The Veil
by Ancient Thrones
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1. |
Transient
01:58
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He:
[A single incision and the panic disappears.
Calm cold water overruns an imperfect system.
From sudden darkness to the brightest light, spiraling ever towards the
sun; the cycle unending.Drifting now, transient with no time left].
He:
Connected, I now travel beyond.
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2. |
The Sight of Oblivion
06:00
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He:
Eyes are wide seeing for the first time, there’re new skies above me.
Feel numb as I rise from the ground, surrounded in beauty I never thoughtto be found.
Where my body was, there is nothing at all
Where my skin once was, an ethereal gaping hole
So cold but I am nothing at all, stoic and comfortable.
Floating softly, hover above ground.
Is this existence I have always had?
An evolution of the highest form?
World below me that I never knew
But I’ve felt.
[the pain of death]
A new atmosphere, colors we've never dreamt before.
No sign of life, have I left it all behind?
I must know
Empty path unfound, lured in a nebula or void?
No sign of life, I have left it all behind
He:
As I drift further on, no fear is felt on the inside
Never thought, never felt this empty before
Bestowed; to walk the other side
Enchanted, intrigued in desolation
But more elevated than any being
Beyond
[a figure, the face of the void appears and I’m struck with stillness; a
radiation]
Petrified, paralyzed by the hand of death
The dark currents flow through my chest
Frozen stiff, I’ve lost all ability
Before me a swarm of crumbling graves, immobile I watch them rise from ground.
As I drift further on, no fear is felt inside
Face to face, journey towards the sun
Welcoming the sight of oblivion
Oblivion
Viduus: Behold, the reaper of souls, Time at an end, your coffin open
He: As a million graves rise from-
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3. |
The Millionth Grave
05:53
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He: Ground.
Viduus:
This realm you've entered is of last existence, trapped forever among the memories of the damned.
You are vacant from your past life, you shall
endure what time you find here, in lifeless form.
[there are waiting lots surrounding, beckoning me]
He:
Obscured figure why have you brought me to this place. A beast before me, tall and cloaked, divine distorted face.
All sense of self left when I felt its embrace,
numb and centered its dark ether fills my void.
Viduus:
Into my domain, the hand of time restricts you. By my command I demand you to lie into the ground.
By the order of the dark ones, your fate is sealed
within the coffin before you.
Inside this realm, mere mortal men have no place amongst the Gods and spirits above whence you came.
I am more than you will begin to comprehend.
Inside the grave, embrace the end
He: No! I will not fade away. This will not be thy grave. Return me to
a past land. Find my way home and live again.
Viduus: You fool. Life left you aside. I am death realized. Imperfections
not of pure blood.
Viduus: Feeble dead spirit, you only cause yourself torment, defying your paths design. Already ended you are nothing inside. The odds against you,
with your aura dissolved.
I humor you, attempt my defeat, destroy a god
He: I bow to none I fear no being. If I am to fall than so it be. I will
stand to my end. Take me far from here back to my land
Viduus:
Your will, honorable yet so weak. To face a God, unworthy.
I will satisfy your curious mind
Stare into the skies
[the skies splitting with blood on a face down still body; a recognition]
He: No
This cannot be my flesh.
Viduus: I'll bring you life
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4. |
The Soul to Flesh
06:14
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He: Beast before me I plead,
I beg to be blessed with the knowledge of I.
Retrieve my thoughts, recreate my mind. I wish to know what and who I was while alive.
Enlighten me tell me of my demise, how did I die?
Viduus: Now that I've seen your time, entered your thoughts glanced
through your eyes. There's much for you to learn, see and feel. In my
chamber all will be revealed.
He: No hesitance, voyage forth.
With many questions I bring
Unaware of what lies ahead
Walking the other side.
Viduus:
As we carry on you may encounter haunting sights,
my presence countering all light.
Travel close beside, nearing ever closer to our site.
Harrowing thoughts led weary minds.
He: No hesitance, walk beside
Ill find the answers I desperately crave, ailment to subside
My only thought, what I must do
Embody flesh and live anew
A vessel I need, to become whole again
I'll vacate this cursed land
And relive how I died
From a soul to flesh.
Splitting between, half empty in separate forms
Trust the Beast on the path to completion
Fulfilment lying in the unknown, As we approach the structure ahead
[in the room of life there’s a new light speaking; a resonating]
Viduus:
A flicker or a glow? Could this mean just what it seems. Gazing upon his creation unknowingly.
The attachment I foresee will destroy him indefinitely.
Still such tragedy looming leaving me intrigued,
the human mind flawed so unkind how would it to be?
Creator of life yet born of fragility.
Sickening mediocrity.
In time he will know all, but first vessel recovered memory
He: The Energy overwhelming me
Stimulating what is left inside
What's growing within is unknown
This connection familiar could it be
My Home?
