It was released in two standalone physical formats. The first, titled "The Fight Song Pt.1", was released on January 29, 2001, in the US and on February 19, 2001, in the UK.[2][3][4] "The Fight Song Pt.1" was also released as a 12" picture disc vinyl LP on February 19, 2001 in the UK.[5][deprecated source] Both feature aremix byJoey Jordison of thenu metal bandSlipknot.[3][6] The second, titled "The Fight Song Pt.2", was released on February 2, 2001, in the US and on March 6, 2001, in the UK.[7]
The title is a pun on high school and college football team anthems known asfight songs as the song is partly a post-Columbine statement disparaging mainstream America's own glorification of violence among its youth; football is simultaneously one of the most violent sports and one of America's greatest obsessions.[3]
"The Fight Song" is ahard rock song[8] withglam rock influences.[9] It was written by the band'seponymous vocalist andJohn 5 and produced by Manson andDave Sardy. In "The Fight Song", Manson sings "I'm not a slave to a god that doesn't exist"; Steven Wells ofNME said that in the song, Manson avoided theclichés used by otherantitheist artists.[10] Both Wells ofNME and Joseph Schafer ofStereogum found the track's instrumentation similar to the guitar riff fromBlur's "Song 2" (1997).[10][11] Wells also felt that "The Fight Song" resembles the music ofThe Sweet, particularly "Little Willy" (1972).[10]
Schafer ofStereogum ranked it tenth on his list of "The 10 Best Marilyn Manson Songs", commenting: "In retrospect [Holy Wood] comes off as Manson's attempt at aBack in Black, a must-have disc of all singles, but unfortunately most of its tunes are too similar to one another (and too underwhelming compared to their predecessors). 'The Fight Song' is the shiniest apple from that tree, due in large part to the Blur-esque verse riff, which gives things an open, jangly feel unique in his discography, one that serves as a potent counterpoint to the Mack Truck chorus."[11]NME's Wells wrote that the song "is glam pop so cheesy that it makesDaphne & Celeste sound likeRadiohead. And how cool is that? Fucking cool, actually....OK, gloves off, stomach in, dick out this freaking RAWKS!".[10]Rolling Stone critic Barry Walters described the track as "a three-minute encapsulation of Manson that spins on a tweaked guitar motif before giving way to crunchingpunk assault," while noting the "exhilarating swagger that’s the essence ofrock & roll".[12]
Though she dislikedHoly Wood as a whole, Liisa Ladouceur ofExclaim! said that two of its songs, "The Love Song" and "The Fight Song", are among the band's best and serve as "potent anti-authority anthems".[13] Alec Chillingworth ofMetal Hammer described "The Fight Song" as one of the band's "certified classics, branded ontoindustrial metal's beating heart by one Mr Brian Warner".[14]
Themusic video for this song, directed byW.I.Z. atVerdugo Hills High School football field, depicts the band members performing the song at a violent game ofhigh school football between two fictional teams, "Holy Wood" (composed ofjocks in white football attire) and "Death Valley" (composed ofgoths and social outcasts in black football attire).[1][15] The video also features a few subliminal messages; at approximately 2:12, the video briefly replaces the scuffling football players with people fighting with police riot squads, and a Death Valley cheerleader is briefly seen throughout the video repeatedly hacking at a wooden pillar with an axe. Near the end of the video, it begins to rain, and a Death Valley player throws the football at the scoreboard, making it and the goalpost burst into flames. The video ends with the flaming goalpost collapsing forward.
The music video generated minor controversy for its violent depiction of anAmerican football game betweenjocks andgoths, which some sources have interpreted to be directly "echoing" Columbine.[2][3] Manson has vehemently denied this.[2] He further dismissed the claims toMTV News at theAmerican Music Awards on January 8, 2001, stating, "People will put into it what they want if it helps them sell newspapers or helps them write a headline. They're gonna want to turn it into something it isn't.Flak is my job."[3]
At his show inGlasgow in August 2001, Manson dedicated the song toNicola Ann Raphael, who had committed suicide two months ago at 15 years old because ofbullying over herGoth lifestyle.[16]
"The Fight Song" written byMarilyn Manson andJohn 5; "The Love Song", "Disposable Teens" and "Astonishing Panorama of the Endtimes" by Manson, 5 andTwiggy Ramirez; "Diamonds & Pollen" by Manson, Ramirez andMadonna Wayne Gacy; "Working Class Hero" byJohn Lennon; "Five to One" bythe Doors.
The music video for the song is shown briefly to introduce Marilyn Manson in the filmBowling for Columbine. The full video is included in the DVD special features.
The song appears in the 2001 filmMean Machine for a short sequence whenJason Statham takes out several guards and a fellow inmate during the football match, although this sequence is shown in black and white and does not actually happen.
The song was used for theWWF Invasion event in 2001, being the theme song of the event.
^Enhanced portion of every CD single also included a bonus picture gallery, biography, lyrics to the song, a complete list of concert dates for theGuns, God and Government Tour, as well as downloadable wallpaper art.
^Original pressings of the Japanese EP contained all eight previously-released Major Arcana Tarot cards, as well as two exclusive cards:The Hierophant (5) andthe Hanged Man (12).
