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.
Riddle Master
Manilla Road Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Of Holy mens fears
For what would kings cower
And men drown in tears
What brings death and pleasure
Growth and decay
What makes life worth living
Who's the master today
Slipped under my door
The reason I know not
I have to know more
A poem to ponder
A challenge this night
The Riddle Master
Wants to master my mind
Oh no no no, oh no no no
Strange I was chosen, the fool divine
To battle the master
Of riddle and rhyme
Another mountain
For me to climb
I must find the answer
Before I run out of time
I have no solution
My mind blank with fear
The riddle has slain me
The master is near
Another demon
Walking the Earth
An Angel of darkness
Lucifer
Oh no no no, oh no no no
I can't believe it's true
I feel so damned coonfused
All I know is I must carry on and on and on
With blazing steel I'll fight
The evil in the night
Daughter of hell I shall not lose, not to you
Then it came to me
Just like a waking dream
The answer had to be Reality
The master does not laugh
Defeated by a man
Leviathan be damned, yea, yea, yea
"The Riddle Master" is a song by Manilla Road that tells the story of a person who receives a note with a challenge. The challenge is to solve a riddle set by the Riddle Master, who is known to be a master of riddles and rhymes. The riddle is described as containing the secrets of what lies in the dungeons of holy men's fears, what brings both death and pleasure, growth and decay, and what makes life worth living. The person who received the note is perplexed by the riddle, and he is afraid of the implications of not being able to solve it. As he searches for an answer, he realizes that the Riddle Master is no ordinary figure, but a demonic entity known as Lucifer.
The lyrics in the song are very vivid and describe a series of emotions that the singer experiences. Throughout the song, there are moments of fear, confusion, determination, and triumph. The singer feels overwhelmed by the challenge, but he is determined to find a solution. He battles the Riddle Master, who is described as an angel of darkness, with "blazing steel," and ultimately defeats him by realizing that the answer to the riddle is reality.
Line by Line Meaning
What lies in the dungeons
Of Holy mens fears
The unknown, terrifying things that scare even the bravest of people.
For what would kings cower
And men drown in tears
It is so powerful that even kings are afraid of it and brings people to tears.
What brings death and pleasure
Growth and decay
A powerful force that can bring both good and bad things, such as death and pleasure or growth and decay.
What makes life worth living
Who's the master today
Trying to solve this riddle is what gives life meaning, and whoever can solve it is the master.
That's how note read
Slipped under my door
The reason I know not
I have to know more
A mysterious note was given to me and I'm determined to know more about this riddle.
A poem to ponder
A challenge this night
The Riddle Master
Wants to master my mind
The Riddle Master has challenged me to solve this riddle, and it's a task that will take all night for me to complete.
Oh no no no, oh no no no
Strange I was chosen, the fool divine
To battle the master
Of riddle and rhyme
I'm surprised that I was chosen to take on this challenge, but I must face the Riddle Master in order to solve this riddle.
Another mountain
For me to climb
I must find the answer
Before I run out of time
This is just another challenge for me to overcome, and I must solve it before time runs out.
I have no solution
My mind blank with fear
The riddle has slain me
The master is near
I'm paralyzed with fear and can't think of the answer, but I know the Riddle Master is watching and waiting.
Another demon
Walking the Earth
An Angel of darkness
Lucifer
The Riddle Master is a dark, powerful figure who seems to be like a demon walking the earth, perhaps even with the power of Lucifer.
Oh no no no, oh no no no
I can't believe it's true
I feel so damned confused
All I know is I must carry on and on and on
I'm confused and can't believe that I'm facing such a difficult challenge, but I must continue trying to solve this riddle.
With blazing steel I'll fight
The evil in the night
Daughter of hell I shall not lose, not to you
I will fight the Riddle Master with all my might and not give up, even if it feels like I'm battling a demon from hell.
Then it came to me
Just like a waking dream
The answer had to be Reality
The master does not laugh
Defeated by a man
Leviathan be damned, yea, yea, yea
The answer to the riddle suddenly became clear to me - it was reality. I realized that the Riddle Master could be defeated by a mere mortal, and even a powerful being like Leviathan could be conquered.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
TheKillingJoke
What lies in the dungeons
Of Holy mens fears
For what would kings cower
And men drown in tears
What brings death and pleasure
Growth and decay
What makes life worth living
Who's the master today
That's how note read
Slipped under my door
The reason I know not
I have to know more
A poem to ponder
A challenge this night
The Riddle Master
Wants to master my mind
Oh no no no, oh no no no
Strange I was choosen, the fool divine
To battle the master
Of riddle and rhyme
Another mountain
For me to climb
I must find the answer
Before I run out of time
I have no solution
My mind blank with fear
The riddle has slain me
The master is near
Another demon
Walking the Earth
An Angel of darkness
Lucifer
Oh no no no, oh no no no
I can't believe it's true
I feel so damned coonfused
All I know is I must carry on and on and on
With blazing steel I'll fight
The evil in the night
Daughter of hell I shall not lose, not to you
Then it came to me
Just like a waking dream
The answer had to be Reality
The master does not laugh
Defeated by a man
Leviathan be damned, yea, yea, yea
Bludgeon
I feel like most people don't talk enough how good of a writer Mark is. These lyrics are just written so elegantly and fantastical.
TheKillingJoke
What lies in the dungeons
Of Holy mens fears
For what would kings cower
And men drown in tears
What brings death and pleasure
Growth and decay
What makes life worth living
Who's the master today
That's how note read
Slipped under my door
The reason I know not
I have to know more
A poem to ponder
A challenge this night
The Riddle Master
Wants to master my mind
Oh no no no, oh no no no
Strange I was choosen, the fool divine
To battle the master
Of riddle and rhyme
Another mountain
For me to climb
I must find the answer
Before I run out of time
I have no solution
My mind blank with fear
The riddle has slain me
The master is near
Another demon
Walking the Earth
An Angel of darkness
Lucifer
Oh no no no, oh no no no
I can't believe it's true
I feel so damned coonfused
All I know is I must carry on and on and on
With blazing steel I'll fight
The evil in the night
Daughter of hell I shall not lose, not to you
Then it came to me
Just like a waking dream
The answer had to be Reality
The master does not laugh
Defeated by a man
Leviathan be damned, yea, yea, yea
SD Fire
Thank you for always posting the lyrics bud!
Mr. Donkey
IMO one of the most underrated metal tracks ever, with possibly the best lyrics. The way it gets faster at the end as he tries to solve the riddle before time runs out is perfect
Bludgeon
Yes!! And that solo is just perfect for the tone!
Memevarg
Good catch
Gamers against Lean Alberta 2007
Been a while since I've heard this one. One of the best early 80s metal bands imo.
_ Zoinks
Love that sound. Takes me back.80's were truly groundbreaking times for metal.
Vamo el Millo!!!
Killer album, great work!!! Excelent piece of art!!!
Glenn Hughes
That beginning riff and then the neck slide melted my face. Bad ass!!🤘🤘🤘