[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/04038-RCarlosNakaiInnerVoices-CatfishMuse-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’R. Carlos Nakai – Catfish Muse’ desc=’A flute floats on the river of violin. Levitating has never been so easy.’]
A modern ode to Gandhi, sang MC-style, which is probably the best style to craft a song about an activist’s life. The melody is instrumentally-rich and features some spot-on samples of Hindu chanting.
The lyrics do an amazing job of condensing the wisdom of Gandhi’s life in just a few minutes worth of song.
“Be the change that you wanna see
in the world, just like Gandhi
Gandhi taught
“An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind” and it takes more strength and faith
to be kind
you see, Gandhi-ji was a very great leader
but before all that
he was shy & meager
as a young child he was just like you and me
before he became
Mahatma Gandhi
the word “Mahatma” it means great soul
and its inside of us just
waiting to unfold
if you follow your heart and act real bold
next time it’ll be your
story that’s told!”
You can listen to the melody for free, in good quality, on BandCamp, which is one of the best websites when it comes to supporting artists. You can also purchase the song (or album) from this same location.
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/04026-MCYogiElephantPower-BeTheChange-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’MC Yogi – Be The Change’ desc=’The melody is instrumentally-rich and features some spot-on samples of Hindu chanting.’]
High-pitched flutes and other traditional instruments are chained with a bassline and pounded by synth-drums. Ethnotronic is a genre that fuses ethnic vibes with electronic influences. In this case, the ethnic ingredients come from Romania, a country in Eastern Europe (where I happen to have been born). A “hora” is a traditional dance and Falticeni is a city in Romania, located in the historical region of Moldavia.
This Weekly Song entry has been brought from the FaceBook archive of Weekly Song^. This exploration was originally started through a FaceBook page, about 13 months prior to launching Mentatul. Slowly but surely, the entire FaceBook archive will be brought here.
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/03946-FalticeniArgatuCuleseDinCartier-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Argatu – Asta-i Hora-n Falticeni ‘ desc=’High-pitched flutes and other traditional instruments are chained with a bassline and pounded by synth-drums.’]
If jungle-folk would be a genre, this would be the song for it. Percussion and tribal chanting are entwined with the sounds of life. Human and animal sing together, celebrating the eternal cosmic vibration.
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/03877-DeadCanDanceIntoTheLabyrinthBird-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Dead Can Dance – Bird’ desc=’If jungle-folk would be a genre, this would be the song for it. Percussion and tribal chanting are entwined with the sounds of life.’]
Delicate orchestration, a beautiful sense of depth and an ominous story-teller give this song an aura of ancient forest magic. The darkness in one voice is opposed by airy choirs and dreamy instruments. The song may be called “dark depths”, but all I feel is light.
This entire “Visor Om Slutet” (Songs About The End) album is just as enchanting(*) as this song (well, perhaps except for “Rov”). Mind you, this is not the usual Finntroll. I’ll be back later this year with a more representative song of theirs, but if you’re curious, check out “Ur Jordens Djup^” or “Nattfödd^”.
It’s unfortunately VERY hard to find a legal version of this song anywhere. It’s not on Spotify, Deezer or Google Play. I can’t find any other version than the YouTube one. But it might be enough to lead you to other songs from this album and perhaps to buy it in physical form, before it becomes a rarity.
(*) When I said “enchanting”, I did NOT mean the song’s lyrics, an extract of which you can find below. Although those words can’t really be labeled with the word “enchanting” (well, depending on your point of view; I guess trolls would definitely find it enchanting), these are great lyrics either way!
“I vinden viskar dödens stämma
Onda stjärnor på himmelen stirra
Bland furor eka ett isande skrik
Urskogens klor i nattlig sky
Ur rymdens svarta djup…
Ur rymdens svarta djup…
Fem fot svart stål han i sina nävar klämmer
En svart skugga från jordens djupaste hål
Långa öron och knivskarpa horn
Under brynen glöda två illröda kol:
Nu lyfts värdet mot himmelens rand
Syndastålet nu frysa luft till is
Nu livlösa förbli var man, var kvinna
Domen falla och tystnad härska
O, rymdens svarta djup…
O, rymdens svarta djup…”
[English translation:]
Dark Depths
“In wind whisper the tones of death
Evil stars in the sky now stare
Beneath the trees echoes the freezing cry
Ancient forest’s claws in the night sky
From vast dark depths…
From vast dark depths…
Black five foot blade clenches in his fist
Dark shade from the deepest hall of earth
Long ears and razorsharp horns
Under helmet glows two scarlet coals…
Now rises darkness towards heaven’s boundaries
Lustful steel now freezes winds to ice
Thus lifeless remains man and woman
Judgement falls and silence reigns
Oh, wide dark depths…
Oh, wide dark depths…”
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/03465-FinntrollVisorOmSlutet-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Finntroll – Svart Djup’ desc=’Delicate orchestration, a beautiful sense of depth and an ominous story-teller give this song an aura of ancient forest magic.’]
