Battle Anthem

[Nick]

There are times when the Club song doesn't do the job. We need a battle anthem - loud and angry.

What could be better than a bit of metal.

My brothers have a metal band, so I've grabbed one of their songs and modified the lyrics a little to see what I could produce and this is what I came up with.

The original song is here, have a listen. Turn the volume UP and imagine it ringing out across the G at night under lights:
WRATH - mp3 - 6.4mb.

Lyrics: (Will Wilson with changes by Nick Wilson)

Smashing through all mental bonds,
Now I perceive that thought is gone.
Instinct flooding all.

The sound that's thumping in your guts,
The storming thunder drives you nuts,
And to it you shall fall.

Screaming crowd, chilling night,
Atmosphere a God sent sight,
Deepest spirits call.

The lights are full, the waiting ends,
A spreading silence now descends,
The calm before the storm.

Lights! And on the ground in black and white we need no colour.
Still! The silent night as they appear.
Roar! Like calls to like, this team is like no other.
Feel! It tears your heart you know no fear.

Wrath!

The final hymn.

Into the silence now explodes,
The driving rhythms fast unload.
Eating still night whole.

With roar now the crowd unwinds,
A screaming, glowing voice it finds.
Warming in the cold.

And from the crowd the vibe we take,
Adrenalin rush you cannot shake,
This feeling can't grow old.

So now the game begins to spark,
The screaming fans fill the dark.
Magpies tough and bold.

Lights! And on the ground in black and white we need no colour.
Still! The silent night as they appear.
Roar! Like calls to like, this team is like no other.
Feel! It tears your heart you know no fear.

Wrath!

The final hymn.

Scream! With those whose lust you're sharing,
Share! The power of the Pies is here,
Here! With those who are past caring,
Care! Or else you'll disappear.

The ground for now is packed away,
You've seen the final play today.
Time for moving on.

To endless long and sleepless nights,
Our hearts alight, we long to fight,
The passion will go on.

To endless miles of track and road,
Before we can again explode.
Hey how can we go wrong?

So one last word that's solely mine,
Before me meet again next time.
A word before we're gone.

Lights! And on the ground in black and white we need no colour.
Still! The silent night as they appear.
Roar! Like calls to like, this team is like no other.
Feel! It tears your heart you know no fear.

Just a bit of fun - suggestions welcome.

I'd better give them a bit of a plug, so if you'd like to hear some more of their music their web site is: dead Fred's Left Head

[AlfAndrews]

So, it's true what they say about you Tasmanians

I suppose the best thing about being in a band in Tasmania is that when you do a gig you can look out into the crowd and think there's twice as many people in the crowd as there really are.

I'm not really sure about "Wrath" as a footy anthem. Can you imagine us footy yobbo's trying to remember that many lyrics? Actually the club tried to create a vibe on a rock song called "The Black and White Army" a couple of years ago, but it stiffed. I guess footy fans tend to resist anything new. (that's a bit rich coming from me, isn't it?)

But I checked out the band's website anyway and listened to a few tracks. Be warned however, metal is not my prefered musical genre.

I'm a musician (of sorts) myself. My music could be described as a blend of electronica, mainstream rock, punk, pop, ska and white reggae, with just a smidgin of hip-hop and acid jazz????? In other words I've got no idea how to classify it! I go by the name of ... wait for it ... Dr.Grouse.

Anyway, back to Dead Fred's Left Head. The lads can obviously play. The guitar work, in particular, is pretty strong.

Will has got a good sense of drama in his vocal delivery. Is he a lunatic on stage? Or does having to play the bass restrict him theatrically?

The production sounded a bit dodgy, but that might have had something to do with the Real audio streaming. In particular, there was plenty of room for improvement in the sonic treatment of the vocals. But I guess they're probably playing for peanuts, like most bands, and can't really afford to splash out on expensive studios. All in good time, lads.

Generally speaking I thought the actual songs were a bit long and repetitive. Taking "Black Prophet" as an example, the slow and sparse beginning led into an effectively moody dynamic build up, but once the song got going it tended to stay in the same groove for too long. The song could have easily been half the length and still made its point. The "eating of my life/ tearing of my soul" bit towards the end was a welcome change but it took a bit too long to arrive.

I think ultimately the lyrical subject matter might have to extend beyond the usual demonic apocalyptic metal pre-occupations if the bands wants to stand out from the crowd, but I guess individuality will come with maturity. Stick with it, fellas. You're like Collingwood, you'll only get better!

As for me, Dr.Grouse, that is, if you want to find out what I sound like you can check out my stuff on:
www.mp3.com/drgrouse

One song that might be of interest to sports fans is "Brouhaha", which is my unofficial anthem for the Sydney Olympics. Check out the lyrics by clicking in the appropriate spot.

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[Lozza]

Nick,

Great song by the band, sounds like vintage Metallica.
I think Alf might be right though about adapting to new songs, I don't think it will happen, but I do agree with the idea of an anthem.

Now, if there's any Man Utd supporters out there, you probably won't like this idea but most Liverpool supporters would like it. The song is called 'You'll Never Walk Alone". Now this song is truly an anthem. It is extremely popular at Anfield and indeed many grounds around the world. It is easy to sing and sends a chill down the spine. Myself and Petro have sung it a few times at the G after a victory and it is a great feeling. Just try and imagine 20,000+ Magpie supporters singing this in unison at the G, it would be magnificent. For a sample of the Liverpool faithful singing this song, go to this page: http://www.liverpoolfc.org/sounds/index.html and download "You'll Never Walk Alone - Crowd" (it takes about 20 seconds).

