To date, Overkill has released nineteen studio albums, an album of cover songs, two EPs, one demo tape and three live albums. They were one of the first thrash metal bands to sign to a major label (having signed to Atlantic Records in 1986), and rose to fame as part of the genre's movement of the mid-to-late 1980s, along with the "Big Four" (Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax) as well as Exodus and Testament. Overkill achieved their first mainstream success with its second studio album and Atlantic debut, Taking Over (1987), which peaked at number 191 on the Billboard 200. The band's next five studio albums—Under the Influence (1988), The Years of Decay (1989), Horrorscope (1991), I Hear Black (1993) and W.F.O. (1994)—were also successful on the Billboard charts, with the latter two cracking the top ten on the Top Heatseekers chart. Following their split from Atlantic in 1995, Overkill went through some label changes, but continued to enjoy moderate underground success, particularly in Europe and Japan. The band experienced a resurgence of popularity in the U.S. during the 2010s, with three of their studio albums released that decade—The Electric Age (2012), White Devil Armory (2014) and The Grinding Wheel (2017)—reaching the top 100 on the charts. Overkill has sold over 16 million records worldwide; they are also estimated to have sold more than 625,000 records in the United States since the beginning of the SoundScan era.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overkill_(band)
Studio albums
Feel the Fire (1985)
Taking Over (1987)
Under the Influence (1988)
The Years of Decay (1989)
Horrorscope (1991)
I Hear Black (1993)
W.F.O. (1994)
The Killing Kind (1996)
From the Underground and Below (1997)
Necroshine (1999)
Bloodletting (2000)
Killbox 13 (2003)
ReliXIV (2005)
Immortalis (2007)
Ironbound (2010)
The Electric Age (2012)
White Devil Armory (2014)
The Grinding Wheel (2017)
The Wings of War (2019)
Scorched (2023)
Battle
Overkill Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"Actually, it's a lot like that." - man
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
Who who who ya gonna screw?
Play it like ya really bad.
Fire!
Doin' everything ya can.
Play it like ya really bad
Tired
Can I interest you in nothin'? will you buy my disease?
You can take what you want,
You can have what you need.
Can I interest you in nothing' ya I think you'll be pleased.
If you're lookin' for war, open the 1, 2, 3,
Door!
Bleedin' like a stuck pig,
Play it like you're really big,
Bleedin' like a stuck pig,
Don't matter!
No one loves ya baby now without sayin' please.
You got blood on your hands,
You got dirt on your knees.
Can I offer you salvation, yeah I thing you'll agree,
You're about to fall.
About to fall
The battle, The war! The battle.
Inside job, ya got a revolution, yeah,
Napolean had less rage.
Self made mob,
Ya need an institution,
Yeah, ya need a full time cage.
Why do you stay here?
Why do you roam?
Kaos feed the big man.
He ain't going home. Ain't going home.
"It's not like you can just kill me"
Disciple of Kaos,
A self made man.
Disciple of Kaos,
That's what I am.
Disciple of Kaos,
The silent roar,
Disciple of Kaos,
Open the 1, 2, 3 war!
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
Who who who ya gonna screw?
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
The lyrics to Overkill’s “Battle” seem to be written from the perspective of two people engaged in a violent confrontation. The first two lines are spoken by a woman, who protests to the man that he can’t kill her. The man then coldly responds that it’s a lot like that. The rest of the song is a series of taunts and threats from both parties, with talk of war, bleeding like a stuck pig, and revolution. The lyrics are aggressive and confrontational, with a sense of nihilism and chaos pervading the whole song.
The chorus is a repeated chant of “Whatcha whatcha gonna do? Who who who ya gonna screw?” which seems to be a call to arms. The man is trying to goad the woman into some kind of action, whether it’s physical violence or something else. He urges her to play it like she’s really bad, as if she’s pretending to be tougher than she really is.
The rest of the song is a series of insults and challenges, with the man singing about bleeding like a stuck pig and the woman responding that he has blood on his hands. The tone is confrontational and aggressive, with a sense of madness lurking beneath the surface.
Line by Line Meaning
It's not like you can just kill me.
The woman expresses skepticism that the man can kill her.
Actually, it's a lot like that.
The man insists that he can indeed kill the woman.
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
Questioning what the person's next course of action will be.
Who who who ya gonna screw?
Asking who the person is going to target or deceive.
Play it like ya really bad.
Act tough and intimidating.
Fire!
An order to attack or start an action.
want to want to be the man.
Desire to be in control and powerful.
Doin' everything ya can.
Taking every possible action to achieve their goal.
Tired
Feeling exhausted or worn out from the effort.
Can I interest you in nothin'? will you buy my disease?
Offering something that is harmful or dangerous.
You can take what you want,
Encouraging the person to take whatever they desire.
You can have what you need.
Offering things the person might require.
Can I interest you in nothing' ya I think you'll be pleased.
Offering something that the person does not need but may enjoy.
If you're lookin' for war, open the 1, 2, 3, Door!
