I haven’t come across too many covers of Pink Floyd songs, probably because they’re too damn perfect to begin with. But Swedish renegades Clawfinger did the impossible. Not only did the band pick one of Pink Floyd’s most beloved songs to cover. They actually made it work! Of course, I can’t say that it sounds better than the original, but that wasn’t the point anyway. The point of a cover is to reinterpret, and wow was it reinterpreted! Just listen to those guitars dig into it! Just listen to that choir/duet! Amazing!
And yes, as silly as this may be, this song is only publicly available on YouTube. Good job, music industry. Pfrmph, not!
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/04031-ClawfingerOutToGetMe-ShineDiamond-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Clawfinger – Shine On You Crazy Diamond’ desc=’The point of a cover is to reinterpret, and wow was it reinterpreted! Just listen to those guitars dig into it! Just listen to that choir/duet! Amazing!’]
Here’s an atmospheric symphonic metal song from one of the world’s premiere extreme metal bands. It’s loaded with light and beauty, offering contrast to the merciless, dark album it belongs to (and which I brutally recommend).
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/03661-DimmuBorgir-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Dimmu Borgir – Perfection Or Vanity’ desc=’Loaded with light and beauty. An atmospheric symphonic metal song from one of the world’s premiere extreme metal bands.’]
“How long is a life how many ways can you try on
How long is your life how many ways did you try on
don’t need to reach the end when you know what’s there
no one knows what’s there…
get in get out don’t lose time in the roundabout
get in get out read your map if you ever doubt
try on try out all different sense
try on reach out for distant suns
the way we take, the one we don’t
the one we left, the one we change
the one that burns, the one that freezes
the one we built, the one we are
along the way there’s some ways we take another way
got power to ponder
to construct to structure
to be tuned, uninterfered
to conquer our inner self
to prevent and assure
to invent our future
fighting the resistance of time
with persistence of faith
softly, cunningly cleaning the dirt
wildly, radiantly drowning to rebirth
winged by pressure
dazzled by pleasure
distorted absorbed
restored again and again
there’s an after to every now…
an answer to every how
there’s an after to every now”
A hymn of change, an ode for being. A song that says a lot behind those wild distorted guitars and out-of-control drum machines. Vorph’s raspy voice is a peculiar vehicle for delivering this message, but some messages stand out more when they come in exotic packaging. Samael’s blend of electronic industrial metal may be difficult to stomach for some, but that’s why I started this review with the lyrics, because that’s one thing that anybody can and should take from this piece of music history.
YouTube (decent quality; full album, the link goes straight to “Ways”):
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/03648-SamaelEternal-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Samael – Ways’ desc=’A hymn of change, an ode for being. A song that says a lot behind those wild distorted guitars and out-of-control drum machines.’]
Angst and frustration sometimes need channeling. This is where such a song comes in, opening a gateway to a realm where such energies can not only live, but thrive and flourish into devastating beauty. There are no “wrong” feelings, and beauty can arise from any feeling.
KoRn have masterfully created a niche for themselves, one they continue to dominate even now, 25 years away after the release of their first album.
“Hey I’m feeling tired
My time is gone today
You flirt with suicide
Sometimes that’s ok
Hear what others say
I’m here standing hollow
Falling away from me
Falling away from me
Day is here fading
That’s when I would say
I flirt with suicide
Sometimes kill the pain
I can always say
‘It’s gonna be better tomorrow’
Falling away from me
Falling away from me”
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/03575-KoRnIssues-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’KoRn – Falling Away From Me’ desc=’A song for channeling angst and frustration, opening a gateway to a realm where such energies can not only live, but thrive and flourish into devastating beauty.’]
Now, as a metal vocalist, there’s very few things indeed that you can say to make you more supremely badass than:
“My eye is the vortex from which nothing escapes
I am dematerialization of the self
I am the axis in the wheel of reincarnation
The endless singularity
I turn the spirals of existence
I am the slowing pace of life
I am the pulse of creation,
of inevitability and destruction
I balance the shifting tides of life
Everything must return to me
I am the beginning
and I am the end”
Jokes aside, the lyrics are impactful and they are vibrated into existence in a solemn way. Despite the heavy riffing involved, I consider this to be an atmospheric song, a powerful invocation coming from an occult Universe.
This comes from Thorns’ only full length release, a highly appreciated album bearing the (one man) band’s name. It’s a master-class in industrial black metal which I highly recommend.
