Continuing the History of Metal through short (trivia packed) chapters and accompanying playlists.
Thanks for all the support of Part 1 of these ongoing series! You asked me for more, here it is :)
Work in progress, will be posting irregularly (but...
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Jon Schaffer gets easily discarded as an ultra conservative conspiracy theorist. The founder & riff master of Thrash-turned-Power heavyweights Iced Earth does not like a Republican or Democratic label but prefers 'Libertarian' to "stay away from the divide & conquer game of the parties."
Jon did cause stir launching his 2010 solo 'Sons Of Liberty' album on the Alex Jones show. Already controversial at the time, Jones went off the rails in truly despicable form after that. We hope Jon sees Alex less of an inspiration these days. Realizing thousands of US soldiers died to better bankers & elites is a thing people can agree to, government-staged school shootings, vaccines causing autism and racist conspiracies are very different. Unlike the radio host, Jon seems to us like a very genuine guy.
Conspiracy theories infiltrated Iced Earth lyrics as well, specifically in the Something Wicked Saga, which spans 5 albums & 3 singers. Although Iced Earth have created amazing stand-alone tracks (some of them listed in previous chapters) the epic saga has defined the band. So, who or what is this Something Wicked? Allow us to introduce Set Abominae, a creature spawned from the imagination of Jon and comic book artist Greg Capullo. In the initial Something Wicked Trilogy from their 1998's classic, Set is portrayed as an anti-Christ, but as the story is explored further we learn that humankind – more specifically its imperfections & their destructive fate – are the truly wicked ones. After all, they descended from space and killed all the Setians thousands of years ago. Set, a Setian messiah, is merely fulfilling his destiny to avenge his people. Still with us? Let's dig into the story a little deeper...
Setians were the original inhabitants of Earth. Primitive, yet divine and blessed with vast knowledge. Humans – an alien race hungry for power – invaded and massacred most of them. 10,000 escape, go in hiding and plot their revenge. Framing an Armageddon of natural disasters, the Setians destroy the humans' technology and brainwash them to forget their origins. Using their shape-shifting abilities, the Setians infiltrate human society. Creating religions and causing conflicts, they weaken mankind until it's time for their messiah to be born: Set Abominate!
After successfully mastering ancient Arts and passing several trials, Set unleashes his wrath. He kills Christ, manipulates every important leader in history, and controls the weak masses. However, as we get closer to present day, Set sees the potential of man, and begins to wonder if the race can and should be saved from its doom. Up to you to discover the story in more detail and figure out what will happen...
At the end of the day, the whole saga would fall apart if it wasn't supported by kick-ass Heavy Metal! Not every song in the saga lives up to Iced Earth's high standards, but on this playlist we collected the highlights that give you one killer playlist that pays homage to Schaffer's creative mastery!
Playlist:
01. Something Wicked This Way Comes: Prophecy (1998)
02. Something Wicked This Way Comes: Birth Of The Wicked (1998)
03. Something Wicked This Way Comes: The Coming Curse (1998)
