Friday, May 27, 2005

Iron Maiden
The song Iron Maiden by Iron Maiden. This song doesn't have a lot of lyrics, but it's still awesome.

[Steve Harris]

Won't you come into my room, I wanna show you all my wares.
I just want to see your blood, I just want to stand and stare.
See the blood begin to flow as it falls upon the floor.
Iron Maiden can't be faught, Iron Maiden can't be sought.

[Chorus]
Oh Well, wherever, wherever you are,
Iron Maiden's gonna get you, no matter how far.
See the blood flow watching it shed up above my head.
Iron Maiden wants you for dead.

Won't you come into my room, I wanna show you all my wares.
I just want to see your blood, I just want to stand and stare.
See the blood begin to flow as it falls upon the floor.
Iron Maiden can't be fought, Iron Maiden can't be sought.
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Thursday, May 26, 2005

The House Of The Broken Light
Another one I wrote today. A ton shorter than yesterday's post...

Bodies line these hallowed halls; there's rot upon the pyre
Magick men are hung for sin then cast into the fire
Witch who's starved of precious life dies like a martyr
Scream in vain and watch 'em bleed; victims to the slaughter

Kill 'em quick or watch 'em spuirm; whichever is your chosing
There's a fight between Heaven and Hell. Can you guess who's losing?
Take a life and worship Satan in the Garden of Eden
Life's too long to let 'em live so let the massacre begin

[Chorus 1]
Enter the House of the Broken Light
Out from the cold eternal night
Enter the House of the Broken Light
Earth becomes a Hell tonight

Spill the innocent blood and quicken up your pace
Heresy is in your voice and treason's written on your face
Heartless warrior filled with pride rides the Southern shore
Tir Na N'og is burning and the flowers shall die forevermore

[Repeat Chorus 1]

[Chorus 2]
Enter the House of the Broken Light
Out from the cold of sunless night
Enter the House of the Broken Light
Earth has changed to Hell - all right!
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Wednesday, May 25, 2005

The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner - Coleridge
Yesterday I posted the song, written by Iron Maiden's Steve Harris, of the same title as this poem by my favorite poet of all time, Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Here is the actual poem in seven parts. I know I could have just put a link to a site with this poem, but I like posting it more. So there. It's a little lengthy, but that's all right. Enjoy!

ARGUMENT
How a Ship having passed the Line was driven by storms to the cold Country towards the South Pole ; and how from thence she made her course to the tropical Latitude of the Great Pacific Ocean ; and of the strange things that befell ; and in what manner the Ancyent Marinere came back to his own Country.

PART I
An ancient Mariner meeteth three Gallants bidden to a wedding-feast, and detaineth one.
It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
`By thy long beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me ?
The Bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
And I am next of kin ;
The guests are met, the feast is set :
May'st hear the merry din.'

He holds him with his skinny hand,
`There was a ship,' quoth he.
`Hold off ! unhand me, grey-beard loon !'
Eftsoons his hand dropt he.

The Wedding-Guest is spell-bound by the eye of the old seafaring man, and constrained to hear his tale.
He holds him with his glittering eye--
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child :
The Mariner hath his will.
The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone :
He cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.

`The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
Below the kirk, below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.

The Mariner tells how the ship sailed southward with a good wind and fair weather, till it reached the Line.
The Sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he !
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.
Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon--'
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
For he heard the loud bassoon.

The Wedding-Guest heareth the bridal music ; but the Mariner continueth his tale.
The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she ;
Nodding their heads before her goes
The merry minstrelsy.
The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear ;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.

The ship driven by a storm toward the south pole.
`And now the STORM-BLAST came, and he
Was tyrannous and strong :
He struck with his o'ertaking wings,
And chased us south along.
With sloping masts and dipping prow,
As who pursued with yell and blow
Still treads the shadow of his foe,
And forward bends his head,
The ship drove fast, loud roared the blast,
The southward aye we fled.

And now there came both mist and snow,
And it grew wondrous cold :
And ice, mast-high, came floating by,
As green as emerald.

