"Epic"
Single by Faith No More from the album The Real Thing
Released	1990
Format	CD single, Cassette, Vinyl
Recorded	December 1988 at the Studio D in Sausalito, California
Genre	Experimental Rock Funk Metal Rap Metal
Length	4:51
Label	Slash Records
Writer	Music: Gould/Martin/Bottum/Bordin Lyrics: Patton
Producer	Matt Wallace
Certification	Gold
Faith No More singles chronology
"From out of Nowhere" (1990) "Epic" (1990) "Falling to Pieces" (1991) The Real Thing track listing "From out of Nowhere" (Track 1) "Epic" (Track 2) "Falling to Pieces" (Track 3)

"Epic" was a breakthrough hit single by the alternative metal band Faith No More. It was released in 1990 and featured on their third album The Real Thing.

This song combines heavy metal with rap, which was extremely innovative at the time, paving the way for rap metal and funk metal. Some rap and hip-hop artists have cited this song as a major influence in how they shout and syncopate their lyrics^{[citation needed]}. The vocals on "Epic" and most of The Real Thing have a more nasal and manufactured '80s sound than Mike Patton's subsequent work. The video for "Epic" was subject to controversy because of the perceived treatment of the fish, which appears to be dying - it was in fact slow motion footage; the fish was returned to its tank alive.

It ranked #30 on VH1's 40 Greatest Metal Songs ^[1].

It ranked #67 on VH1's 100 Greatest One-hit Wonders ^[2].

The song has been covered both in concerts and on 'Kerrang Higher Voltage' CD, a compilation of artists covering other songs, in this case Welsh rock band, The Automatic covered the song. The CD was released 20 June 2007.^[3].

Theories

Although it was commercially very successful, "Epic" was a very complex and unusual song by the standards of the early '90s. Some perceive the lyrics[1] as a reference to masturbation. The lyrics also possess themes of rape. Other sources indicate that the lyrics may intertwine with people not being able to achieve what they want. Such as an accomplishment or goal. This contests to the "masturbation" conception stated above. Although, many people feel that the video for the song explains the second theory better. Which is not about sexual deviance at all, but more along the lines of people not acquiring what they desire most. For example, the fish at the end who dies without water.

There is also the possibility that the song's pervasive 'it' is a variable for whatever is the 'it' in modern culture. Various senses are tantalized throughout the song to give it a broader appeal. Any pop culture trend that disappears as quickly as it appears seems to fit as 'it'.

Trivia

Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.

• Guitarist Jim Martin was a schoolmate, close friend and fan of the early Metallica bassist Cliff Burton. In the video for Epic he can be seen wearing a T-shirt with a photo of Cliff with the words 'A Tribute to Cliff Burton'.
• Mike Patton can be seen wearing a Mr. Bungle T-shirt in the video. The T-shirt read "There's A Tractor In My Balls" and was sold at Mr. Bungle concerts. However, in order to secure MTV airplay the word "Balls" had to be obscured, so the bottom portion of the screen was mirrored.
• 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 keyboardist (this is not true), Roddy Bottum after a poetry reading in San Fransisco. ^[4]
• The master recording for Epic has been confirmed to be in the song list for the Harmonix-developed video game Rock Band.
• The Metalcore band Atreyu covered the song on their album Lead Sails Paper Anchor.

Notes

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