Trivium’s “Pillars of Serpents” Lyrics Meaning

by Jessica Shelton·January 6, 2020

Trying to interpret songs like Trivium’s “Pillars of Serpents” with only scant information about it being available is honestly very challenging. Perhaps it is even to some degree an act of futility. So we will try to ascertain the overall sentiment behind “Pillars of Serpents” instead of individually tackling all of the elaborate metaphors contained therein.

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First of all it is clear that the lyrics have some type of religious connotation with references to “angels” and the like. Yet these entities are depicted as being “scorch(ed)… out from the skies”. However, such a statement may not be meant to be taken literally, as in some kind of ill fates befalling angels. Rather it seems to point to the overall idea which the song is apparently built on. And what’s this idea? One in which the world itself is in some type of “corrupted” state.

So based on that understanding, the metaphor with the angels may actually allude to the notion of people no longer minding these entities, with the angles themselves being symbols of righteousness.

Why does the band view the world in this manner?

As to why Trivium views the world so, this is made more apparent later in the song when they claim that people are “wasting [their] lives away, consume to filling”. That is they ‘only wake for the feeding’. Or stated differently, their primary preoccupation is consumption. So basically, the vocalist sees the world as one where its inhabitants are more interested in satisfying their appetites than living piously.

Meaning of “Pillars of Serpents”

So the “pillars of serpents” is actually a metaphor for the whole corrupt way of living. That is the band views “a world built on sin” that has a figurative “wall” around it which to some degree confines the people within. And apparently, this symbolic structure is metaphorically supported by the “pillars of serpents”.

But again, the lyrics of this track are very-allegorical, and connecting them in such a manner is based more on theory than hard evidence. But that being said, it is likely that “Pillars of Serpents” is based on the world being in some type of unfavorable state morally. We were able to come to this conclusion given the following facts:

The illustrations in this song (which are readily decipherable)
The nature of other hits Trivium have released since

Conclusion

So conclusively, it seems that what the singer is actually calling for is people, such as himself, to commit themselves to “changing to better times”. He wants us to give ‘a spark to light the world’ as in being a beacon for hope to overcome the “pillars of serpents”.

Release Date of “Pillars of Serpents”

“Pillars of Serpents” was originally released, by Lifeforce Records on the 14th of October 2003. It was a part of Trivium’s maiden album, “Ember to Inferno”.

“Pillars of Serpents (2019)”

Trivium re-recorded this tune in 2017 and featured it on the Japanese edition of their album “The Sin and the Sentence”. That particular rendition was eventually released as a single called “Pillars of Serpents (2019)” a couple of years later.