The land of ice, and of fearful sounds where no living thing was to be seen.
And through the drifts the snowy clifts
Did send a dismal sheen :
Nor shapes of men nor beasts we ken--
The ice was all between.
The ice was here, the ice was there,
The ice was all around :
It cracked and growled, and roared and howled,
Like noises in a swound !

Till a great sea-bird, called the Albatross, came through the snow-fog, and was received with great joy and hospitality.
At length did cross an Albatross,
Thorough the fog it came ;
As if it had been a Christian soul,
We hailed it in God's name.
It ate the food it ne'er had eat,
And round and round it flew.
The ice did split with a thunder-fit ;
The helmsman steered us through !

And lo ! the Albatross proveth a bird of good omen, and followeth the ship as it returned northward through fog and floating ice.
And a good south wind sprung up behind ;
The Albatross did follow,
And every day, for food or play,
Came to the mariner's hollo !
In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud,
It perched for vespers nine ;
Whiles all the night, through fog-smoke white,
Glimmered the white Moon-shine.'

The ancient Mariner inhospitably killeth the pious bird of good omen.
`God save thee, ancient Mariner !
From the fiends, that plague thee thus !--
Why look'st thou so ?'--With my cross-bow
I shot the ALBATROSS.

PART II
The Sun now rose upon the right :
Out of the sea came he,
Still hid in mist, and on the left
Went down into the sea.
And the good south wind still blew behind,
But no sweet bird did follow,
Nor any day for food or play
Came to the mariners' hollo !

His shipmates cry out against the ancient Mariner, for killing the bird of good luck.
And I had done an hellish thing,
And it would work 'em woe :
For all averred, I had killed the bird
That made the breeze to blow.
Ah wretch ! said they, the bird to slay,
That made the breeze to blow !
But when the fog cleared off, they justify the same, and thus make themselves accomplices in the crime.
Nor dim nor red, like God's own head,
The glorious Sun uprist :
Then all averred, I had killed the bird
That brought the fog and mist.
'Twas right, said they, such birds to slay,
That bring the fog and mist.
The fair breeze continues ; the ship enters the Pacific Ocean, and sails northward, even till it reaches the Line.
The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew,
The furrow followed free ;
We were the first that ever burst
Into that silent sea.
The ship hath been suddenly becalmed.
Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down,
'Twas sad as sad could be ;
And we did speak only to break
The silence of the sea !
All in a hot and copper sky,
The bloody Sun, at noon,
Right up above the mast did stand,
No bigger than the Moon.

Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, nor breath nor motion ;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean.

And the Albatross begins to be avenged.
Water, water, every where,
And all the boards did shrink ;
Water, water, every where,
Nor any drop to drink.
The very deep did rot : O Christ !
That ever this should be !
Yea, slimy things did crawl with legs
Upon the slimy sea.

About, about, in reel and rout
The death-fires danced at night ;
The water, like a witch's oils,
Burnt green, and blue and white.

A Spirit had followed them ; one of the invisible inhabitants of this planet, neither departed souls nor angels ; concerning whom the learned Jew, Josephus, and the Platonic Constantinopolitan, Michael Psellus, may be consulted. They are very numerous, and there is no climate or element without one or more.
And some in dreams assuréd were
Of the Spirit that plagued us so ;
Nine fathom deep he had followed us
From the land of mist and snow.
And every tongue, through utter drought,
Was withered at the root ;
We could not speak, no more than if
We had been choked with soot.

The shipmates, in their sore distress, would fain throw the whole guilt on the ancient Mariner : in sign whereof they hang the dead sea-bird round his neck.
Ah ! well a-day ! what evil looks
Had I from old and young !
Instead of the cross, the Albatross
About my neck was hung.

PART III
There passed a weary time. Each throat
Was parched, and glazed each eye.
A weary time ! a weary time !
How glazed each weary eye,
When looking westward, I beheld
A something in the sky.
The ancient Mariner beholdeth a sign in the element afar off.
At first it seemed a little speck,
And then it seemed a mist ;
It moved and moved, and took at last
A certain shape, I wist.
A speck, a mist, a shape, I wist !
And still it neared and neared :
As if it dodged a water-sprite,
It plunged and tacked and veered.

