As a black man who used to only listen to Hip-Hop back in the day, this song and Iron Maiden's "Number of the beast" got me into heavy metal. Been a huge fan every since.
White black it should never matter Wan just appreciate good music i just wish we could come together on the true what's right and what's wrong with the rest of the world . Glad you like My friend hope you and you're family are all alive and well. Greetings from Buffalo New York.
I'm happy u were the top comment because I didn't intent to click on this and I for sure had that stigma of metal u made me actually watch n listen thanks
Yeah that’s ridiculously difficult. Not everyone can sing and play anything at the same time. You need robot skills at that point. Vocals and drums is even more difficult.
@@lewisgrant7622Absolutely! Couldn’t agree with you more, and second your comment above about being glad that they kicked Dave out to form the more superior band 😂
Dave wrote all the songs by himself on this album except marty helped write hanger 18. Also marty has 3 contenders for the greatest metal solos of all time on this album and he wrote all of his solos IN A SINGLE MONTH
@@NovaStalker when you think about that versus this track, "Master of Puppets" stands out for obvious reasons a lot more. This is just an Thrash attack on sheer technical steroids, Metallica redefined Thrash and was experimenting. I understand why some would choose "Holy Wars", as both of these albums diverged Thrash into two newer styles: Progressive and Technical Thrash.
I loved that he knew it was wrong and knew about the conflict before he looked it up! I love seeing informed young people. I teach history and would love to have these guys in my class. We'd have great conversations!
But the problem is that he is wrong. The first part of the song is about the religious divide in northern Ireland. Catholic and protestant. Megadeth did a gig in Belfast which is split religiously still to this day. Dave thought it would be a good idea to bring it up while on stage and it didn't go well for him. That's where it comes from. I'm from rep of Ireland.
@@adamcronin5430 art doesnt just apply to what inspired it. and im 1000% sure this song (especially with all the video references) was also intended to apply to wars in general. Also, no one was going "overseas" to the "foreign lands" of Ireland to fight war, that was clearly about the middle east. Like, why would you want to try and claim something like this just for your country anyways.
Thank you for your entertaining reaction. As an old "metal kid" from the 80s I am impressed how clearly you analyzed the song and discovered that metal is not about being deeply evil just for the sake of it, but express the feelings and message of a topic just in another way. Sorry I don't know your names, but the guy with the red basecap always impresses me with his deepness and his efforts to try to understand the background of a song - even of a maybe different genre, than he is usually is listening to. He is always focused on the songs and the videos - that's really a honest way to react to a song. Keep on going guys.
Your point is correct, but there are exceptions and even those exceptions are not what they appear to be at first glance. Wish you guys would take a moment to listen to some DEICIDE. is sounds evil for the sake of being evil but deep down is railing against organized religion for all of its flaws and hypocrisies. Also the bands DEATH and MORBID ANGEL! Rock on guys keep up the good work🤘
Great review guys! You weren't wrong when you mentioned the violence in the UK. Mustaine almost started a riot at one of their events in Ireland when he made some comments from on stage. There was a lot of violence back then in Ireland between Catholics and Protestants. When he heard about it later, it inspired him to write Holy Wars. Even though the lyrics reference the wars in the Middle East
yep that's why Dave says "don't look now to Israel, it might be your homeland" meaning Israel isn't the only place behind attacked due to religious views, our own countries (homeland) might also be under attack but we just don't notice it as it's always what's going on around the world instead of what's happening in our own countries. (the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. when in actuality it's the same on both, we take for granted what we have while complaining about what we don't know we have.)
The music video as it really contextualizes the song even more. It is focused mainly on the Israel-Palestine strife with focus especially on Arafat and the PLO. Though perhaps some from surrounding areas too. So even if what happened in Ireland might have been where an impetus for the song originally came from, it evolved to focus on the Middle East, Dave.
This is the greatest Heavy Metal song ever written. The lyrics still hold up 30+ years later, even more so. While the guitar work is some of the best shredding ever laid down.
So many good things come from Megadeth! Dave Mustaine (Lead Singer and guitar) was originally a member of early Metallica. Great music and lyrics! Check out "Symphany of Destruction" or "Hangar 18". Best solo you'll ever hear is on the song "Tornado of Souls".
Dave has writing credits all over Metallica's first album, Kill 'em All, has a few credits on their sophomore album, Ride the Lightning, and he alleges that some of his riffs were used on a song named Leper Messiah on the third album, Master of Puppets, that he was never credited for.