[ax_meta lnimgurl=’http://mentatul.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/03475-ThornsThorns-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Thorns – Vortex’ desc=’Despite the heavy riffing involved, I consider this to be an atmospheric song, a powerful invocation coming from an occult Universe.’]
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.’]
The magma struggles to get out, get away, no way out, not fast enough, there’s not enough space, no space and then… it rips through the entire damn sound system! This volcanic song brings us claustrophobic buildups and all the fireworks deserved for going through with it all. Special credit goes for whoever mixed and produced the song, they did a really good job framing the vocals with just the right amount of suffocating materials.
Oh, and the video is quite a piece of work too, highly recommended!
“Sticks and stones don’t break my bones, they’re make-believe
It’s lock and load, it’s a dead end road for you and me
I’m rusted gold, I’m stripped and sold, I’m make believe
I’m up for rent, my head is spent, I guarantee
So can you not go away?
If just for one day?
Impossible, possible
How’d you feel now?
War sends out for you
Throw your fortune away
‘Cause I can’t get enough space, space, space
Get enough space”
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 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/2018/11/03399-FoalsHolyFire-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Foals – Inhaler’ desc=’This volcanic song brings us claustrophobic buildups and all the fireworks deserved for going through with it all.’]
Music can be a scientific laboratory. As the melody unfolds, the artists embark upon a musical experiment that really needs to be heard to be believed. This is a metal song, but it is submerged underneath 20,000 leagues of organic and spiritual evolution. At that depth, the echoes of an infinity of egos melt into a droning hymn to life, death, good and evil.
“Let me glow, let me flow
let me grow in you heart
in your mind
in your soul
anywhere, anytime, anyhow
when you want, when you need, when you know
I will be there for you
I will be there with you
The sea navigable
the sky has no limits
for those who are able
for understanding what does fit
to the world they’re heading for
to the life they’re looking for
let me take you on board
let me sail you to the shore”
Unfortunately, I can’t find any way of purchasing the album digitally from any ethical shop (such as BandCamp).
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Samael are masters of the unexpected, having pioneered new sound and shifted genres several times during their three decade musical career. This is one of the most interesting metal songs I know. It is an unorthodox composition that strikes an exquisite balance between headbanging material and joyful, middle of the night tribal dancing. Topping everything off is some clever writing, which is something Samael are particularly good at.
“Some stay some leave
some come some go
get on the air
and check your plan
if you do try you will remember
the fine line no one denied
unsharing joy is a pain to release
One by one we all came around and we
danced around night and day
One by one we just play our round to
leave and drop another way
[…]
the heart is strong
and it keeps warm
what the distance
will never change”
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This is a story about how people are manipulated by organized religion and media. Case in question: the way various religious cults try to explain away the existence of the dinosaurs – a fact of biological history which contradicts certain interpretations of the Bible (namely that the Earth is roughly 6000 years old).
What genre could be better suited for combating outrageous ignorance if not some compositional-diverse, well-produced, perfectly-balanced metal. This melody is a mental sword. Wield it proudly and enjoy its symmetric construction. There’s also a magnificent array of vocals, making this one of my favorite metal song ever. And that’s not all…
It is not often that I recommend seeing the video for a song, but this one is amazingly well made! Starting with the totally apathic employees seen “behind the scenes”, it delves into all the dirt that is shoved down our children’s throats and goes back to the same sad and disappointing view on the developed world, a place where apparently happy adventures are in fact the work of deranged individuals employed by conniving corporations. The video gets quite violent for a while, but it’s all with good reason and, I daresay, well-executed.
“Come to me, I’ll fill the hole
Why would I be lying
End fan, all planned out
Offering a wonderful
Peace of mind worth buying
Bow down last round up
I am wise and you don’t know
A cloud is my home
Only some get in
Got a ‘maginary friend
The devil put dinosaurs here
Jesus don’t like a queer
The devil put dinosaurs here
No problem with faith just fear”
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/2017/10/02156-AliceInChainsDevilPutDinosaursHere-Thumb.jpg’ lnimgw=’250′ lnimgh=’250′ title=’Alice In Chains – The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here’ desc=’What genre could be better suited for combating outrageous ignorance if not some compositional-diverse, well-produced, perfectly-balanced metal.’]
Because being informed is just not enough anymore…