At its nearer approach, it seemeth him to be a ship ; and at a dear ransom he freeth his speech from the bonds of thirst.
With throats unslaked, with black lips baked,
We could nor laugh nor wail ;
Through utter drought all dumb we stood !
I bit my arm, I sucked the blood,
And cried, A sail ! a sail !
A flash of joy ;
With throats unslaked, with black lips baked,
Agape they heard me call :
Gramercy ! they for joy did grin,
And all at once their breath drew in,
As they were drinking all.
And horror follows. For can it be a ship that comes onward without wind or tide ?
See ! see ! (I cried) she tacks no more !
Hither to work us weal ;
Without a breeze, without a tide,
She steadies with upright keel !
The western wave was all a-flame.
The day was well nigh done !
Almost upon the western wave
Rested the broad bright Sun ;
When that strange shape drove suddenly
Betwixt us and the Sun.

It seemeth him but the skeleton of a ship.
And straight the Sun was flecked with bars,
(Heaven's Mother send us grace !)
As if through a dungeon-grate he peered
With broad and burning face.
And its ribs are seen as bars on the face of the setting Sun.
Alas ! (thought I, and my heart beat loud)
How fast she nears and nears !
Are those her sails that glance in the Sun,
Like restless gossameres ?
The Spectre-Woman and her Death-mate, and no other on board the skeleton ship.
And those her ribs through which the Sun
Did peer, as through a grate ?
And is that Woman all her crew ?
Is that a DEATH ? and are there two ?
Is DEATH that woman's mate ?
Like vessel, like crew !

Her lips were red, her looks were free,
Her locks were yellow as gold :
Her skin was as white as leprosy,
The Night-mare LIFE-IN-DEATH was she,
Who thicks man's blood with cold.
Death and Life-in-Death have diced for the ship's crew, and she (the latter) winneth the ancient Mariner.
The naked hulk alongside came,
And the twain were casting dice ;
`The game is done ! I've won ! I've won !'
Quoth she, and whistles thrice.
No twilight within the courts of the Sun.
The Sun's rim dips ; the stars rush out :
At one stride comes the dark ;
With far-heard whisper, o'er the sea,
Off shot the spectre-bark.
At the rising of the Moon,
We listened and looked sideways up !
Fear at my heart, as at a cup,
My life-blood seemed to sip !
The stars were dim, and thick the night,
The steerman's face by his lamp gleamed white ;
From the sails the dew did drip--
Till clomb above the eastern bar
The hornéd Moon, with one bright star
Within the nether tip.
One after another,
One after one, by the star-dogged Moon,
Too quick for groan or sigh,
Each turned his face with a ghastly pang,
And cursed me with his eye.
His shipmates drop down dead.
Four times fifty living men,
(And I heard nor sigh nor groan)
With heavy thump, a lifeless lump,
They dropped down one by one.
But Life-in-Death begins her work on the ancient Mariner.
The souls did from their bodies fly,--
They fled to bliss or woe !
And every soul, it passed me by,
Like the whizz of my cross-bow !

PART IV
The Wedding-Guest feareth that a Spirit is talking to him ;
`I fear thee, ancient Mariner !
I fear thy skinny hand !
And thou art long, and lank, and brown,
As is the ribbed sea-sand.

I fear thee and thy glittering eye,
And thy skinny hand, so brown.'--
Fear not, fear not, thou Wedding-Guest !
This body dropt not down.
But the ancient Mariner assureth him of his bodily life, and proceedeth to relate his horrible penance.
Alone, alone, all, all alone,
Alone on a wide wide sea !
And never a saint took pity on
My soul in agony.
He despiseth the creatures of the calm,
The many men, so beautiful !
And they all dead did lie :
And a thousand thousand slimy things
Lived on ; and so did I.
And envieth that they should live, and so many lie dead.
I looked upon the rotting sea,
And drew my eyes away ;
I looked upon the rotting deck,
And there the dead men lay.
I looked to heaven, and tried to pray ;
But or ever a prayer had gusht,
A wicked whisper came, and made
My heart as dry as dust.

I closed my lids, and kept them close,
And the balls like pulses beat ;
For the sky and the sea, and the sea and the sky
Lay like a load on my weary eye,
And the dead were at my feet.

