Sidewinder by Avenged Sevenfold

Album: City Of Evil (2005)

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A sidewinder is a kind of poisonous snake. The song describes the snake hunting his prey, starting with the hissing at the beginning of the song. The lyrics are most likely a metaphor for a rather evil person - someone who will turn on you when it suits his needs.

Comments: 6

Ivan from New Mexico as someone who's dabbled in the occult and has had experiences with this figure, i think Connor is right. Its kind of scary how they portray the figure. its almost as if it has possessed the band to make this song.
Darian64 from Randle, WaSome have speculated that the meaning of this song can also be interpreted as looking through the mind of a serial killer. With that being said, I have another theory. This song can also be a reference to The Shining. The song is called “Sidewinder” and that’s the name of the town where Jack Torrance and his family came from. Put that together with what I just said previously, and it’s pretty plausible that you can look at this song as a nod to The Shining, which I think is cool.
Connor from British ColumbiaPLEASE READ I know the real song meaning everyone else is way off!!! This is a song about being a reptilian shapeshifter: real life vampire. That's when someone because of their genetics, temporarily transforms into a huge lizard humanoid while they are performing human sacrifice. This is what the divine right to rule is actually. For more information on this subject I suggest reading many books on the occult and this stuff will make sense like simple math. The truth is there for those who are strong enough to handle it.
Caleb from Richmond, VaIt is a metaphor for drug addiction. The "sidewinder" is literally the addiction itself. It cannot feel any type of emotion and it leaves the person completely helpless to the strength of the addiction. "Stay inside tonight" is a plea from the people around this person who want to keep him away from the addiction. This song is most likely a triple entendre, as the literal meaning of this song is that of a snake hunting for it's prey. Another meaning that can be taken from this is that of a person who does only evil and selfish things. As previously stated, the lyrics can also be construed as being about drug addiction.
Alan from The Meadow Of Rainbows, United KingdomI think its a metaphor for a person who knows that he will do bad things to the people he loves, so he tries to distance himself from them, e.g. "Stay inside tonight, vanish from my sight"
Martin from Rostock, GermanyR.E.M. also mentioned that animal in "The Sidewinder sleeps Tonite"

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