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Of Erthe and Axen: Act I (2017)

by Xanthochroid

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1.
Instrumental
2.
My love is petals and dew The Erthe, the wilderness too For a fonder man, there is none Who admires her like the Sun Shining down so she may glow… But a maid stood alone In the trees, overgrown And she pondered the plight Of the rose She drank the dew from the rose I drank the dew from the rose I envy the one that she chose His stare and longing did grow Then she offered me a sip, But I dare not touch my lip Where the serpent’s tongue hath coiled For a man she desires, And indeed one she would have If I should but meet Her gaze A man like you I’ve never known Her words a womanly moan So lonely he must remain alone Her dress so perfectly sewn If you’d come away with me, We shall never lonely be What a travesty it would be, Have you never felt the touch If our eyes should fondly meet Of a maid politely struck By a man so handsome as you? Come away, silly man No, no ‘Tis a green and pleasant land This cannot be That awaits us through the trees She has led me through the trees The Erthe, she whimpers neath my feet Her tears, they beg me not to leave Although sadder tales have been told, None so truthful Or so old As the man And his maid Gladly joined
3.
Beyond the feeble reaches Of conscious memory A voice long forgotten Echoes through the chamber of my thoughts I cannot recall The speaker or what was spoken Just a whisper now Still, it’s crying, screaming, wanting to be known As dawn greets dew-wet grass A brother returns at last Seven years in patience passed Long since have I laid my dreams to ash Oh rekindled Flame Dare not speak His name Oh unfettered son What gifts you were given Why, then, did you run? As night drapes silted shores No laughter is heard anymore Tales of terror and of war Hang heavy in the dampened midnight air Oh, recall the dream Hunger's rising scream Rays of glinting light Glancing off dew-wet blades this night I was there Where once our fathers rode Beyond this mortal coil Toward that precipice of stone Which stands unchanged, uncaring, and old Countless wonders I have seen Endless skies of emerald green Minds can never idle be When magic stirs beyond the trees You know things of which I speak Secrets buried deep beneath Still eclipsed in jaded truth By the nameless wonders of my youth Oh, recall the dream (In dreams we cannot die) Hunger’s rising scream (It calls us to its side) Rays of glinting light Glancing off dew-wet blades this night Come with me to better days To higher climes where few might stand And never shall we tread again On silted shores, on blackened sand
4.
There are few of us who know What wonders we were shown In the visions of our youth For children, as we were, Think only half formed thoughts And now, as men, we recollect A dull and shattered dream But some of us awake With phantasms so strange; Enchanted hills and golden plains And cities made of stone Where ancient heroes rode Caparisoned with gold We come alive and then we know We’ve looked back through the gates, The gates the Forest Keeper made
5.
I know the place Where Memory sleeps And secrets hide It is not far Or hard to find Or too ancient to recall A sighing stream This endless forest's dream Are you still too blind to see it? The force that feeds Our endless need This deep and wooded dream that is my heart But night will fall And trees once tall Will bend to his will That scorching Raven’s smile Writhing, putrid, vile His sharpened tongue A spear to kill A song of soil The vine’s exquisite coil All but faded footprints of my past But night will fall And while the midnight Forest breathes I will not leave my home My deep and wooded home
6.
Ne aveas Mortem Non dat is pacem In enim morte sciemus morsus quos reliquimus *Do not welcome Death He offers no Peace For even in Death We will know the pains We have left behind* Just as he came So he shall go In woe, in pain, in poverty Have you ever felt this way before? Can you feel the power surging through your soul? And once it’s over, you’ll want more Can’t you see it’s what the earth is for- Can you hear the sound of hunger rise? We could bring an end to all those mournful, helpless cries… Take then good heed Heed To your end For as I say So it shall be We, the paragons of creation We, the arbiters of change Was this not the dream we shared When we were young and unafraid? But you saw her there, Gentle eyes, tempting stare; And still you’re bound by her No, no, not bound but held And you needn’t think this way We, were but children you and I We, thought, as only children think, This world was ours to conquer, And its blood was ours to drink How far you have wandered, How deep lie your pains. Bask in this eternal summer Revel in Morning’s glow Join me on silted shores once more How long have I labored How deep lie the crusted jewels of my innocence
7.
I heard the Forest sing Songs of my youth I’d never felt such pain before You held my hand that day You were my Sun before the dawn The darkened morning I have loved so long I don’t recall that day And I never thought of you when I cried You know the place And I never wondered why Where memory sleeps and secrets hide You left so suddenly Silence fills this place Naught but a memory of your embrace You, servile and sweet Soft as the sediment beneath our feet Far beyond the trees We roamed Yet, now, I plead: Recall the plans we made Dreams once so bold The jealous Sun stood still and cold What now has time revealed? A tepid pool of youth misspent A faded tapestry of dreams undreamt Strange, how you recount Wanton days, blissful nights Strange, as it seems, There was suffering And pain you never knew How could you? Do not welcome Death He offers no peace For even in death We will know the pains We have left behind Far beyond the trees I long to be A deeper stream Free from Flows endlessly Your incessant dream Toward my dream
8.
No ancient script Was ever writ No jewel-decked throne On which to sit Soaring high, The Watcher waits To slake his thirst To clean his plate His jaws agape His claws unfurled The Winged-Watcher Swallows the world The oceans rise and fall With his heaving chest And in the wind We feel his breath No cries are heard No tears are wept For wise ones know The bond once kept The price he asked; The cost of death: A single drop, Still glistening wet, Of crystal'd pain To pay a debt As time went on The debt accrued And we foolish Men The price refused Now all is lost And we, Erthwile Peer at the stars Through his crooked smile Your soul is crumbling, rotting Beneath the chains of hate Can you hear those mournful, helpless cries? The sound which has no name Open your eyes The blackened fog has blinded you And with this darkness you have shrouded Our deep and wooded home He is our fatal end Our recompense He is the fear We all can sense The creeping serpent The reeking breath The fangs of Erebus The certainty of Death The fangs of Erebus The certainty of Death