But the curse liveth for him in the eye of the dead men.
The cold sweat melted from their limbs,
Nor rot nor reek did they :
The look with which they looked on me
Had never passed away.
An orphan's curse would drag to hell
A spirit from on high ;
But oh ! more horrible than that
Is the curse in a dead man's eye !
Seven days, seven nights, I saw that curse,
And yet I could not die.

In his loneliness and fixedness he yearneth towards the journeying Moon, and the stars that still sojourn, yet still move onward ; and every where the blue sky belongs to them, and is their appointed rest, and their native country and their own natural homes, which they enter unannounced, as lords that are certainly expected and yet there is a silent joy at their arrival.
The moving Moon went up the sky,
And no where did abide :
Softly she was going up,
And a star or two beside--
Her beams bemocked the sultry main,
Like April hoar-frost spread ;
But where the ship's huge shadow lay,
The charméd water burnt alway
A still and awful red.

By the light of the Moon he beholdeth God's creatures of the great calm.
Beyond the shadow of the ship,
I watched the water-snakes :
They moved in tracks of shining white,
And when they reared, the elfish light
Fell off in hoary flakes.
Within the shadow of the ship
I watched their rich attire :
Blue, glossy green, and velvet black,
They coiled and swam ; and every track
Was a flash of golden fire.

Their beauty and their happiness.
He blesseth them in his heart.

O happy living things ! no tongue
Their beauty might declare :
A spring of love gushed from my heart,
And I blessed them unaware :
Sure my kind saint took pity on me,
And I blessed them unaware.
The spell begins to break.
The self-same moment I could pray ;
And from my neck so free
The Albatross fell off, and sank
Like lead into the sea.

PART V
Oh sleep ! it is a gentle thing,
Beloved from pole to pole !
To Mary Queen the praise be given !
She sent the gentle sleep from Heaven,
That slid into my soul.
By grace of the holy Mother, the ancient Mariner is refreshed with rain.
The silly buckets on the deck,
That had so long remained,
I dreamt that they were filled with dew ;
And when I awoke, it rained.
My lips were wet, my throat was cold,
My garments all were dank ;
Sure I had drunken in my dreams,
And still my body drank.

I moved, and could not feel my limbs :
I was so light--almost
I thought that I had died in sleep,
And was a blesséd ghost.

He heareth sounds and seeth strange sights and commotions in the sky and the element.
And soon I heard a roaring wind :
It did not come anear ;
But with its sound it shook the sails,
That were so thin and sere.
The upper air burst into life !
And a hundred fire-flags sheen,
To and fro they were hurried about !
And to and fro, and in and out,
The wan stars danced between.

And the coming wind did roar more loud,
And the sails did sigh like sedge ;
And the rain poured down from one black cloud ;
The Moon was at its edge.

The thick black cloud was cleft, and still
The Moon was at its side :
Like waters shot from some high crag,
The lightning fell with never a jag,
A river steep and wide.

The bodies of the ship's crew are inspired, and the ship moves on ;
The loud wind never reached the ship,
Yet now the ship moved on !
Beneath the lightning and the Moon
The dead men gave a groan.
They groaned, they stirred, they all uprose,
Nor spake, nor moved their eyes ;
It had been strange, even in a dream,
To have seen those dead men rise.

The helmsman steered, the ship moved on ;
Yet never a breeze up-blew ;
The mariners all 'gan work the ropes,
Where they were wont to do ;
They raised their limbs like lifeless tools--
We were a ghastly crew.

The body of my brother's son
Stood by me, knee to knee :
The body and I pulled at one rope,
But he said nought to me.

But not by the souls of the men, nor by dæmons of earth or middle air, but by a blessed troop of angelic spirits, sent down by the invocation of the guardian saint.
`I fear thee, ancient Mariner !'
Be calm, thou Wedding-Guest !
'Twas not those souls that fled in pain,
Which to their corses came again,
But a troop of spirits blest :
For when it dawned--they dropped their arms,
And clustered round the mast ;
Sweet sounds rose slowly through their mouths,
And from their bodies passed.

Around, around, flew each sweet sound,
Then darted to the Sun ;
Slowly the sounds came back again,
Now mixed, now one by one.

