- Epic (song)
Infobox Single
Name =Epic
Caption ="Flying Mike" reissue cover
Artist =Faith No More
Album =The Real Thing
Released =January 30 ,1990
Format =CD, Cassette, Vinyl
Recorded =December 1988 – January 1989,Studio D inSausalito, California
Genre =Rap rock ,funk metal ,alternative metal
Length =4:51
Label =Slash
Producer =Matt Wallace
Writer =Lyrics:Music:Mike Patton Billy Gould
Jim MartinRoddy Bottum Mike Bordin
Certification=Gold
Last single ="From out of Nowhere "
(1990)
This single ="Epic"
(1990)
Next single ="Falling to Pieces "
(1991)
Misc = Extra musicsample
filename =FNM_Epic_Sample.ogg
format =Ogg
title =Epic
Type =single"Epic" was a breakthrough hit single by thealternative metal bandFaith No More . It was released in 1990 and featured on their third album "The Real Thing". It peaked at number nine on theHot 100 , and was the band's only Top Ten hit in the United States. It is the band's most popular song and a staple in their concerts.This song features a combination of heavy metal with
rap , paving the way forrap metal andfunk metal . Some rap and hip-hop artists have cited this song as a major influence in how they shout and syncopate their lyrics with heavy guitar-driven riffs."Epic" has been covered both in concerts and on the "
Kerrang! Higher Voltage" CD, a compilation of artists covering other songs. Such artists include the Welsh rock bandThe Automatic ; the CD was released20 June 2007 . ["Kerrang! " issue 1164 June 20th 2007] TheMetalcore band Atreyu also covered the song on their album "Lead Sails Paper Anchor ", and the Swedish indie bandLove Is All plans to cover it in their 2008 tour. [cite news |first=Paul|last=Thompson|authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Love Is All Cover Faith No More|url=http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/145467-love-is-all-cover-faith-no-more-add-dates|work=Pitchfork|publisher=Pitchfork Media, Inc.|date=September 16, 2008|accessdate=2008-09-19 ] . A master track of the song also appears in the music video game "Rock Band". A shortened version of the song is also featured in the racing game, "Burnout Paradise ". The song also appeared in a commercial for the console versions ofStreet Fighter IV , with the announcer stating about the game's "epic return"."Epic" was ranked number thirty on
VH1 's 40 Greatest Metal Songs, ["VH1 40 Greatest Metal Songs", 1-4 May 2006, "VH1" Channel, reported by [http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/the_greatest/103446/episode_this_list.jhtml VH1.com] ; last accessedSeptember 10 ,2006 ] and number sixty-seven on their 100 Greatest One-hit Wonders list. ["VH1 100 Greatest One-hit Wonders", "VH1" Channel, reported by [http://www.vh1.com/shows/series/100_greatest/one_hit_wonders/ VH1.com] .]Music video
The
music video for "Epic", which featured surreal images combined with performance footage of the band soaked by an artificial rainstorm on a sound stage, was subject to controversy because of the perceived treatment of afish , which is out of water and dying on camera—it was in factslow motion footage; the fish was returned to its tank alive in a matter of seconds.During an interview, the band joked that the fish seen flopping around in the music video belonged to Icelandic singer
Björk , which they claimed to have stolen from her at a party. There are also stories of Björk giving the fish to the keyboardistRoddy Bottum after a poetry reading in San Francisco. [ [http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=3256 Epic by Faith No More Songfacts ] ]Guitarist Jim Martin was a schoolmate, close friend and fan of the early
