Metal Church has had a revolving door of vocalists, guitarists, bassists and drummers throughout its 42-year career, and Vanderhoof remains the group's sole consistent creative, despite reducing his role strictly to composition in 1986 after tiring of performing. The "classic" lineup of Vanderhoof, vocalist David Wayne, guitarist Craig Wells, bassist Duke Erickson, and drummer Kirk Arrington recorded the band's first two studio albums, Metal Church (1984) and their major breakthrough The Dark (1986). By the end of the 1980s, Vandehoof and Wayne had parted ways with the band and were replaced by vocalist Mike Howe and guitarist John Marshall respectively. Metal Church's popularity continued with their third album Blessing in Disguise (1989), which spawned one of their best-known songs "Badlands". After releasing two more studio albums with Howe, the band called it quits in 1996.
Metal Church reformed in 1998 with most of their "classic" lineup, including Vanderhoof's return to performance, resulting in the Masterpeace album. They endured numerous lineup changes thereafter, releasing three further studio albums while fronted by Ronny Munroe before disbanding once again in July 2009. The group reunited for the second time in October 2012, and released their tenth studio album Generation Nothing a year later. Following Munroe's departure in the fall of 2014, Metal Church considered disbanding for the third time before Howe was rehired in April 2015 as the band's lead singer. He recorded two more albums with the group, which enjoyed a renewed popularity in the mid-to-late 2010s, before his death.
On July 26, 2021, Metal Church announced that Howe had died that morning at his home in Eureka, California, at the age of 55. In October 2021, after announcing the return of his short-lived early 1990s band Hall Aflame, Vanderhoof hinted that Metal Church would continue on with a replacement for Howe. By mid-2022, rumors suggested that Ronny Munroe would rejoin the band, but resulted in him joining Vicious Rumors.
On February 2, 2023, Metal Church announced Marc Lopes as their new lead vocalist. A month later, the band announced their upcoming album, Congregation of Annihilation, would be released on May 26.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metal_Church
Discography
Metal Church (1984)
The Dark (1986)
Blessing in Disguise (1989)
The Human Factor (1991)
Hanging in the Balance (1993)
Masterpeace (1999)
The Weight of the World (2004)
A Light in the Dark (2006)
This Present Wasteland (2008)
Generation Nothing (2013)
XI (2016)
Damned If You Do (2018)
Congregation of Annihilation (2023)
Date With Poverty
Metal Church Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Losing all my marbles wasn't part of the game
Existing day by day tormented by the telephone
It's hard enough to live my life, why don't you live your own?
I pay out money with a check, I never use the cash
Collectors closing in on me, is this some kind of test?
Borrow is my middle name, the banks give graciously
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
You sit there in your cushy job and call me on the phone
You want my money and everything I own
I'll pay you soon as I get paid, the check is in the mail
Don't call my home anymore, I've long since jumped bail
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
Living on a shoestring daily, maybe I'll make some money maybe
I hope to make a living someday, then I'll pay you what I owe you
Then you'll get off my back!
Someday I'll get ahead of things and life will be so grand
I'll buy a house down my the beach, stick my feet in the sand
For now I'll do what I can do to keep this dream alive
Until I win the lottery I must survive
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm so fuckin' broke
I can't even afford to pay attention
Don't you know who I am?
You got any food?
I need a drink
Aw, fuck you
The lyrics of Metal Church's song, "Date With Poverty," depict the struggles of living in poverty and the desperation that comes with it. The opening lines convey the message that the singer is doing the best he can with his life but sometimes feels the need for a change. However, the song quickly turns into a hopelessness and despair as it portrays a life filled with continuous struggle. It talks about the pressure of sustaining life, being tormented by the telephone, and how it's hard enough to live one's life, let alone someone else's.
The lyrics also touch on the irony of borrowing from banks with high-interest rates that only knock you senselessly. The singer is continuously in hiding, being pursued by people he owes money to, and spends his days bouncing checks, lying a bit, and doing without. The chorus of the song repeats, "I'm in hiding, just leave me be. This is the first step to my date with poverty," which highlights the singer's feeling of being trapped and going down a path of no return.
In the end, however, the song brings some hope as the singer talks about dreaming of a future where he can make a living and pay those he owes. The song taps into the struggles that millions around the world face daily and gives a voice to those who feel voiceless.
Line by Line Meaning
I live my life the best I can, sometimes I need a change
I try my best to live my life, but sometimes I need to alter my circumstances.
Losing all my marbles wasn't part of the game
Going crazy wasn't the intended outcome.
