Phantom Lord Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Sound is ripping through your ears
The deafening sound of metal nears

Bodies waiting for his whips
The taste of leather on your lips

[Chorus]
Hear the cry of war, louder than before
With his sword in hand to control the land
Crushing metal strikes on this frightening night
Fall on to your knees for the phantom lord

[Verse 2]
Victims falling under chains
You hear them crying dying pains
The fist of terrors breaking through
Now there's nothing you can do

[Chorus]
Hear the cry of war, louder than before
With his sword in hand to control the land
Crushing metal strikes on this frightening night
Fall on to your knees for the phantom lord

[Guitar Solo]
[Interlude]

[Guitar Solo]

[Verse 3]
The leathered armies have prevailed
The phantom lord has never failed

Smoke is lifting from the ground
The rising-volume metal sound

[Chorus]
Hear the cry of war, louder than before
With his sword in hand to control the land
Crushing metal strikes on this frightening night
Fall on to your knees for the phantom lord

[Outro]
Fall to your knees
And bow to the phantom lord!

How to Format Lyrics:

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  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
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About

Genius Annotation

Despite being known as one of the band’s most underrated songs, “Phantom Lord” is a driving thrash classic from Metallica’s debut album, Kill ‘Em All. The Phantom Lord mentioned throughout the song took its name from lead singer and frontman James Hetfield’s first band.

The song is a highly extended metaphor for Metallica’s brand of thrash metal, sharing the same theme with songs like “Hit the Lights” and “Whiplash”, all songs that talk about the action involved with Metallica’s thrash roots.

Originally seen on the No Life ‘Til Leather demo tape recorded by Metallica with former lead guitarist Dave Mustaine now with the band Megadeth, Mustaine was accused of ripping off some of the riffs in this song on “This Was My Life”.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Metallica say about "Phantom Lord"?
Genius Answer

Obviously, the whole thing we were doing was using the English sound and the English way of doing things, which was two guitars. Everything in America was primarily one guitar, a little bit looser. There were some guiding lights. If you take Diamond Head’s Lightning to the Nations, Motörhead’s Overkill,Ace of Spades and No Sleep ’Til Hammersmith… if you take Iron Maiden’s first record, if you take Judas Priest’s British Steel, if you take Saxon’s Wheels of Steel, Tygers Of Pan Tang’s Wild Cat… those are the blueprints that fed into what we were doing.

Lars Ulrich, Metal Hammer

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