The vessel I need, not of this place
I've been led astray
The end of the line
Viduus: Welcome, Creator.
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5. |
Viduus (The Veil)
09:29
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Viduus:
The resonating glow, of being, of light inside this soul,
soon to be on its own.
I've realized the unquestionable,
discovery of relation to the one naive in this all
He:
This hell I cannot fathom
Of what purpose are we here? I no longer understand
significance at play unclear
How a room of trapped light will bring me home?
Give me form, to re-enter
my world
Viduus:
Remove the veil, enlightened mind.
Revealing true form, the sight for blind.
You will see you will feel it all. I will take you there.
Eyes of the Ancients, in the place of your own.
Remove the veil, the holy perception
Consuming, your hollow soul.
Resistance saved you, now you will see all that you have yet to know
All will be answered, stay composed
He: What are you, where are you taking me now?
No longer will I blindly follow.
Viduus: Viduus thy name, the omni-seperator.
For those who fall I divide their souls,
extraction as flesh dissolves.
He: I only wish to know, where my body lays as of now,
learning all that you saw.
Reanimate the lifeless, exit the vast depths of this void,
take me there
for I am ready.. to go.
Viduus:
Remove the veil, bear flesh to soul
Revealing true form, to learn all I know
Eyes of the ancients, await your own
Prepare to go, back to death, back to your home.
[The mirror unveiled, I see my reflection for the first time; a
recollection]
He:
For I once felt pain
Once felt whole
Viduus:
You must embrace the path of the soul
He:
For now that I am nothing, nebulous result
Take me back I wish to feel it all.
Once more.
[gazing onward my reflection dissolves into a faint tunnel of light,
stepping through the mirror, ever towards the sun]
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6. |
Sentient
02:11
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[The pain of death is not the first pain felt as familiar eyes pierce into me
just as they had before, every thought sinking deeper, burrowing into my form. These eyes now become my own. Uncoordinated pieces of my life and all the agony of my past flash before me. The anger, the sorrow and a river hit me like the rush of a drug I once felt powerless to. Brought to the ground convulsing I'm consumed suddenly as the colors slowly begin to spiral, from brown into hazel and then solid emerald. The storm grows louder with each step taken. I know now where I lay.]
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7. |
The River of Rain
04:32
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He:
The path of my soul guiding me to a river, filled by rain.
A shallow creek where my body washed away.
Peacefully dissolved within the rocks and the sand,
contorted figure returned to a brighter land.
Viduus: Behold the resting ground, your mortal coil.
Buried and sank in earth, a plant beneath soil.
Wave of sorrow you could not overcome,
the choice you made to migrate toward the sun.
He: In stiff hands gripped tightly, a picture of her face, writhing
within, loving memoirs of disgrace.
Reach further inside to a fear I'd never face.
Regret and despair filled
the mind I chose to waste.
He: The path of my soul guides me further down the falls. Tattered
garments, bloodstained blades and rusted needles.
I don't yet know what led me down these roads.
Collectively I piece together my sorrows.
Viduus:
The evil of your feeble life devoured and controlled,
Craving to escape, you were bought then sold.
Told yourself this was to be the final time,
a choice you made to leave all behind.
He:
In stiff hands gripped tightly, a picture of her face.
Written beside, was it love or a disgrace.
Moments unfold show a fear I couldn't face.
Divided, Dissolved, I left all behind.
[Looking into the past but the storm keeps me present, as the winds wash my body further down the stream. It was you and I who created this river of rain; a realization]
He: Divided from her, I now accept thy hand
Viduus: Dissolve this pain, there is more you must know
He: Then I must know
Viduus: There are two hearts that beat within her
Viduus:
But there's no time
We're drifting further-
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8. |
Divided/Dissolve
09:12
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(Simultaneously)
[On]
[Noooooo]
He:
And all this time you knew of my demise,
as I walked blindly by your side.
Led to my fall, I wish to be released from it all,
Away from them, helpless as these worlds
Divide
Just let me stay
[a circling shine, radiating amongst a dark cold reality; a resistance]
He:
The lair returns, were we ever there after all?
Among the precious beings, untouched and still, waiting for time.
Among them is my kin somewhere resting
I can't let it go
He:
Now that I've seen into my past,
Staring through the glass of the
mirror which you presented before me
As it showed what I had done
Witnessing self reflection
Viduus:
You dwell as if the end, but we've only just begun.
We must move on,
go now from this place
Leave your flesh behind, it is too far gone,
of no use to us.
He:
As we're drifting on, catatonic and stone;
resisting everything, unconscious,
unable to accept
I can't let them go
I cannot go on
He:
When the storm planted its seed inside of me
I could only watch it grow
out of control.
Surely she'll come
Just leave me here, let me stay
Viduus: Dissolve your pain body you can overcome this,
there's no time for you to dwell on decisions so selfish
[I go back to the mirror only to see a lifeless shell drowned in emerald]
Viduus: To Gaze upon your final sights
Your drowning form once filled with pride.