Metallica bassistCliff Burton . In the video he can be seen wearing a t-shirt with a photo of Cliff with the words "A Tribute to Cliff Burton". In addition,Mike Patton can be seen wearing aMr. Bungle shirt [cite journal |last=Cee |first=Gary |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1990 |month=November 30, |title=Faith No More: Inside the insatiable Mike Patton |journal=Circus Magazine |volume= |issue=#369 |pages=pages 62-64 |id= |url=http://negele.org/db/index.php3?band=2&year=1990&month=11&day=30&id=1531 |accessdate=2008-09-26 |quote= ] that reads "There's A Tractor In My Balls Again".Reception
"Epic" was the band's most popular single and was generally well-received; according to "
Rolling Stone ", however, it set a standard that Faith No More did not match with its later albums. [cite news |first=Al |last=Weisel|authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Faith No More: King For a Day/Fool for a Lifetime|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/faithnomore/albums/album/233079|work=Rolling Stone |publisher=RealNetworks, Inc.|date=June 1, 1995|accessdate=2008-09-20 ] Both the "Philadelphia Daily News " and "Los Angeles Times " praised the song, citing the song as "radio-ready" and "radical," respectively. [cite news | first =Jonathan | last =Takiff | title =Whaddya Get When Ya Rap on Metal? Faith No More Crosses Over & Under | page =40 | publisher ="Philadelphia Daily News " |date=September 14, 1990] [cite news | first =Robert | last =Hilburn | title =Counting Out Most of the Year's Top Records Pop music: no more than four of 1990's No. 1 songs will be considered significant a decade from now. Here are some that might.
page =12 | publisher ="Los Angeles Times " |date=December 31, 1990] However, the "New York Times " also cited Faith No More as "style-crunching," using "Epic" as their example. [cite news | first =Jon | last =Pareles | title =The Best Show? In the Court, not the Concert Hall. | page = | publisher ="New York Times " |date=December 30, 1990 ]Track listing
;UK & International releaseThe initial release of "Epic", released in the
UK ,Germany ,Japan andInternationally . The 7" editions only had Tracks One, Two, and occasionally Thre. Track Five was exclusive to Japanese issues.The [http://www.fnm.com/discography/FNMDiscog1.pdf Discography] on theFaith No More website, also available as a [http://www.fnm.com/discography/FNMDiscog1.txt text document] ] tracklist
title1=Epic |note1= |length1=
title2=War Pigs |note2=Live in Berlin onSeptember 9 ,1989 |length2=
title3=Surprise! You're Dead! |note3=Live at Sheffield |length3=
title4=Chinese Arithmetic"ref label|A|A|^ (Live at Sheffield |length4=
title5=Epic |note5=Live)ref label|B|B|^ (Japanese bonus track);American releaseThis version was released in America as a "Slash sticker" labelled 7" and as a cassette with a "Burning Splash" sleeve.tracklist
title1=Epic |note1=Radio remix |length1=3:59
title2=Edge of the World |note2= |length2=4:09;Australian releaseThe 7" and cassette versions of this release only had tracks 1 & 2, unlike the 12" which featured all 3.tracklist
title1=Epic |note1= |length1=4:51
title2=The Morning After |note2= |length2=3:44
title3=We Care a Lot |note3= |length3=3:50;UK & International reissueReissue version of the single "Epic". The 7" vinyl and cassette versions only had the first two tracks.tracklist
title1=Epic |note1= |length1=4:51
title2=Falling to Pieces |note2=Live at Brixton |length2=4:45
title3=Epic |note3=Live at Brixton |length3=4:55
title4=As the Worm Turns |note4=Live at Brixton |length4=2:46Chart performance
Footnotes
- note label|A|A|^Includes ad-lib from "It Takes Two" by Rob Base and DJ EZ-Rock.
- note label|B|B|^Recorded in Norwich, 1990. Broadcast by The BBC Radio 1 "Rockshow",
march 2 ,1990 . The profanity is obscured and the songs fade out.
References
{| width=100% class=wikitable style="font-size:95%;margin:1em 1em 0 0;"succession box
before = "U Can't Touch This " byMC Hammer
title = Australian ARIA Singles Chart number-one single
years =August 25 ,1990 -September 15 ,1990
after = "Blaze of Glory" byJon Bon Jovi
###@@@KEYEND@@@###
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