I'm sure you will like. I don't think anything like this has been done at the footy before and it will continue to make us Magpie supporters unique!!!




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Long Live Collingwood!!!

[Nick]

Alf

I hadn't actually got as far as imagining the crowd singing along. I had a picture of a packed G under lights before a big home game. Just before the players hit the ground the Anthem plays over the PA and sets the mood. Growing up in a house with a metal band makes it easy for me to imagine the effect of the music on a dark, cold night with the ground lit and tension in the crowd. I think Lozza can feel it. I wasn't suggesting a replacement for our Club song, but there are times when another song carries the mood so much better. Lozza's example of Liverpool is perfect.


Alf and Lozza this is Will.

Thanks for the review and comments, I'll go visit your site on mp3.com Alf and return the favour.

We're Tasmanians and might as well make use of the free image , the publicity has already been done, why not take advantage of it?

The song that Nick grabbed (without asking) is pretty old. We recorded that EP 3 years ago and were pretty young (3 years younger to be exact - 14 to 17) and raw and just wanted to make music. You're right, it was a home studio and the production was shit and full of performance errors, but it does sound better straight from the cd through a decent sound system. We've since recorded a full length album in a studio including the songs from Wrath, but it's still on tape and waiting for some more money for the mix.

I don't know that I'd call myself a lunatic on stage, but we like what we play and we get into it. I'll pass on your comments about the guitar to Tom and Pat, they were 14 (Tom - lead) and 15 (Pat - rhythm) when we recorded Wrath - you should hear them now.

We're a metal band with a metal sound and I think that that may be what you were referring to, but other than Black Prophet, I wouldn't call the songs demonic or apocalyptic.

Wrath is a tribute to Metallica - well picked by Lozza. Metallica have always been my biggest influence.
To Kill in his Name - a lament by the universal soldier.
The Relaxation Song - an acceptance of the inevitability of life and death.
As the Tear Tears the Soul - peer pressure and social conditioning.
The Days Before Tomorrow - addiction and homelessness.

I was obviously pretty big on social commentary, but that was the stage I was at then.

Sorry for posting this stuff on a footy board, but Nick started it and Alf and Lozza were generous enough to give us some feedback so I thought I should respond.

[This message has been edited by Nick (edited 22 April 2000).]

[I@n S]

Gee we loose one game and you think we need a new song. Just Kidding. I'm downloading it at the moment to see what I think of it.
But yeah I agree no one wants anything new, if its jumper change or the music. With the jumper i don't mind the magpie being in the middle of the away jumper but I hate the back of it how its black with white numbers. Give me black numbers anyday.....
Go Pies !!!!

[AlfAndrews]

Lozza

I'm a Liverpool fan and I would love nothing more than to sing "You'll Never Walk Alone" at the footy. That is, unquestionably, THE greatest football anthem in the world.

But I don't think it would ever catch on, because it's just not part of Collingwood's culture.

The significance of that song to Liverpool is that it was a hit song for a band from Liverpool called "Gerry and the Pacemakers" in 1963, which was about the time that Liverpool was beginning to emerge as a powerful club. It was also at the same time that bands like Gerry and the Pacemakers, the Searchers, and a bunch of lads called the Beatles were putting Liverpool on the map. Liverpool supporters may not have been the first supporters to sing on the terraces, but they were the ones who turned it into an art form.

Unfortunately, having never been to England, I've never had the experience of standing on the Kop at Anfield singing "You'll Never Walk Alone". And I never will, because all that has gone now ever since Maggie Thatcher destroyed football culture in England. The Kop is all seating now and, although they still sing "You'll Never Walk Alone" on a good day, it's really just a manufactured nostalgia trip these days. The real thing is just a bit too dangerous for the post-modern plastic world.

And the AFL, and indeed the Collingwood FC, are also getting further away from reality all the time.

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[I@n S]

AlfAndrews, I don't think Thatcher killed football culture in England even though I do think she is a Bitch. Although I do think football in England will die slowly by the amount of foreign players in the League.
Don't get me wrong I don't mind foreign players, but I think it should be limited to 3 or 4 per team like it was before WW2 other wise there will be no England international team. Mostly because you could get players to play for England that are from 1st and 2nd Divisons and not just the Premier league. Now you have trouble finding any from the Premier leage.(Making clubs more exciting by introducing foreigners is going to kill International soccer) You should go to England AlfAndrews because I think you would enjoy it. Have problems getting into a Liverpool game though.

Anyway I've had my say even though it was not about Collingwood....

!!!!GO THE HOT PIES!!!!


[This message has been edited by I@n S (edited 23 April 2000).]

[ytry4]

Alf

Where did you come up with the name of 'Brouhaha'? Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that an Indonesian word meaning 'all the other sh.t'?

[Joel]

I say: Do it to the tune of Da strike by Millencolin. (hehe)

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CARN THE PIES!!!!!
Collingwood is all about togetherness. "We live or die as a side," Buckley said. "Everything we do now is as a team."

[AlfAndrews]

ytry4,

Webster's On-line Dictionary defines "brouhaha" as "hubbub" or "uproar". I've used it to mean a bit more than the standard definition. For me it's more to do with the hype and controversy that surrounds the Olympic Games. As Shakespeare put it, "Much ado about nothing".

Although my song was written with the Olympic Games in mind, it could just as easily be applied to the AFL Grand Final. The main target of my scorn is all the jingoistic, nationalistic hoopla that surrounds sporting events.

How many more hideous renditions of "Waltzing Matilda" do we have to sit through?

Or, as Austen Tayshus so eloquently put it, "How much can a koala bear?"


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