Existing day by day tormented by the telephone
Living with constant interruptions and phone calls is agonizing.
It's hard enough to live my life, why don't you live your own?
Managing my life is challenging, and I don't understand why you're not focusing on your own.
I pay out money with a check, I never use the cash
I don't spend cash, I use checks to pay expenses.
Collectors closing in on me, is this some kind of test?
Debt collectors are after me, is this a trial or a challenge?
Borrow is my middle name, the banks give graciously
I frequently take loans, but banks are willing to lend me.
With interest rates that terrify, they knock you senselessly
The interest rates charged are appalling and leave me feeling defeated.
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I resort to bouncing checks, fibbing, or going without necessities.
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
I'm avoiding everyone, so leave me alone.
This is the first step to my date with poverty
Avoiding everyone and everything is the beginning of my decline into poverty.
You sit there in your cushy job and call me on the phone
You, with your comfortable job, call me and harass me over the phone.
You want my money and everything I own
You're after my money and possessions.
I'll pay you soon as I get paid, the check is in the mail
I'll pay you right after I get paid, the check is already mailed.
Don't call my home anymore, I've long since jumped bail
Stop calling my house, I fled from the bail bondsman.
Living on a shoestring daily, maybe I'll make some money maybe
I'm living frugally day by day, sometimes I hope to make a decent income.
I hope to make a living someday, then I'll pay you what I owe you
I aspire to make enough money to repay my debts.
Then you'll get off my back!
Once I repay what I owe, you'll finally stop bothering me!
Someday I'll get ahead of things and life will be so grand
One day, I'll get out of debt and living standards will improve tremendously.
I'll buy a house down my the beach, stick my feet in the sand
I'll purchase a house on the beach, and relax while sitting on sand.
For now I'll do what I can do to keep this dream alive
To maintain the dream, for now, I'll do everything I can.
Until I win the lottery I must survive
Until I win the lottery, I'll continue living day by day with my hopes alive.
I'm so fuckin' broke
I'm severely destitute.
I can't even afford to pay attention
I'm poor to the extent that I can't focus on anything else but my finances.
Don't you know who I am?
I'm tired of being poor and disregarded!
You got any food?
Do you have food to give me?
I need a drink
I'm looking for a drink.
Aw, fuck you
Go to hell!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MIKE HOWE, KURDT VANDERHOOF
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dominon92
I live my life the best I can, sometimes I need a change
Losing all my marbles wasn't part of the game
Existing day by day tormented by the telephone
It's hard enough to live my life, why don't you live your own?
I pay out money with a check, I never use the cash
Collectors closing in on me, is this some kind of test?
Borrow is my middle name, the banks give graciously
With interest rates that terrify, they knock you senselessly
[Chorus]:
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
You sit there in your cushy job and call me on the phone
You want my money and everything I own
I'll pay you soon as I get paid, the check is in the mail
Don't call my home anymore, I've long since jumped bail
[Chorus]
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
Living on a shoestring daily, maybe I'll make some money maybe
I hope to make a living someday, then I'll pay you what I owe you
Then you will get off my back!
Someday I'll get ahead of things and life will be so grand
I'll buy a house down by the beach, stick my feet in the sand
For now I'll do what I can do to keep this dream alive
Until I win the lottery I must survive
[Chorus]
Bounce a check, lie a bit, do without
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm in hiding, just leave me be
This is the first step to my date with poverty
I'm so fuckin' broke
I can't even afford to pay attention
Don't you know who I am?
You got any food?
I need a drink
Aw, fuck you
Bradzilla Soundworks
RIP Mike Howe. One of the greatest voices in metal. This song was the first Metal Church song I heard with him on vocals and it's still my favorite of their many outstanding songs.
Leonardo Mattar Monteiro
🤜🏼🤛🏼🤘🏻🤘🏻🇧🇷🖤
Terry Miller
Agreed🤘
Money Mike
Agreed one of the most unique voices in metal.. will surely be missed ..🤘😎🤘
Edwin Bruno
Sad he passed he was a great singer rip.mike
Hellish Maniac
😭😭😭metal has lost "his" voice 4
ever!!!what a needless loss!!!anyway...i am sure you had your reasons bro!!!!rip and cu on the other side hopefully!!!
Taciano Canassa
RIP MIKE HOWE! One of the best!
Vattens
Just found out myself. Fucking sucks.
((HUG)) Dealer
I'm in shock 💔 another Legend gone 🥺 Rest In Power
webbertools
Can't believe this man.......