Megadeth lead guitarist/singer, Dave Mustaine, was the original lead guitarist in Metallica. He co-wrote some of the best of the songs on Kill Em All and Ride the Lightning for Metallica before he was kicked out of the band for his drinking. Back in the 80s a lot of the fans were like two warring factions, they acted like you could only like one band or the other. It turned out to be a great thing because we got two of the greatest metal bands ever out of it.
Really!? I thought Dave played in The Carpenters, and later Abba. If we didn't have you to point us in the right direction after 40 plus years, important musical history would be lost forever. Thank you. Dum-dee-dum-dum-dum.
I am 50 yrs young and a white man so much respect to you all for giving metal a time of day man. The days of life in my generation metal was considered evil...Music is a release man no matter what it is. KEEP YOUR MINDS OPEN MY FREINDS..PEACE OUT FROM OHIO
The lyrics are heavily influenced by the Bible and end times “prophecies”. He often uses direct quotes. And a lot of the words are “evergreen”. There’s a lot of bad people and a lot of bad things that have been happening throughout our history. You could apply the lyrics to a lot of things today, 100 years, 1000 a ago and so on. People have been preaching about the decay of society and the “End” for centuries. It’s hardly a unique time bar ability to actually destroy ourselves completely.
Fun fact for you guys if you didn't know: Dave Mustaine (lead singer and guitar player for megadeth) used to be in Metallica and helped build that band into what it is today. Then he started Megadeth and the rest is history. Thrash is usually a very political genre and Megadeth nails it everytime with their message. You guys liked this definitely check out the songs Hangar 18, peace sells and symphony of destruction. Mustaines lyrical/message and riffs really shine in those songs. Megadeth is one of my favorite bands and it's really cool seeing people discover them to this day. And yes the tshirts are awesome Vic Rattlehead is the best mascot in metal!
I'm gonna stop you right in your tracks. Dave didn't build Metallica into what it is today. He built Kill Em All, and he taught James how to write thrash. That's all. Dave wrote a couple of their famous riffs, and many of their underrated riffs, but Metallica's just fine without Dave in it. If it were any other way, Metallica would've been in the gutter decades ago. Dave is also notoriously difficult to work with, do you know how many different band members have been replaced in Megadeth? *A metric shitload.* Believe me when I say I know Mustaine is a different kind of beast, but getting kicked out of Metallica was the best thing that ever happened to him *and* Metallica, and Metallica was doomed to sink the longer Dave was on. There's no way he would have been cool *just* being the other guitarist, and considering how he's flaunted his wealth in the past he'd almost certainly have tried to come for Lars' neck business wise. Sadly he just can't let shit go, though. Can't imagine how big the stick is that's up his ass if he still can't pull it out after four decades.
The original inspiration for this was a gig, I was at, in Belfast where a near riot broke out after Dave mentioned the cause, a reference to one side of the religious war that had been raging here since 1969. They had to have an armed escort out. Thankfully he apologised and they did come back and play. They were crazy times.
You gentlemen have done a very wonderful job of conveying the message of this song to many who may not have otherwise understood the depth and significance of, not just this song, but metal music altogether. Thank you!!!
Absolutely love watching reaction videos when there's cross genre appreciation happening. Music is not a color, but a feeling. When you can appreciate ALL music genres and apply that same appreciation to people....color becomes non existent. Simply put...just respect for the person and what they do gets the same respect in return. Ya'll have definitely become one of my favorite channels to watch.
This is considered one the best heavy metal albums of all time, having been released in 1990 which kind of revived thrash with grunge and alternative slowly taking over, I would recommend Tornado of souls and Hangar 18 as they’re from the same album, although listening to the remastered as they are the full versions of the songs
@@craigmcmillan4494 I say it cuz it’s just easier to find it, plus they seem the type to try and react to the music video if there is one, and hangar 18 doesn’t have the full 5 mins of it
The inspiration for the song came from an experience they had on tour in Europe. Dave on stage saw someone selling tshirt in support of “the cause” not knowing it was the IRA. Before playing anarchy in the uk he dedicated the song to the cause. The crowd divided because of the war with the IRA. After the show they had to be escorted out of the city in armoured cars. This experience is what initially inspired writing this song is what I got from an interview with Dave Mustaine.
I listened to Megadeth before but when I first seen this video, I was so blown away and mesmerized by the music I Started practicing guitar even harder. They are my inspiration to become a serious guitar player!!!
So the catalyst for this song indeed was an event that Dave experienced after making a mistake and dedicating a Sex Pistols cover to "The Cause" after seeing signs in the audience not realizing the Cause referred to the IRA. It sparked a riot and gave birth to the idea that became Holy Wars - the music video though does seem to pay homage to images from Desert Storm which is why you see the middle eastern imagery. They've long been critical of these wars and the lyrics and imagery are common in a lot of Dave's music/videos.
