Manilla Road is an American heavy metal band from Wichita, Kansas, USA, for… Read Full Bio ↴Manilla Road is an American heavy metal band from Wichita, Kansas, USA, forming around its master of lead guitar Mark 'The Shark' Shelton (vocals and guitar). They are considered to one of the early pioneers of the epic metal subcategory of traditional heavy metal and one of the most influential bands in that style.

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.

Triumvirate
Manilla Road Lyrics

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Wasted away
Through both night and day
I was living in a fantasy
Totally lost
Without a cause
But now I'm back to reality

First there were two

Then the infamous three
The master plan is now complete
Metal winds
Are with us again
We found our destiny

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever

You don't care
Destroy your mind
Go to war
Genocide

We sailed the river Styx
In our prime
Journeyed north
The mirrors of time
The powerhouse
Lets loose their might\

Wasted away
Through both night and day
I was living in a fantasy
Totally lost
Without a cause
But now we've found our destiny

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever
It's not the end

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever

Tiumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world

With fire or fury
We sing the song

We've seen the dreams
Of Eschaton

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Manilla Road's song Triumvirate describe the journey of the band as they move from a state of being lost and wasted, to finding their real purpose, and finally to achieving a triumphant and lasting power in the world of music. The first few lines describe the transition of the band members from a state of being lost in a fantasy world, to coming back to the reality of their lives. The following lines introduce the concept of a Triumvirate or a group of three powerful individuals- in this case, the band members. The band members have now completed their journey to become one such powerful Triumvirate, and they will take on the world and overcome any challenges that come their way.

The later verses talk about the various challenges that the band has overcome on their journey- going to war, genocide, sailing the river Styx in their prime, journeying north, and finally achieving their true potential as a triumphant Triumvirate. The mention of the 'mirrors of time' and 'Eschaton' signify a deeper message about the power of the human spirit to achieve greatness, despite the obstacles that come our way. The song is a celebration of the band's journey and the power of their music to overcome all challenges and live on forever.

Line by Line Meaning

Wasted away
I had wasted away

Through both night and day
During every moment of day and night

I was living in a fantasy
I was living in a world of illusion

Totally lost
I was completely lost

Without a cause
I had no purpose

But now I'm back to reality
But now I have come back to the real world

First there were two
First there were two people

Then the infamous three
Then the three famous people

The master plan is now complete
The grand plan is now finished

Metal winds
Powerful forces of heavy metal music

Are with us again
Are once again present with us

We found our destiny
We discovered our purpose in life

Triumvirate
The group of three famous figures

Just the three of us
Only the three of us are involved

Against the world
We are fighting against everyone else

Dust to dust
We are mortal and will eventually die

The Triumvirate
The group of three famous figures

Will live on forever
Will always be remembered

You don't care
You don't care about anything

Destroy your mind
Damage your brain

Go to war
Engage in combat

Genocide
The deliberate killing of a large group of people

We sailed the river Styx
We travelled on a metaphorical journey through danger

In our prime
During the best time of our lives

Journeyed north
We travelled to the northern part of the world

The mirrors of time
The reflection of the passage of time

The powerhouse
A source of great power

Lets loose their might
Releases their strength or power

It's not the end
The end hasn't come yet

With fire or fury
With great intensity and force

We sing the song
We are singing the anthem of our cause

We've seen the dreams
We have witnessed our aspirations

Of Eschaton
Of the end of the world

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Lyrics

Wasted away
Through both night and day
I was living in a fantasy
Totally lost
Without a cause
But now I'm back to reality

First there were two
Then the infamous three
The master plan is now complete
Metal winds
Are with us again
We found our destiny

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever

You don't care
Destroy your mind
Go to war
Genocide

We sailed the river Styx
In our prime
Journeyed north
The mirrors of time
The powerhouse
Lets loose their might\

Wasted away
Through both night and day
I was living in a fantasy
Totally lost
Without a cause
But now we've found our destiny

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever
It's not the end

Triumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world
Dust to dust
The Triumvirate
Will live on forever

Tiumvirate
Just the three of us
Against the world

With fire or fury
We sing the song
We've seen the dreams
Of Eschaton