Sometimes a-dropping from the sky
I heard the sky-lark sing ;
Sometimes all little birds that are,
How they seemed to fill the sea and air
With their sweet jargoning !

And now 'twas like all instruments,
Now like a lonely flute ;
And now it is an angel's song,
That makes the heavens be mute.

It ceased ; yet still the sails made on
A pleasant noise till noon,
A noise like of a hidden brook
In the leafy month of June,
That to the sleeping woods all night
Singeth a quiet tune.

Till noon we quietly sailed on,
Yet never a breeze did breathe :
Slowly and smoothly went the ship,
Moved onward from beneath.
The lonesome Spirit from the south-pole carries on the ship as far as the Line, in obedience to the angelic troop, but still requireth vengeance.
Under the keel nine fathom deep,
From the land of mist and snow,
The spirit slid : and it was he
That made the ship to go.
The sails at noon left off their tune,
And the ship stood still also.
The Sun, right up above the mast,
Had fixed her to the ocean :
But in a minute she 'gan stir,
With a short uneasy motion--
Backwards and forwards half her length
With a short uneasy motion.

Then like a pawing horse let go,
She made a sudden bound :
It flung the blood into my head,
And I fell down in a swound.

The Polar Spirit's fellow-dæmons, the invisible inhabitants of the element, take part in his wrong ; and two of them relate, one to the other, that penance long and heavy for the ancient Mariner hath been accorded to the Polar Spirit, who returneth southward.
How long in that same fit I lay,
I have not to declare ;
But ere my living life returned,
I heard and in my soul discerned
Two voices in the air.
`Is it he ?' quoth one, `Is this the man ?
By him who died on cross,
With his cruel bow he laid full low
The harmless Albatross.

The spirit who bideth by himself
In the land of mist and snow,
He loved the bird that loved the man
Who shot him with his bow.'

The other was a softer voice,
As soft as honey-dew :
Quoth he, `The man hath penance done,
And penance more will do.'

PART VI
FIRST VOICE
`But tell me, tell me ! speak again,
Thy soft response renewing--
What makes that ship drive on so fast ?
What is the ocean doing ?'

SECOND VOICE

`Still as a slave before his lord,
The ocean hath no blast ;
His great bright eye most silently
Up to the Moon is cast--

If he may know which way to go ;
For she guides him smooth or grim.
See, brother, see ! how graciously
She looketh down on him.'

The Mariner hath been cast into a trance ; for the angelic power causeth the vessel to drive northward faster than human life could endure.
FIRST VOICE
`But why drives on that ship so fast,
Without or wave or wind ?'

SECOND VOICE

`The air is cut away before,
And closes from behind.

Fly, brother, fly ! more high, more high !
Or we shall be belated :
For slow and slow that ship will go,
When the Mariner's trance is abated.'

The supernatural motion is retarded ; the Mariner awakes, and his penance begins anew.
I woke, and we were sailing on
As in a gentle weather :
'Twas night, calm night, the moon was high ;
The dead men stood together.
All stood together on the deck,
For a charnel-dungeon fitter :
All fixed on me their stony eyes,
That in the Moon did glitter.

The pang, the curse, with which they died,
Had never passed away :
I could not draw my eyes from theirs,
Nor turn them up to pray.

The curse is finally expiated.
And now this spell was snapt : once more
I viewed the ocean green,
And looked far forth, yet little saw
Of what had else been seen--
Like one, that on a lonesome road
Doth walk in fear and dread,
And having once turned round walks on,
And turns no more his head ;
Because he knows, a frightful fiend
Doth close behind him tread.

But soon there breathed a wind on me,
Nor sound nor motion made :
Its path was not upon the sea,
In ripple or in shade.

It raised my hair, it fanned my cheek
Like a meadow-gale of spring--
It mingled strangely with my fears,
Yet it felt like a welcoming.

Swiftly, swiftly flew the ship,
Yet she sailed softly too :
Sweetly, sweetly blew the breeze--
On me alone it blew.

And the ancient Mariner beholdeth his native country.
Oh ! dream of joy ! is this indeed
The light-house top I see ?
Is this the hill ? is this the kirk ?
Is this mine own countree ?
We drifted o'er the harbour-bar,
And I with sobs did pray--
O let me be awake, my God !
Or let me sleep alway.