If you want to experience more Megadeth, there's a ton of good stuff out there - really anything off of Rust is excellent (Hangar 18, Tornado of Souls, Lucretia) and Youthanasia is also a favorite of mine - front to back bangers, featuring "ballads" like A Tout La Monde, as well as the titular track (Youthanasia is just so good).
Yeah, the Northern Ireland gaff that Dave made definitely was the impetus for this song, but I guess when they wrote it, they included the broader meaning of any holy wars... since Israel is even specifically mentioned.
Holy shit! Just found out about you guys bc I got the Bill Burr videos recommended. Been loving the content and now you react to one of my all-time fav songs! It's the one that got me into Megadeth and truly into metal. It's an absolute banger and CRAZY technical and skillful and all that, but I'm glad you also saw the strong message in their song. I saw Megadeth live 4 times now and even met them briefly before a show in 2019. They're absolute beasts on stage and phenomenal guys off stage. Thanks for sharing the love and keep up the content!
This is Megadeths answer to Master of Puppets. The two most iconic songs in the genre. There has been a ridiculous fan rivalry over the two bands because Dave wrote a few songs in metallicas early stages and for some reason that's a good enough reason for some megadeth fans to hate Metallica, but true music fans can enjoy both and not get caught up in petty fan wars!
It’s the feud between the 2 bands sympathizing with the 2 sides when they fired Dave You pick a side to worship Personally I side with megadeth but I love both bands
@@seancunningham4462 I got to see megadeth back in April along with inflames & lamb of god It was badass Dave’s voice was sounding better than it has been
Goddamn I miss the early 90's. So much great Metal coming out, watching the videos on TV late at night with friends sneaking beers when I was a kid. Good times, so many awesome memories.
This is one of the most intense metal songs out there. I always listen to this when I need to get pumped up! Enjoying and wanted more from it, great reaction guys!
It's surreal watching you guys go through all this old school metal just like me and my friends back in high school- and I'm legit impressed you're taking the time to read the lyrics and understand the bands messages. The media has always portrayed metal as evil, but so much of these bands messages are critiques of the stupid parts of society.
One of my favorite songs off of one of my favorite all-time albums. Great video you guys. And that album cover is amazing. All of Megadeth's artwork is fantastic. Since I'm on art, Pearl Jam is another band who always has incredible album art and concert posters.
I love megadeath so much! I grew up with half of my family being hip hop and rnb stans and the other half were metal heads. Grew up going to so many concerts and finally got to see Megadeath live with some friends. It was insane! One of the best shows i ve ever been too! The vibes were unbeatable no one could touch them.
Megadeth still rocks and ever album they put out gets better, I'm 51 still rocking to them. Y'all would love wake up dead, sympathy of destruction, addicted to chaos, sweating bullets, poison shadows and lying in state. I'm 51 and still rocking to them.
Megadeth song writing > Metallica no question they went radio and it shows but they did get commercial success from it but at the cost of their younger selves rolling in the grave with cliff Burton
I saw these guys about a month ago and the performance was absolutely incredible, they finished the show with this song and I got it on video. My favorite band is metallica, but thus is my favorite song of all time the guitar and drum synchronization is just stunning and mesmerizing. Excellent show!
I saw this clip on a video jukebox channel in Alabama for the first time right after its release. I was hooked. I bought Rust in Peace shortly after. One of my favorite albums to this day. Great job guys!
The first part of song was Holy Wars which was inspired by the incidents in Ireland (Dave caused a riot at a concert by inadvertently saying the wrong thing)...but as you can see, not specifically about that conflict. The second part was based on the Punisher comic which was quite different
❤ One of my favorite bands ❤️ I met them years ago and have been to many of their concerts ❤️ You guys are great. This is actually one of my favorite songs by them. Also I love how open minded you guys are with all types of music. I’ve definitely become a subscriber and I have been sharing your videos ❤
You guys have become my new favorite reactors lol. Nice to see y’all giving other genres of music a chance that you normally would not be listening to!!! 💯🤘
This entire album is pretty damn fire. I started my metal journey with Metallica and then ventured into this album by Megadeth, and it’s just unfuckingbelievable. Lucretia is a JAM that is groovy and jazzy and an amazing guitar solo…just so much awesomeness in this whole album. Also, I pretty much just listened to rap from age 13-30.
