1. |
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Wretched, diseased are this people,
their lands dead and barren.
Honor lies not in these deserts:
we take it with us to our graves.
Behold our undying gods,
forever enthroned in our mem’ries and blood.
In river, in oak shall e’er they reside,
and they through our pride shall ne’er be forgot.
Remorse has swept o’er the footprints
that lead from old hollows,
but penance is not lost.
Grey torrents of rain from the heavens
wash over these failures.
I vow that before that earth crumbles
I’ll set foot again thereupon thereagain.
Behold our undying gods,
forever enthroned in our mem’ries and blood.
In river, in oak shall e’er they reside,
and they through our pride shall ne’er be forgot.
Praise, praise, praise to our gods…
Praise, praise, praise to our gods:
praise to our gods, may they ne’er be forgot.
Praise, praise, praise to our gods.
Praise to our gods!
Leagues off in the distance has risen
a vision of past days,
shown me by the gods.
Such strength do I find in beholding it,
no longer weary.
My gods and my fathers remember
my loyalty lies in the east.
Behold our undying gods,
forever enthroned in our mem’ries and blood.
In river, in oak shall e’er they reside,
and they through our pride shall ne’er be forgot.
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2. |
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“Fathers: forgive me,
for I have shamed us one and all
in desert heat; on foreign soil
I count misdeeds
against our path of yore.”
Judgement waits there in the home of my
Ancestors…
“River primeval,
bear me eastward to my kin:
they wait for me. I see their shadows
upon the trees
where once they had to toil.”
Their last words exalted the home of their
Ancestors…
Hear the clarion bell:
it tolls for his death.
This man that moved mountains…
to where does his lifeblood drain?
The last shovelful falls
o'er the casket we’ve placed ‘neath the oak,
but where did he leave the absolution
that I sought?
“Forest and woodland,
receive me here as sacrifice:
that I atone, to restore honor.
Drink my blood
with your mouth of parched earth.”
So I gaze back on the home of my
Ancestors…
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3. |
Ride!
05:14
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I should hope that will stand
the burgh that’s defence to my clan,
once again
battling infestation’s hand…
With pain do I know in my heart
that I cannot take their part,
and thus do I send in my stead 90 legions
of displaced kindred.
Ride to the gold horizon,
ride to azure emblazoned,
ride upon ground whose hills and valleys
are home to us now and forevermore…
Ride!
Ride o’er the hills of our birth!
Again! That I look back on the days
when as a boy I’d praise
the ancient ways
left me in unspoken phrase…
The south and the east to me spake:
“Not shall the backs of yours break
so long as forsaken are ne’er field nor lake:
we bestow this on you!”
Ride along streams of silver,
ride beneath branches amber,
ride upon ground whose hills and valleys
are home to us now and forevermore…
Ride!
Ride for the hills of our birth!
Alas! That I can’t bear to have seen
what would’ve become of me:
an amputee
stripped of all trace of dignity…
So let us scream to the sky,
let us hollow out their eyes:
‘tis better they not see again in their lives
‘lest our brilliance blind them.
Ride to the verdant woodlands,
ride to the salted marshes,
ride upon ground whose hills and valleys
are home to us now and forevermore…
Ride!
Ride for the hills of our birth!
Legions:
ride on!
Ride on!
Ride on forever!
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4. |
Suspended and Frozen
08:16
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Aeons pass before my eyes,
and everything must die,
and I have but wasted
and grown cold and grey…
Show me, then, O ancient runes,
which might my langor soothe,
the wisdom eternal
of the ancient days.
I can taste only the rain…
I am bound ever to remain…
Frozen and suspended,
away from Asgard's light;
frozen and forgotten,
in blackest of the night:
to gaze on stars of frost,
to read the words arcane,
to hold the elder days
and skin of old cast away…
Spear in heart, I suffer still,
and know not yet my fill
of agony given
for the sacred ways.
Endless days writhing in pain…
I am bound ever to remain…
Frozen and suspended,
away from Asgard's light;
frozen and forgotten,
in blackest of the night:
to gaze on stars of frost,
to read the words arcane,
to hold the elder days
and skin of old cast away…
For hidden knowledge mine
I sacrifice,
in everlasting time
self-crucified.
Burial celestial,
in hidden boughs' embrace;
carrion perennial,
the tangled roots, my grave…
My body hanging still,
I sacrifice:
to my divinity,
self-crucified.
Frozen and suspended,
away from Asgard's light;
frozen and forgotten,
in blackest of the night:
to gaze on stars of frost,
to read the words arcane,
to hold the elder days
and skin of old cast away…
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Oak, Ash & Thorn Denver, Colorado
Oak, Ash & Thorn arose along Colorado’s Rocky Mountain front range out of a collective passion for heavy metal and old-world paganism. New full length album coming early 2024 via Lost Future Records, tours to follow.
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