Before you, self-inflicted wounds
Cemented inside a restless tomb
You will not find peace without acceptance
You've been given what many wish to see, a grand reverse,
opportunity of redemption built from your will,
but this is not the being you've shown.
It's this or the end make the choice
He:
It shows the last breath my body had, underwater my eyes see mortally for the last time
The wall between us, built higher than I could reach
As I was left gazing down in emerald
Your face is the last sight I see
Viduus: Leave yourself in the past, denying all opportunities ahead of
you. To see your created life
you must come with me now, there is no time
He:
I must drift on, say goodbye to the life I left
Into the unfamiliar, distant haze
But to see the one we've made
Is worth everything
With resistance now dissolved.
No resistance, we dissolve.
[stepping into the mirror with new light. The final stage; a redemption]
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9. |
The Infinite Eyes
09:10
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He:
A new dimension, enter inside
One last chance at life?
Their grand decision, my requisition
Left to their eyes, I only pray they hear my cries.
Viduus: The elders await your plea
Convince them your being is worthy
Reclaim your form, renter the realms of time
Your place is not above.
He: For now I know that I was wrong, after all.
And what was it worth to, always be right?
No selfish thought will consume my being
[I stand before them]
He:
I had it taken all away in a hopeless journey to the sun,
inherit life again, to see growth in the one.
My decision decimated, the life I chose to waste.
My perception now revised with light.
He:
A timeless place, formless beings,
their outstretched limbs reach for manifested eyes.
They see me clearly, I feel their gaze
Questioning my will, changing my once stone ways
The Eyes:
You took your own life, such great actions infinite,
we can not change the past.
Viduus: This soul has shown me strength, I believe in his will to change
And like us, he is able to create.
He:
But then I gave it all away in a hopeless journey to the sun. Inherit
sight again to see growth, in the one.
The veil lifted as I embrace acceptance.. my perception grows
[They reach for my eyes sinking underneath.
Overwhelmed by light. Blinded]
He:
I see all, as my vision, becomes infinite
[The solar rays, needling under my eyes
All this time spent searching for my place.
I see the fluid, the movement and hear a faint breath, two hearts beating as one; a resolve]
[the pain of death is not the first pain felt]
He:
Connected, I now travel beyond.
Devoid of form, but aligned with space.
Now I will watch you grow, and in time
Our meeting will come.
[I step into my grave under the now barren skies, sinking lower into an
unknown. The glow of my eyes shining through the heavy sand. I was here all along, it was always leading to this]
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10. |
Permanent
02:54
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[As you grow, though I may seem out of reach,
my eyes are with you infinitely.
I lead myself to this. Our bodies; transient but permanence is within all, there is no permanent form. It is our choices and what we leave behind. It is the legacy I lived and died. As memories of me fade away replaced by sands of growth and prosperity, I lay blessed with the sight.
Of light and darkness, colors never dreamt; Oblivion.
Sinking below worlds, drifting further-]
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about
“The Veil is a 57 minute descent into the afterlife. We wanted to tell a compelling story of grief that people could relate to through a dark and progressive package droning with cosmic anguish, where nothing is as it appears both musically and lyrically. Much like the album, we went through a metamorphosis writing this piece and grew together as musicians, songwriters and people. It pushed us to unthinkable territories and really opened the box to new ideas. This was the most challenging and gruelling process we have ever gone through to make an album and the product is infused with that passion from the opening track until the end. We hope like the character in our story, you learn something about yourself, about your own legacy on earth and feel enlightened and connected to pain and the pain we all cause to ourselves. We’re all on the same journey to death, remove the veil and look forward.”
credits
released November 6, 2020
All music written and performed by Ancient Thrones
All lyrics written by Sean Hickey
Dylan Wallace: Guitar
Nick Leslie: Guitar
Matt Leblanc: Bass, Cello
Sean Hickey: Vocals, Drums
Guest piano performance in "The Soul to Flesh" by Ashley Cates
Produced & Engineered by Don Walls
Mixed by Matt LeBlanc & Don Walls
Mastered by Matt LeBlanc
Copyright 2020
All music written and performed by Ancient Thrones
All lyrics written by Sean Hickey
Dylan Wallace: Guitar
Nick Leslie: Guitar
Matt Leblanc: Bass, Cello
Sean Hickey: Vocals, Drums
Guest piano performance in "The Soul to Flesh" by Ashley Cates
Produced & Engineered by Don Walls
Mixed by Matt LeBlanc & Don Walls
Mastered by Matt LeBlanc
Copyright 2020
license
all rights reserved
tags
about
Ancient Thrones Nova Scotia
Blackened Death Metal from Halifax, NS Canada
discography
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Apr 2023 -
Nov 2020 -
May 2020 -
Apr 2016
contact / help
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