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War Within a Breath Lyrics
Every official that come in
Cripples us leaves us maimed
Silent and tamed
And with our flesh and bones
He builds his homes
Southern fist
Rise through tha jungle mist
Clenched to smash power so cancerous
Black flag and a red star
A rising sun loomin over Los Angeles
Yes for Raza livin in La La
Like Gaza on to tha dawn Intifada
Reach for the lessons tha masked pass on
Seize tha metropolis
It's you it's built on
Everything can change on new years day
As everything changes on new years day
Everything can change on a new years day
As everything changes on new years day
War within a breath
It's land or death
Their existence is a crime
Their seat, their robe, their tie
Their land deeds
Their hired guns
They're tha crime
Shots heard underground round the rapture
Worlds eye captured
At last is a Mexican pasture
Tha masked screaming land or death within a breath
A war from the depth of time
Shot four puppet governors in a line
Shook all tha world bankers
Who think they can rhyme
Shot the landlords who knew it was mine
Yes its a war from the depth of time
Everything can change on new years day
As everything changes on new years day
Everything can change on a new years day
As everything changes on new years day
War within a breath
It's land or death
Cripples us leaves us maimed
Silent and tamed
And with our flesh and bones
He builds his homes
Rise through tha jungle mist
Clenched to smash power so cancerous
Black flag and a red star
A rising sun loomin over Los Angeles
Yes for Raza livin in La La
Like Gaza on to tha dawn Intifada
Reach for the lessons tha masked pass on
Seize tha metropolis
It's you it's built on
As everything changes on new years day
Everything can change on a new years day
As everything changes on new years day
It's land or death
Their seat, their robe, their tie
Their land deeds
Their hired guns
They're tha crime
Worlds eye captured
At last is a Mexican pasture
Tha masked screaming land or death within a breath
A war from the depth of time
Shot four puppet governors in a line
Shook all tha world bankers
Who think they can rhyme
Shot the landlords who knew it was mine
Yes its a war from the depth of time
Everything can change on new years day
As everything changes on new years day
Everything can change on a new years day
As everything changes on new years day
It's land or death
Song Info
Submitted by
piesupreme On Apr 28, 2001
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This song is about the Zapatistas and their revolt against the mexican government. When it says " Everything can change on a new years day" that is when the zapatistas attacked and took over 3 cities. it was 4:00 a.m. January 1, 1994. And when it says " It's land or death" it is saying that the Zapatista's will fight for thier rightfully owned land. EZLN
A call to action for oppressed people, to fight against and bring down the corrupt govt officials who hold power. It asserts the true power in the people's hands, that we can change everything. A call for revolution in teh new millenium.
@deltajoy Funny though, how every revolution ends up being more corrupt than what it overthrew.
@deltajoy Funny though, how every revolution ends up being more corrupt than what it overthrew.
Southern fist- south of tha boarder = mexico = Mexican resistance = Zapatistas Rise through the jungle mist = call to arms from out of the jungle to the cities clenched to smach power so cancerous = fighting against the cancerous (capitalist) government black flag and a red star = ezln flag
CLENCHED TO SMASH POWER SO CANCEROUD.. RATM at their best, a call to arms, a powerful Zapatista rise up. I am not as smart as the dude that broke down the Zapatista Attack but i have lived thru the Salvadorian Civil war, and sometimes a fight for freedom is what a country nees. This is my fave RATM song VIVA LA REVOLUCION VIVA LA LIBERTAD VIVA LA PELEA DE LA RAZA HUMANA! RATM without a shadow of a doubt my favorite band, since autologic to Zacks Latest March Of Death.
The chorus guitar riff is so great. Especially live. And! I think it was this song on their live at the grand olympic dvd where zack jumps into the crowd. It's fucking amazing!
Love that change between mono reverb and stereo live and also love that palm mute just before the second chorus.
this is song is about the zapatista movement in mexico. MARCOS is leading the indenginous poor people in a revolt angainst the mexican government. southern fist- the first city the zapatistas took was in the very south of mexico. black flag, red star- those are the colors of communism/socialism. and thats what the zapatistas want reach for the lessons the masked pass on-this is talking about the zapatista leader MARCOS who when he gives speeches always has on a black ski mask. rising sun looming over LA-this refers to the number of mexicans that are living in LA.
One meaning of this song is that is a written about the Inception of NAFTA on Jan 1, 1994. With the inception the Mexican Government took land away from citizens and gave it to international corperations moving into Mexico. This mostly happened in Chiapas where they were subsitant farmers. with the new rules that came with NAFTA they were no longer even allowed to grow corn to live off of, and were forced to purchase it from imports.
As others have pointed out, it's about the zapatistas' uprising and what we all should learn from their example.
Everything can change on a new year's day.
It's a call to arms against the establishment:
Their existence is a crime Their seat, their robe, their tie Their land deeds Their hired guns They're tha crime