Music / Ten Thousand Fists

You will remember the night you were struck by the sight
of ten thousand fists in the air!

Ten Thousand Fists is the third studio album by American heavy metal band Disturbed, released on September 20, 2005.

The album contains many firsts for the band. It's the first album to feature new bassist John Moyer, who replaced Steve "Fuzz" Kmak from the two previous albums following his firing, as well as the first album to feature Disturbed's grinning Mascot "The Guy" on the front cover, who would later become an iconic part of the band and appeared on most of the covers of their subsequent albums. The main lyrical change made by Ten Thousand Fists compared to previous albums is its increased political emphasis, with many of its songs including social commentary and references to politicians.

It was the second album by the band to debut at number 1 on the Billboard 200, and spawned the singles "Stricken," "Just Stop," "Land of Confusion," "Ten Thousand Fists," and "Guarded"^note Technically a promotional single.

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Preceded by Believe, succeded by Indestructible.

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Tracklist:

1. "Ten Thousand Fists" (3:32)
2. "Just Stop" (3:44)
3. "Guarded" (3:20)
4. "Deify" (4:17)
5. "Stricken" (4:05)
6. "I'm Alive" (4:42)
7. "Sons of Plunder" (3:48)
8. "Overburdened" (5:57)
9. "Decadence" (3:24)
10. "Forgiven" (4:12)
11. "Land of Confusion"^note originally by Genesis (4:48)
12. "Sacred Lie" (3:06)
13. "Pain Redefined" (4:07)
14. "Avarice" (2:57)

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Ten Thousand Tropes:

• A God Am I: Invoked and defied in "Deify" which is about standing against this type of mindset.
  You're no immortal!
  I won't let them deify you!
• Badass Boast: "I'm Alive".
  The things I treasure most in life
  Cannot be taken away
  There will never be a reason why
  I would surrender to your advice
  To change myself, I'd rather die
  Though they may not understand
  I won't make the greatest sacrifice
  You can't predict where the outcome lies
  You'll never take me alive!
  I'm alive!
  I'm Alive!!
  I'm ALIVE!!!
• Bilingual Bonus: Draiman sometimes slips Hebrew phrases into some of his works. "Elochai" in "Pain Redefined" translates to "My God."
• Cover Drop: The Title Track drops the cover in every chorus:
  You will remember the night you were struck by
  The sight of ten thousand fists in the air!
• Cover Version: The album includes their version of Genesis' "Land of Confusion".
• Death by Materialism: Invoked in (what else?) "Avarice."
  Avarice will kill you in time!
• Fist Pump: The album's title, the Title Track, and the cover show a crowd with their fists in the air and are all "Meant to signify unity and strength, the kind of elation and power that can be felt at a momentous rock show," per Draiman's words.
• Heel Realization: In "Overburdened," a Knight Templar realizes why he ended up in hell:
  I was fighting for a reason
  Holy blessed homicide
  Seems I have committed treason
  All I've sacrificed...

• Money Song: "Avarice" maligns greed: "Avarice will kill you in time."
• Murder Ballad: "Forgiven". "You're just another dead man living to me. How can you let a dead man live?"
• Please, Don't Leave Me: "Stricken" is a conflicted song where the narrator switches between lamenting all the problems someone caused him, "I am crippled by all that you've done," and begging that person not to leave, "I can't let you go!"
• The Power of Hate:
  • "I'm Alive":
    No more games
    It won't feel the same
    If I hold my anger inside
  • "Avarice".
    I'll savor this anger
    My hate makes me stronger
• Protest Song: This album is a lot more political than either of the previous two and contains several examples of this trope such as "Deify", "Land of Confusion" and "Sacred Lie."
• Spoken Word in Music: "Deify" starts with clips of one pro-Bush source, one comment on a repressive government, then clips of Bush himself from his 9/11 speech.
• Tautological Templar: The narrator of "Overburdened" finds himself in Hell in the afterlife and wonders, "How was I considered evil?" and "How have I been so determined malign?" Then in the second verse, he says, "I was fighting for a reason / Holy blessed homicide." He undergoes a Heel Realization right there though.
• Title Track: The very first song shares its title with the album.
• War Is Hell: "Overburdened" and "Sacred Lie" depict horrors of war.
  Don't you know the war is far from over now
  What a stumbling block we've fallen over now
  As our brothers die defending no one
  The war is far from over now

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