I've noticed that Megadeth gets some of the best reactions from hip hop heads more so than a lot of other bands. Never would have guessed that. I love it, still surprising though \m/
It is good that you guys try to find out what is really going on and how the media lies about the news and these bands. When my kids were underage, they were Megadeth fans. When the band came to our area with an all ages show, my kids got to do a meet and greet with the band. Dave Mustaine was eager to meet them and signed a poster for them and engaged them with questions. His energy and attention was a real blessing on them and inspired them to care about World Peace.
Best reaction so far, you get the energy and the ability to explore and probe into the meanings, which don’t have to be completely literal, it’s the combination of the music keeping it open so that we can dig through these chaotic and divided times and evolve it to a higher common denominator 🤟✨
yooooo im so glad you enjoyed this classic!! If you wish to get into megadeth some more i would highly recommend you to listen Tornado of Souls. That song has one of the best guitar solos in metal history. God bless yall
I love, love Megadeth. Great reaction, especially to that solo. How crazy that Dave plays guitar like that while he sings. So many great songs to hear from them. In My Darkest Hour, Hangar 18, A tout lemond,, sweating bullets, and their newest stuff that just came out is fire too, even did a song with ice t.
@@satanlaffing same thing with me, went straight out to buy a Jackson guitar like marty. Vinnie Moore, Tony macalpine, marty freidman all the virtuoso players. But I still need to run through this classic every now and then. Perfection. 🙏🏻
@@andrewelkington4492 i officially didn't start playin' until sat. june 6, 1992 when i got some bullshit HARMONY explorer that was black w/white spider webs from a pawn shop. it took me a bit cause in 90-91 i was still a skate rat so i had to let that run it's course first. in nov. 93 i bought me a black JACKSON KING V for @ $500. in july of 94 i went back & got the bright ferrari red version. i STILL have 'em. you can look online to see which ones i got : JACKSON KING V PROFESSIONAL from the 90s.
Really jealous of you guys getting to listen to this for the first time, first time I heard this was early 90’s and listened to the tape over and over again in school on my Walkman
Marty's solos on this song are very soulful, then Dave's solo at the end is just the most explosive, face melting thing you've ever heard. Best Megadeth song, best band in the world! MEGADETH RULES 🤘🤘🤘
Cool group of guys--would be fun to hang out and listen to rock & metal with them. After several videos I'm particularly impressed with red hat's attention to detail, both musically and lyrically.
Saw them waayyy back in '86 at Cumberland County Arena. The parking lot was full of ambulances from the crowd beating themselves into a frenzy, jumping off the stage, etc. Wicked awesome show ! Thanks for the video my friends, Semper Fidelis!
So glad you did the reaction and like it. Like you said in the beginning, this is basically 2 songs in 1. The first part is Holy Wars which is about Ireland and Northern Ireland. Once he says the words Holy Wars, that part is over and the song The Punishments Due starts, which is based on The Punisher comic.
Great song with a lot of meaning great heavy metal🔥🔥🔥 as someone else said it's very impressive that you take the time to understand what the songs about...keep up the good work and thoroughly enjoy you guys❤❤❤
I had the pleasure of seeing them perform this song live. And Nick Menza hit his drums so hard, the whole riser he was set up on shook from the shear power of him hitting the drums so hard!!
The song isn't about Ireland, but Dave wrote the song after an incident that happened with them on tour in Ireland, so the song is likely inspired by the war in Ireland, but the lyrical content sounds more like the wars in the Middle East.
I think that's the best thing about these lyrics. They can easily apply to different conflicts. I believe the incident in Ireland inspired the lyrics and the lyrics just happened to apply to the conflict in the middle east.
Fools like me who cross the sea and come to foreign lands (That's referencing Dave flying across the Atlantic to tour Ireland, Europe) Asks the sheep for their beliefs (That's referencing Dave asking kid about the conflict in Ireland) A country that's divided surely will not stand (That's referencing north and south Ireland, protestants and Catholics) No foolish naive stand (That references Daves rant on stage that caused a riot) So yes, it is about the incident in Ireland.
I think it’s just holy wars in general. “Don’t look now to Israel.” Of course inspired by Catholics v Protestants in Ireland, but there’s so many, a good number of which were active at the time.
I love you guys for being open minded and not only listening to the music, but reading the lyrics as well. I have been listening to Megadeth since 1989! I would like to see your guys reaction to Monstrous Ball by the Butcher Babies. Pretty please :)😁
You guys should totally keep up the reactions metal bands it's awesome seeing newcomers to listening to the genre highly recommend checking out some of these bands Anthrax, Racer X, Pantera, Korn, Deftones, Motorhead, and Pantera if you haven't already they some headbangers
