I think this song is more specifically about the Vietnam War. The totality of the sound and lyrics is reminiscent of the 1960s. You can hear musical references to the Velvet Underground for one and the droning is very specific to psychedelic music from that era. The lyrics tell a story about a battle and coming home. Many battles were fought in Vietnam over hills and the fighting was so bitter that both sides felt like the their own respective enemies weren't human. You can hear references to this when he says, "And when you find a piece of them in your sight, fire at will don't you waste no time". These same hills were often frequently lost and won over the period of several days of fighting. References to camp fires, and creeping uphill is a reference to night time jungle operations supported by helicopter gunships or soldiers in the sky (its worth noting that Sky Soldiers was the real nickname for 173rd Brigade which saw extensive combat in the highlands of Vietnam). Drop of Love or bombs trying to set you free (kill or save you). At the end the lyrics shift to subject of the song waking up, or taking orders from a new leader. I heard this song and bought the album when they were with Light in the Attic Records in 2006 and for me back then it was still an obvious reference to the Vietnam War and its similarity to then current Iraq War. The song is very much Anti-War, along with the entire album of Passover, but this song specifically speaks to Vietnam and 65k young men who lost their lives fighting over hill against a relentless enemy for a government and population that forsake them. If you look at Passover as a story this song is the first song since its the battle that starts the the change.
I think this song is more specifically about the Vietnam War. The totality of the sound and lyrics is reminiscent of the 1960s. You can hear musical references to the Velvet Underground for one and the droning is very specific to psychedelic music from that era. The lyrics tell a story about a battle and coming home. Many battles were fought in Vietnam over hills and the fighting was so bitter that both sides felt like the their own respective enemies weren't human. You can hear references to this when he says, "And when you find a piece of them in your sight, fire at will don't you waste no time". These same hills were often frequently lost and won over the period of several days of fighting. References to camp fires, and creeping uphill is a reference to night time jungle operations supported by helicopter gunships or soldiers in the sky (its worth noting that Sky Soldiers was the real nickname for 173rd Brigade which saw extensive combat in the highlands of Vietnam). Drop of Love or bombs trying to set you free (kill or save you). At the end the lyrics shift to subject of the song waking up, or taking orders from a new leader. I heard this song and bought the album when they were with Light in the Attic Records in 2006 and for me back then it was still an obvious reference to the Vietnam War and its similarity to then current Iraq War. The song is very much Anti-War, along with the entire album of Passover, but this song specifically speaks to Vietnam and 65k young men who lost their lives fighting over hill against a relentless enemy for a government and population that forsake them. If you look at Passover as a story this song is the first song since its the battle that starts the the change.