The song's working on a couple of levels. There's the Nostradamus concept level, where it works as a general statement that visionaries like him have never needed the approval of the dominant society/government/The Man.
Then there's the level that I connect with, and this is the level aimed at metal fans in particular and Priest fans in particular. Over the years, how much abuse has been heaped on "heavy metal hairballs?" This flips it: It's You who are the problem - the police, the government, religion, the wars they cause, the repression:
You denied everything that's good
Reacting as you would
With your shame
This here is a sex positive message.
One of my favorite parts is this:
Think that we must have lost our way
Running form the blaze
You were wrong
We chose our course...
I interpret the "blaze" as the conflagration of modern civilization - the anthill society where everyone is a cog in the machine, worker ants, warrior ants, queens, etc. The statement here is that we never wanted to be a part of that, and it was a deliberate choice.
And then it turns to the rage and frustration that people who, year after year, are slagged off in the media and by the Tipper Gores of the world, and the self-righteous hypocritical Christians, etc. "Enduring in a rage / We got strong."
There is a tone of outrage. We're the misfits? We're the "bad hombres?" You've got that exactly backwards Mr. Man. We're not buying any part of what you're selling. We've seen the product. We know what it is. And we're not buying. Every. Period. We are right. You are wrong. "You're to blame." In fact, YOU should be ashamed for selling it. But we don't care, we're going to do our thing instead. All we ask is to be "left alone."
The song's working on a couple of levels. There's the Nostradamus concept level, where it works as a general statement that visionaries like him have never needed the approval of the dominant society/government/The Man.
Then there's the level that I connect with, and this is the level aimed at metal fans in particular and Priest fans in particular. Over the years, how much abuse has been heaped on "heavy metal hairballs?" This flips it: It's You who are the problem - the police, the government, religion, the wars they cause, the repression:
You denied everything that's good Reacting as you would With your shame
This here is a sex positive message.
One of my favorite parts is this:
Think that we must have lost our way Running form the blaze You were wrong We chose our course...
I interpret the "blaze" as the conflagration of modern civilization - the anthill society where everyone is a cog in the machine, worker ants, warrior ants, queens, etc. The statement here is that we never wanted to be a part of that, and it was a deliberate choice.
And then it turns to the rage and frustration that people who, year after year, are slagged off in the media and by the Tipper Gores of the world, and the self-righteous hypocritical Christians, etc. "Enduring in a rage / We got strong."
There is a tone of outrage. We're the misfits? We're the "bad hombres?" You've got that exactly backwards Mr. Man. We're not buying any part of what you're selling. We've seen the product. We know what it is. And we're not buying. Every. Period. We are right. You are wrong. "You're to blame." In fact, YOU should be ashamed for selling it. But we don't care, we're going to do our thing instead. All we ask is to be "left alone."