about

Following the success of their epic debut full-length "Blessed He With Boils," the masters of Cinematic Black Metal are back with their massive double album "Of Erthe and Axen."

Released in two Acts (Act I August 22, 2017, Act II October 17, 2017), "Of Erthe and Axen" is a prequel to the tales woven throughout Xanthochroid's earlier releases. In the world of Etymos, older brother Sindr (better known as Ereptor) returns to the island nation of Axen seven years after he left to join the ranks of the Erthen military. What follows is a tale of love, jealousy, magic, war, and deceit as younger brother Thanos learns of his brother's true motivations.

This new release takes Xanthochroid's theatrical concepts to a higher level, evoking the grandeur, bombast, and vulnerability of a live stage performance. More extreme, yet more delicate; more vast, yet more intimate; Xanthochroid's "Of Erthe and Axen" attempts to further broaden the horizons established in their acclaimed debut.

Not only has Xanthochroid chosen to remain an independent band, the group is highly involved in the marketing and promotion of their various efforts. Following the success of their cover of Wintersun's "Land of Snow and Sorrow", amassing over 750,000 views, Xanthochroid is hailed as an innovator in the world of extreme metal. As such, the band has launched an ambitious project called "The Xanthochroid Global Ambassador Program" (XGAP) which empowers fans to hold their own album release/listening parties in their local cities. Already a massive success, fans are planning events in over 20 coutries all over the world.

credits

released September 12, 2017

Sam Meador - Vocals, Choir, Piano, Orchestra, Acoustic Guitars, Bass, Accordion, Irish Flute, Mandolin

Matthew Carl Earl - Vocals, Choir, Drums, Orchestra, Flute, Irish Flute, Recorder, Mandolin, Percussion

Brent Vallefuoco - Choirs, Guitars

Ali Meador - Vocals, Choirs

with

Bryan Huizenga - Extreme Vocals on "To Higher Climes..."

Cover Artwork and Booklet Artwork by Jana Heidersdorf

Booklet design by Sam Meador

"Of Erthe and Axen" logo by Sam Meador

Recorded by Matthew Carl Earl, Sam Meador, and Brent Vallefuoco

Engineered, Mixed, and Produced by Matthew Carl Earl

Mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios

Created by Sam Meador

Inspirational Artwork by Natacha Nielsen

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about

Xanthochroid Lake Forest, California

Woven throughout the intricate and vast soundscapes of Xanthochroid's music are tales of another world, strange names and foreign lands are characters and places in the world of Etymos. The story of two brothers; Thanos and Sindr (better known as Ereptor) forms the cornerstone upon which Xanthochroid builds their cinematic metal universe. ... more

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