it falls
Heed the clarion call
So pray to music build a shrine
Listen in these desperate times
Fill your heart with every note
Cherish it and cast afloat
Because god is in these clef and tone
Salvation is found alone
Haunted by its melody
Music it will set you free
Let it set you free
We build cathredrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
Music my saviour (save me)
We build cathredrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
The lyrics of "Darkness Within" by Machine Head are an introspective portrayal of the struggles of depression and the search for redemption. The singer talks about being in a dark place, with depression weighing heavily on him, and an overwhelming desire to end the pain. The search for redemption is evident in lines that speak of striving not to fall from grace or sing the hymns of disgrace. The singer talks about being a broken man, whose soul cries out to understand how the madness shatters him. He questions and challenges the silence of the divine in his suffering.
The song builds on the concept of finding solace in music, one's faith in the higher power, and its healing properties. The lyrics masterfully use religious imagery to express the singer's state of mind, with references to the search for redemption and the struggle not to fall from grace. The song reaches its pinnacle when the singer acknowledges that music is his savior and sets him free from the darkness within.
Overall, the song's message is about finding hope and redemption in the darkest of places, how music and faith can help one persevere, and the importance of cherishing and finding beauty in life's little moments despite the immense pain and suffering.
Line by Line Meaning
Here in the darkness that I lay
I feel hopeless and lost.
Depression heavy in its weigh
My sadness is overwhelming me.
And how my body aches to leave
I want to escape from this pain.
To sing its final eulogy
To end the suffering and die.
My sons I love you evermore
I want my children to know I love them.
And though the road beckons once more
Even though I feel compelled to give up.
I see the damage that I've done
I regret the mistakes I've made.
In search for redemption
I am trying to make amends for my past.
But I am just a broken man
I am emotionally and mentally shattered.
Whose souls cries out to understand
I am searching for meaning in my pain.
How the madness shatters me
The chaos around me is breaking me down.
Upon the stage on bended knee
I am performing and pleading for help.
I scream out loud at skies above
I am calling out for help from a higher power.
That answer mute bereft in love
I feel like there is no response or love from above.
I struggle not to fall from grace
I am trying not to lose my faith completely.
Or sing the hymns of my disgrace
I don't want to dwell on the negative parts of my life.
We build cathredrals to our pain
We create lasting memories and symbols of our suffering.
Establish monuments to attain
We try to mark our pain as significant.
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
We hope to find a way to be free from our past mistakes.
Lest we drown in the darkness within
Otherwise, we may be overcome by our internal struggles.
Mysterys forgotten chords
The music I once felt a connection to now eludes me.
I strum in vain to please the lord
I am trying to find solace in music and religion.
But he has never answered me
I feel like there is no divine response to my pain.
My faith has waned eternally
I feel like I have lost faith in anything.
In empty men who pass along
People who are not genuine are spreading falsehoods.
The woes of all religions wrong
Even religion doesn't seem to have a grasp on fixing the world's problems.
But now the shadowed veil it falls
A path to enlightenment and understanding opens up.
Heed the clarion call
Take notice of the path laid out before me.
So pray to music build a shrine
Find hope and inspiration in music.
Listen in these desperate times
Pay attention to the message in music when I feel helpless.
Fill your heart with every note
Let the music heal me entirely.
Cherish it and cast afloat
Let it be the driving force to feel my best.
Because god is in these clef and tone
There is something godly and powerful in music.
Salvation is found alone
I can only be saved by myself.
Haunted by its melody
The beauty of music will always stick with me.
Music it will set you free
Music can be an escape from pain.
Music my saviour (save me)
Music is what I am depending on to rescue me from my suffering.
Lyrics © Fintage House Publishing
Written by: DAVID WAYNE MCCLAIN, PHILIP JOHN DEMMEL, ROBERT CONRAD FLYNN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dimitris S.
Here in this darkness that I lay
Depression heavy in its weigh
And how my body aches to leave
To sing its final eulogy
My sons I love you evermore
And though the road beckons once more
I see the damage that I've done
In search for redemption
But I am just a broken man
Whose soul cries out to understand
How the madness shatters me
Upon the stage on bended knee
I scream out loud at skies above
That answer mute bereft in love
I struggle not to fall from grace
Or sing the hymns of my disgrace
We build cathedrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
Mystery's forgotten chords
I strum in vain to please the lord
But he has never answered me
My faith has waned eternally
In empty men who pass along
The woes of all religions wrong
But now the Shadowed veil it falls
Heed the Clarion call
So pray to music build a shrine
Worship in these desperate times
Fill your heart with every note
Cherish it and cast afloat
'Cause god is in these clef and tone
Salvation is found alone
Haunted by its melody
Music it will set you free
Let it set you free
We build cathedrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
Music my saviour (Save me)
We build cathedrals to our pain
Establish monuments to attain
Freedom from all of the scars and the sins
Lest we drown in the darkness within
3rd Decibel
This song has it all. Melody, screams, hate, passion, tranquility, energy, deep lyrics and an amazing solo. This is why I love metal.
Millionaire
fuck yeah dude!!! That's all of it, nothing more to say
Nazgul 66-sic
3rd Decibel yes! Machine Head specifically, is over the top! I feel like every metal head loves them. regardless of what type of metal your into. all metal heads can agree on Machine Head. it's hard to classify what sub genre they are specifically. doesn't really matter. just saying, they are all over the place with different sub genre sounds mixed in. HAIL FUCKING MACHINE HEAD!
mrmonkeboy
I went to see them and the crowd was full of old skool metalers, bikers, young emo kids, punks, normals... then the music started and everyone was just a sweaty mess. My ears rang for days after. So loud and so amazing.
Nazgul 66-sic
mrmonkeboy yea, see. that's exactly what I'm talking about. if you like any style of metal, you like Machine Head.
Nolasco Pereira
3rd Decibel me too!
Mostafa Hossain Tuhin
I don't think people realize how legendary this is. I feel bad for those who only listen to mainstream music.
K Byrd
This is such a awesome song. Mainstream is so boring.
Zeynep keşsmf
I KNOW RIGHT
rayvenswrath
This song is greater than all the mainstream one hit wonders.they comes and goes like seasons but this type of songs will never ever grow old.i totally agree with you,music lovers who haven't heard this masterpiece are really loosing something beautiful in their lives.