Return To Vietnam
1998 · Pavement 76962-32276-2 · USA
- Artist
- Master
- Title
- Return To Vietnam
- Release
- Faith Is In Season
- Year
- 1998
- Label
- Pavement # 76962-32276-2
- Format
- CD · Album
- Language
- English
- Country
- USA
- Genre
- Metal · Death Metal
- Primary theme
- Post-War
Annotation
Death Metal band formed in Chicago, Illinois, USA, in 1983, led by Paul Speckmann. The song "Return to Vietnam" dealt with the Bosnian War (1992-95), comparing the contemporary conflict with the Vietnam War: "they're marching off to war, in the Bosnian freeze...return to Vietnam, the parallel is the same" - this type of interpretation was often seen in the post-war period during various events, such as the Iranian Hostage Crisis (1979), 80s interventions under Reagan & Thatcher, the First Gulf War (1990), and the invasions of Afghansitan and Iraq in the 2000s.
Annotation by Justin A. Brummer
Lyrics
English: Their killing for ideals, to build your perfect world / Their marching toward their death, with the flag unfurled / Support the national pride, to reach their ignorant goals / Their fighting to survive, the fight for all control / Step into seclusion, hide beneathe the brush / It's the code of honor, nothing to discuss / Your fates in the hands of those who pull your strings / Are they drunk with power, or lonely human beings / Mesmerize the chosen, critisize desertion / Publicize the moment, just coersion / Soldiers fill the streets, they're marching off to war / In the Bosnian freeze, a massage to explore / Old men make mistakes and soon the young men pay / Sacrifice the day with their lives Return to Vietnam, the parallel is the same / The object is to win or lose this deadly game