Marduk was founded in Norrköping, Sweden in 1990 by Morgan Steinmeyer Håkansson. His ultimate goal was to create the most blasphemous and Satanic band ever conceptualized.
In 1991, Marduk released a three song demo entitled "Fuck Me Jesus", which due to its dark and irreverent lyrics was highly received by a cult following.
During 1992, Marduk released their first full-length album "Dark Endless" under the label No Fashion and continued to tour Sweden, augmenting their steadily growing fan base. Marduk switched over to the French label Osmose in 1993 after a dispute with No Fashion. Marduk began to tour throughout the rest of Europe in 1994 and in 1995 had their first gig across the Atlantic in Mexico City. They continued to amass fans and release albums over the next few years, even spearheading the European "Black Metal Assault Tour" in 1998.
In 2000, Marduk founded their own record label, Blooddawn Productions.
In 2004 Marduk released their ninth studio album "Plague Angel" which was a great hit all over Europe and later on in the U.S.A. To celebrate Marduks 15 years anniversary a live album called "Warschau" was released with 17 live tracks from a show in Poland, 2005.
In 2006 a very substantial double DVD, which was called "Blood Puke Salvation", containing 2 concerts professionally filmed in Tilburg (Holland) and Antwerpen (Belgium). Videoclips, photo-gallery, interviews, behind the scenes material and rare handycam footage from the Deathmarch tours of 2004 and 2005.
In 2007, they released their tenth studio album entitled "Rom 5:12".
In 2009, Marduk released another full-length album "Wormwood" recorded at Endarker Studios in Norrköping with engineer/producer Magnus "Devo" Andersson.
In May 2012 their 12th studio album, "Serpent Sermon", was released.
Marduk continues to tour Europe, release albums, and is regularly featured in many prominent Metal music festivals.
Scorched Earth
Marduk Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gunfire penetrate front lines
Panzers storming as an iron fist
Gunfire penetrate front lines
Steel and fire collide with a crash
Panzers plunge into the front
Crushing the bodies of the foes with a splash
Scorched earth
The soil soaked with blood
On the ground nothing more can burn
Scorched earth
The absence of god
A mistake the enemy will learn
Blowtorch battalion burning the flank
As fanatics the foes the attack
Two thousand soldiers with battle tanks
As fanatics the foes they attack
Through the Losheim pass striving on to the west
They seal their fate and their souls
Leaving their prisoners in eternal rest
They seal their fate and their souls
Attacking - the holy cause must be fulfilled
No mercy - take pride in the thrill of the kill
Omens - the horoscope of time shows war
Victory - forevermore
Indefatigable battalions of storm
Destined to kill and be killed
Spearheads which rolling relentless they form
Destined to kill and be killed
The griffin protects us with beak and with claws
No enemy can bring forth our death
We must win to save us from the plague grasping jaws
No enemy can bring forth our death
Scorched earth
The soil soaked with blood
On the ground we draw our last breath
Scorched earth
We meet our god
But our banner is greater than death
Scorched earth - two hundred thousand men have died
Scorched earth - tunnel of light in high tide
Scorched earth - nothing new in history
Scorched earth - massive death for our glory
The lyrics of Marduk's song "Scorched Earth" describe the brutality and violence of a war between two sides. It starts with war cries piercing through the autumn mist as gunfire penetrates the front lines. Panzers or tanks storm ahead, crushing the bodies of their foes with a splash. The chorus "Scorched earth, the soil soaked with blood, on the ground nothing more can burn, scorched earth, the absence of God, a mistake the enemy will learn" depicts the aftermath of the battle, where the land is soaked with blood and everything is burnt, leaving the enemy to learn from their fatal mistake.
The second verse talks about the blowtorch battalion of soldiers burning the flank, attacking the enemy with battle tanks, and striving on to the west through the Losheim pass. The lyrics glorify the holy cause of the attackers as they take pride in the thrill of the kill. The bridge talks about the indefatigable battalions of storm, destined to kill and be killed, forming spearheads and being protected by the griffin. The song ends with the final chorus, "Scorched earth - two hundred thousand men have died, scorched earth - a tunnel of light in high tide, scorched earth - nothing knew in history, scorched earth - massive death for our glory," signifying the immense death toll that the war may have incurred for the sake of their glory.
Line by Line Meaning
War cries pierces the autumn mist
The sound of soldiers shouting battle cries pierces through the misty autumn air.
Gunfire penetrate front lines
Bullets fired from guns penetrate through the enemy's front line defenses.
Panzers storming as an iron fist
Tanks, or Panzers, advance quickly and ruthlessly as if they were an iron fist pounding forward.
Steel and fire collide with a crash
Metal and flames violently crash against each other.
Crushing the bodies of the foes with a splash
Tanks crush the enemies' bodies with a loud, wet sound.
Scorched earth
The land is burned and destroyed from the battle.
The soil soaked with blood
The ground is stained with the blood of the battle's victims.
On the ground nothing more can burn
The ground is so destroyed that nothing else can be burned or destroyed there.
The absence of god
In times of war, the idea of a kind or merciful god can seem non-existent or absent.
A mistake the enemy will learn
The enemy will regret their decision to go to war and battle against the artist's side.
Blowtorch battalion burning the flank
A battalion equipped with flamethrowers burn the enemy's weakening side.
As fanatics the foes the attack
The enemy attacks with a frenzied, zealot-like fervor to try to win the battle.
Two thousand soldiers with battle tanks
Two thousand soldiers advance alongside heavily armed battle tanks.
Through the Losheim pass striving on to the west
The singer's troops advance through the Losheim mountain pass, straining to head Westward.
They seal their fate and their souls
The enemy experiencing defeat in battle dooms their lives and spirits.
Leaving their prisoners in eternal rest
The enemy soldiers killed in action can now rest from this ongoing battle they'll never face again.
Attacking - the holy cause must be fulfilled
The attackers believe they are fighting for a holy or just cause that needs to be accomplished.
No mercy - take pride in the thrill of the kill
The attackers show no mercy and instead find pleasure in killing their opponents.
Omens - the horoscope of time shows war
Signs of war are present in the stars and horoscopes at the time of battle.
Victory - forevermore
The winner of the battle will always have achieved this victory.
Indefatigable battalions of storm
The artist's army is tireless and seems insurmountable in their pursuit.
Destined to kill and be killed
The artist's army is destined to either kill enemy soldiers or be killed themselves in the process.
Spearheads which rolling relentless they form
A spearhead formation of soldiers continuously advances without giving up.
The griffin protects us with beak and with claws
The artist's troops feel invincible, protected by a mythic creature with powerful defenses.
No enemy can bring forth our death
The singer's side is confident that nobody on the opposing side will succeed in killing them.
We must win to save us from the plague grasping jaws
The singer's army will only survive if they can achieve victory over the enemy's lethal attacks.
Scorched earth
The battle leads to destruction and burning of the land.
On the ground we draw our last breath
The artist's fellow troops perish on the battlefield and will never breathe again.
We meet our god
The fallen soldiers' souls will finally meet their deity.
But our banner is greater than death
The symbol or emblem of the singer's army is more powerful and enduring than death itself.
Scorched earth - two hundred thousand men have died
The devastating amount of casualties include two hundred thousand men who have died.
Tunnel of light in high tide
The fallen soldiers' souls witness a tunnel of light, as if they are crossing to another realm, during this high point in their time of death.
Nothing new in history
The recurrence of this battle is similar to many others in history.
Massive death for our glory
The artist glorifies the large amount of death that occurred to defend their cause.
Contributed by Hudson T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.