A dreamy, ritualistic creation that will transport awareness far and off on the wings of the beautiful, evocative voice wielding the keys to the portals of our imagination. Such Journey Songs are a testament to the power of sound.
Besides the excellent production values featured in this tune, I stand in awe at the magnificent fusion between electronic instruments and traditional ones. I was, am and will always be overjoyed by the way technology has increased the sound range that artists can use. Unlike others, artists can be trusted to use technology responsibly and respectfully.
“If love be revealed
In the spark of an eye
Could all be redeemed
In the sea of time
If the stars embed
Like nails into the ground
From the unheard prayers
That have torn up the skies
Would you will it all away
As you sail on your way?”
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/03429-AzamAliElysiumBrave-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Azam Ali – In Other Worlds’ desc=’A dreamy, ritualistic creation that will transport awareness far and off on the wings of the beautiful, evocative voice wielding the keys to the portals of our imagination.’]
Receive this powerful invocation from deep within the heart of Mother Nature. It was carried through lungs that breathe its air. It was beat into eternity from ritualistic drums and instruments. It was blessed with choirs that cleanse everything their life-giving vibration touches.
Celebrate the dance of night and day.
You can listen to the melody for free, in good quality, on BandCamp, which is one of the best websites when it comes to supporting artists. You can also purchase the song (or album) from this same location.
This Weekly Song entry has been brought from the FaceBook archive of Weekly Song^. This exploration was originally started through a FaceBook page, about 13 months prior to launching Mentatul. Slowly but surely, the entire FaceBook archive will be brought here.
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/03424-WardrunaRunaljodGapVarGinnunga-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Wardruna – Dagr’ desc=’Blessed with choirs that cleanse everything their life-giving vibration touches.’]
A journey song, a healing song, a passing song, a beautiful song. The music is intricate and delicate, building up towards the climax when we’re treated to a vocal performance of shattering passion and amazing range. Powerful, meaningful lyrics complete the melody to perfection. Nothing else would suffice for a song of the stars.
“We are the stars who sing
we sing with our light;
we are the birds of fire,
we fly over the sky.
our light is a voice;
we make a road,
for the spirit, for the spirits to pass over.”
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/03413-MirabaiCeibaSevati-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Mirabai Ceiba – Song Of The Stars’ desc=’The music is intricate and delicate, building up towards the climax when we're treated to a vocal performance of shattering passion and amazing range.’]
Ritualistic beauty springs from within this passionate work of art. The driven, solemn singing is wrapped in an almost mystical arrangement of strings and air instruments. The percussion is something to behold. One invocation after the other, the magnificent composition keeps pacing in perfect harmony with the enthralling chants.
Eyes-closed listening with good hardware comes highly recommended.
Unfortunately, the song is not available on YouTube or any other no-subscription-required listening platform that I know of. However, you can listen to it for free on Deezer, which usually works just fine (I can use it simply by connecting my Google account).
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/01712-SussanDeyhimCityOfLeaves-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Sussan Deyhim – Fire Within’ desc=’The driven, solemn singing is wrapped in an almost mystical arrangement of strings and air instruments.’]
Ghosts of clouds are dancing upon the endless plains of eternity. A silky mist envelops seven silhouettes as they walk up to an old wooden stage. There, one picks up a guitar, another picks up a flute, another picks up a strange cylinder filled with grains of sand that have been hand-picked from the countless imaginary worlds that these pilgrims have been through. Allow them to explore your world and observe what the evocative chanting stirs up.
Isihia come from Bulgaria. I strongly recommend listening to the entire album “Transfiguration” comes from. It’s an amazing creation!
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/01637-IsihiaTransfiguration-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Isihia – Transfiguration’ desc=’Allow these pilgrims to explore your world and observe what the evocative chanting stirs up.’]
Because being informed is just not enough anymore…