Encouraging the person to start a conflict by using a weapon.
Bleedin' like a stuck pig,
Injured and bleeding heavily.
Play it like you're really big,
Acting tough even when injured.
Don't matter!
Declaring that the injury is not important.
No one loves ya baby now without sayin' please.
No one will have compassion for the person without a plea for mercy.
You got blood on your hands,
Having killed or been involved in something violent.
You got dirt on your knees.
Having done something unethical or against moral standards.
Can I offer you salvation, yeah I think you'll agree,
Offering a way out or redemption from their behavior.
You're about to fall. About to fall
About to suffer consequences or be defeated.
The battle, The war! The battle.
The conflict and strife that is taking place.
Inside job, ya got a revolution, yeah,
Having an uprising or rebellion within your own group or organization.
Napoleon had less rage.
Being more angry than the famously hot-tempered Napoleon Bonaparte.
Self-made mob, Ya need an institution,
A group that has formed and become powerful on their own requires a governing body to control them.
Yeah, ya need a full-time cage.
The group must be contained and controlled at all times.
Why do you stay here?
Questioning why the person continues to remain in their current situation.
Why do you roam?
Questioning why the person is wandering or moving aimlessly.
Kaos feed the big man.
Creating chaos is used to benefit someone who is already in a position of power.
He ain't going home. Ain't going home.
The person cannot return from their current situation.
Disciple of Kaos, A self-made man.
A follower of chaos, who has become influential and powerful on their own.
Disciple of Kaos, That's what I am.
Identifying as someone who follows and spreads chaos.
Disciple of Kaos, The silent roar,
Despite being a follower of chaos, they do not draw attention to themselves or their actions.
Disciple of Kaos, Open the 1, 2, 3 war!
Preparing for a violent conflict or battle in the name of chaos.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: CARLO VERNI, ROBERT ELLSWORTH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
DANIJELA ŽIKIĆ
"It's not like you can just kill me." - woman
"Actually, it's a lot like that." - man
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
Who who who ya gonna screw?
Play it like ya really bad.
Fire!
want to want to be the man.
Doin' everything ya can.
Play it like ya really bad
Tired
Can I interest you in nothin'? will you buy my disease?
You can take what you want,
You can have what you need.
Can I interest you in nothing' ya I think you'll be pleased.
If you're lookin' for war, open the 1, 2, 3,
Door!
Bleedin' like a stuck pig,
Play it like you're really big,
Bleedin' like a stuck pig,
Don't matter!
No one loves ya baby now without sayin' please.
You got blood on your hands,
You got dirt on your knees.
Can I offer you salvation, yeah I thing you'll agree,
You're about to fall.
About to fall
The battle, The war! The battle.
Inside job, ya got a revolution, yeah,
Napolean had less rage.
Self made mob,
Ya need an institution,
Yeah, ya need a full time cage.
Why do you stay here?
Why do you roam?
Kaos feed the big man.
He ain't going home. Ain't going home.
"It's not like you can just kill me"
Disciple of Kaos,
A self made man.
Disciple of Kaos,
That's what I am.
Disciple of Kaos,
The silent roar,
Disciple of Kaos,
Open the 1, 2, 3 war!
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
Who who who ya gonna screw?
Whatcha whatcha gonna do?
MetaL BraiN \m/Extreme Metal Enthusiast \m/
I haven't listened to this in a decade. It's awesome. I think I need to get the killing kind again.
CrimsonThorns
Dude...I am a subscriber. Thx for this youtube channel. I am a hardcore Overkill listener. Also thx for the disclaimer about supporting the band (that goes for any band we like).We have to support them financially either directly from their webpage or official distributors like Amazon or BestBuy etc. So much pirating and illegal copying hurts the band. IRON BOUND for OVERKILL!!....
\m/ (◣_◢) \m/
Louis Csanko
GREAT ALBUM, 1996 THRASHING LIKE HELL🤘🤘🤘🤘
musicmanron1969
no shortage of bad ass riffs on this peace !!!
Tengiz Natsvlishvili
MASTERPIECE !
Delightfullydemented65
Not to be contradictory in any way but Overkill pre-dates Pantera by quite a bit...give their old stuff a listen and it won't disappoint...I've been a huge fan since the early 80's and they kick ass to this day. They belong right up there with Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, and others. Great band that never got their due. I'm right there with Eddie Trunk in that they should've been a lot bigger. It's just nice that they're still at it.
Joie M
Andrew k Adams Overkill is better than all those bands you listed they just needed more exposure
The Man On The Stairs
I been into them since the mid 80's - thought they pissed on Metallica, Anthrax; easily as good as Slayer and Mega.
Matt D
Pantera's debut album came out before Overkills debut.Now if you say they predate the Anselmo era of Pantera that would be correct.
Norman
@Matt D Panteras debut did come out before feel the fire but overkills demo came out a couple years before Pantera. Overkill formed in 81. Before metallica slayer and anthrax.