Manilla Road was created by Shelton in 1977 with high school friends Benny Munkirs, Rick Fisher and brothers Robert and Scott Park. After playing in local bars, the group first gained attention with their song "Herman Hill," inspired by the Herman Hill riot. Their first album "Invasion" was released in 1980 on the band's own label, Roadster Records. Between this time and their next release the band recorded material for an album to be titled "The Dreams Of Eschaton", however this was not released until 2002 (under the name "Mark of the Beast") as they were not happy with the sound. Shelton has been quoted as saying the music was "not metal enough" and "sounded like shit." Despite this "Mark of the Beast" was critically well received when it was eventually released. These early albums have more in common with progressive rock and proto-heavy metal than the band's later epic metal sound.
The next record was "Metal" in 1982, which began to define the future musical direction of Manilla Road. Their "classic" sound was solidified with the epic release of "Crystal Logic" in 1983.
The next five Manilla Road albums (along with a live release, "Roadkill") featured new drummer Randy Foxe, who had more of a thrash-oriented style than original drummer Rick Fisher. Along with "Crystal Logic" (1983), the new lineup's first two albums, "Open the Gates" (1985) and "The Deluge" (1986), are generally considered to be classics in the field of epic heavy metal. It was on these three albums that Manilla Road's style became fully formed. Lyrics typically feature fantastic elements from Norse mythology, Arthurian legend or other literary sources. These are often combined in one setting, the concept album "Atlantis Rising" (2001), for example, features a war between the Æsir and Cthulhu, centered around the city of Atlantis.
"Mystification" (1987) suffered from exceptionally poor production resulting, ironically, from the substandard equipment at a new studio the band hoped would improve their sound. The recent re-release has fixed this problem to a large extent. After Mystification came "Out of the Abyss" (1988), widely criticised at the time for its thrash metal influences. The band released one more album, "The Courts of Chaos" (1992), described by Shelton as "the first true Manilla Road masterpiece" before splitting up because of personal and musical disagreements between Scott Park and Randy Foxe.
In 1992 Mark Shelton recorded "Circus Maximus" with Aaron Brown and Andrew Coss. Despite having never been intended as a Manilla Road project, the album was released under this name at the record company's insistence.
Manilla Road re-formed in 1994 and released "Atlantis Rising" in 2001, again with Mark Shelton as the only original member. On this occasion, however, the sound was much more consistent with the Manilla Road of old and it was the band who decided to continue using the name. Their latest albums are "Spiral Castle" published in 2002, "Gates Of Fire", in 2005, and "Voyager" in 2008. In May 2009 they released their second live album called "After Midnight Live", which was recorded live, on the air, at KMUW radio studios, Wichita, Kansas in December of 1979 shortly before the release of their debut album "Invasion". The album "Playground of the Damned" was released in 2011, followed by "Mysterium" in 2013, "The Blessed Curse" in 2015, and what was their final release, "To Kill a King" in 2017.
Mark "The Shark" Shelton died in Germany from a heart attack at the age of 60. Manilla Road were on tour at the time of Shelton’s death; he had performed at Germany’s Headbangers Open Air Festival the previous night.
From Beyond
Manilla Road Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The tuning forks are set
Turn on the Resonator
Start the experiment
The forks begin vibrating
Demensional walls gone
The machine is eminating
Resonations from beyond
Even inside my mind
Everything turns to ecstasy
No, now the thing appears
Everything to be feared
Lives inside this blasphemy
Nightmare always there
The machine revealed it
Lifelike but not quiet
Like life as we know it
Life, there is so little time
Something insid my mind
Extending my pineal gland
No, is it inside my brain
Or am I going insane
Experiment is out of hand
Inside the field of the forks
Demensional barriars desolve
Vibrations open the doors
Into the worlds of beyond
Is this the gateway to hell
Opened up by the machine
Is this where Elder Gods dwell
Or am I lost in a dream
Something comes
Not from the grave
But from the beyond
No,
Nothing can save
You from beyond
Here is the merchant of death
Master of all the unknown
Uncounted years he has slept
Awakened by frequency tones
Come to crush and devour
All of the life that it can
Receiving all of its power
From a machine built by man
Still it comes
Not from the grave
But from beyond
No,
Nothing can save
You from beyond
The lyrics to "From Beyond" by Manilla Road appear to describe a dangerous experiment of some kind involving a Resonator that opens up dimensional walls and emits resonations from "Beyond". The song reflects a feeling of excitement and ecstasy at first as the experimenter's mind opens up to new possibilities, but quickly turns to terror and horror as a "Nightmare" emerges from the experiment. The lyrics speak of something coming "not from the grave, but from Beyond," suggesting a dangerous realm beyond human understanding that has been unleashed by the experiment.
The song's lyrics seem to be inspired by classic horror and science fiction themes, particularly those found in the works of H.P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft's writing often explores themes of cosmic horror and the unknown, as well as the dangers of pursuing scientific knowledge without understanding the potential consequences. The lyrics of "From Beyond" tap into the same sense of excitement and terror in scientific discovery.
Line by Line Meaning
Computations are figured
The necessary calculations for the experiment have been completed
The tuning forks are set
The tuning forks have been arranged properly
Turn on the Resonator
Activate the machine designed to produce resonance
Start the experiment
Begin the scientific procedure
The forks begin vibrating
The tuning forks start to vibrate
Demensional walls gone
The barriers between dimensions have vanished
The machine is eminating
The machine is producing
Resonations from beyond
Sound waves emanating from another dimension
Life, never was so defined
The concept of life has never been fully realized
Even inside my mind
Even in my thoughts
Everything turns to ecstasy
The sensations are overwhelming
No, now the thing appears
What appears is not expected
Everything to be feared
Everything present has a terrifying nature
Lives inside this blasphemy
Contained within this violation of accepted religious principles
Nightmare always there
A vision of terror is ever-present
The machine revealed it
The source of horror is now visible
Lifelike but not quiet
Appearing realistic, yet unnerving in its presence
Like life as we know it
Familiar in appearance, yet different in essence
Life, there is so little time
Life is brief and fleeting
Something insid my mind
A thought or idea that originates from within my own consciousness
Extending my pineal gland
Expanding my spiritual awareness or consciousness
No, is it inside my brain
Questioning whether the phenomenon is actually happening in my mind
Or am I going insane
Wondering if my sanity is slipping away
Experiment is out of hand
The scientific procedure has spiraled out of control
Inside the field of the forks
Within the range of the tuning forks
Demensional barriars desolve
The barriers between dimensions dissolve
Vibrations open the doors
The vibrations act as a portal between dimensions
Into the worlds of beyond
Entering into other planes of existence
Is this the gateway to hell
Wondering if the portal leads to a place of eternal punishment
Opened up by the machine
The portal was created by the scientific device
Is this where Elder Gods dwell
Questioning if the portal leads to a place inhabited by ancient deities
Or am I lost in a dream
Doubting the reality of the experience
Something comes
A presence or entity is approaching
Not from the grave
Not a living being from our dimension
But from the beyond
But from another dimension
Nothing can save
There is no hope for rescue
You from beyond
You are at the mercy of the other-dimensional entity
Here is the merchant of death
A being that carries out a trade of death and destruction
Master of all the unknown
Dominant over every aspect of the unfathomable
Uncounted years he has slept
This being has been dormant for an indefinite amount of time
Awakened by frequency tones
The being was brought to life by the resonance produced by the machine
Come to crush and devour
The being's goal is to destroy and consume all life in its path
All of the life that it can
The creature will consume as much life as possible
Receiving all of its power
The being's strength is derived from the scientific device
Still it comes
The entity is still advancing
No,
Expectation of something new or different
Nothing can save
There is no hope for rescue
You from beyond
You are at the mercy of the other-dimensional entity
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Manny Ruiz
Love Mark's voice. He's polarizing. I get it. I still love his voice. Dig his style.
BrecMadak
I love how Shelton's voice in this particular song is so fucked up \m/
laliwil
Couldn't stand Shelton's voice on Metal and Crystal Logic, but it just kept getting better after that! Perfect :D
Manny Ruiz
I love his voice. It's unique. Perfect for this doomy, thrashy music.