The harbour-bay was clear as glass,
So smoothly it was strewn !
And on the bay the moonlight lay,
And the shadow of the Moon.

The rock shone bright, the kirk no less,
That stands above the rock :
The moonlight steeped in silentness
The steady weathercock.
The angelic spirits leave the dead bodies,
And the bay was white with silent light,
Till rising from the same,
Full many shapes, that shadows were,
In crimson colours came.
And appear in their own forms of light.
A little distance from the prow
Those crimson shadows were :
I turned my eyes upon the deck--
Oh, Christ ! what saw I there !
Each corse lay flat, lifeless and flat,
And, by the holy rood !
A man all light, a seraph-man,
On every corse there stood.

This seraph-band, each waved his hand :
It was a heavenly sight !
They stood as signals to the land,
Each one a lovely light ;

This seraph-band, each waved his hand,
No voice did they impart--
No voice ; but oh ! the silence sank
Like music on my heart.

But soon I heard the dash of oars,
I heard the Pilot's cheer ;
My head was turned perforce away
And I saw a boat appear.

The Pilot and the Pilot's boy,
I heard them coming fast :
Dear Lord in Heaven ! it was a joy
The dead men could not blast.
I saw a third--I heard his voice :
It is the Hermit good !
He singeth loud his godly hymns
That he makes in the wood.
He'll shrieve my soul, he'll wash away
The Albatross's blood.

PART VII
The Hermit of the Wood,
This Hermit good lives in that wood
Which slopes down to the sea.
How loudly his sweet voice he rears !
He loves to talk with marineres
That come from a far countree.
He kneels at morn, and noon, and eve--
He hath a cushion plump :
It is the moss that wholly hides
The rotted old oak-stump.

The skiff-boat neared : I heard them talk,
`Why, this is strange, I trow !
Where are those lights so many and fair,
That signal made but now ?'

Approacheth the ship with wonder.
`Strange, by my faith !' the Hermit said--
`And they answered not our cheer !
The planks looked warped ! and see those sails,
How thin they are and sere !
I never saw aught like to them,
Unless perchance it were
Brown skeletons of leaves that lag
My forest-brook along ;
When the ivy-tod is heavy with snow,
And the owlet whoops to the wolf below,
That eats the she-wolf's young.'

`Dear Lord ! it hath a fiendish look--
(The Pilot made reply)
I am a-feared'--`Push on, push on !'
Said the Hermit cheerily.

The boat came closer to the ship,
But I nor spake nor stirred ;
The boat came close beneath the ship,
And straight a sound was heard.

The ship suddenly sinketh.
Under the water it rumbled on,
Still louder and more dread :
It reached the ship, it split the bay ;
The ship went down like lead.
The ancient Mariner is saved in the Pilot's boat.
Stunned by that loud and dreadful sound,
Which sky and ocean smote,
Like one that hath been seven days drowned
My body lay afloat ;
But swift as dreams, myself I found
Within the Pilot's boat.
Upon the whirl, where sank the ship,
The boat spun round and round ;
And all was still, save that the hill
Was telling of the sound.

I moved my lips--the Pilot shrieked
And fell down in a fit ;
The holy Hermit raised his eyes,
And prayed where he did sit.

I took the oars : the Pilot's boy,
Who now doth crazy go,
Laughed loud and long, and all the while
His eyes went to and fro.
`Ha ! ha !' quoth he, `full plain I see,
The Devil knows how to row.'

And now, all in my own countree,
I stood on the firm land !
The Hermit stepped forth from the boat,
And scarcely he could stand.

The ancient Mariner earnestly entreateth the Hermit to shrieve him ; and the penance of life falls on him.
`O shrieve me, shrieve me, holy man !'
The Hermit crossed his brow.
`Say quick,' quoth he, `I bid thee say--
What manner of man art thou ?'
Forthwith this frame of mine was wrenched
With a woful agony,
Which forced me to begin my tale ;
And then it left me free.

And ever and anon through out his future life an agony constraineth him to travel from land to land ;
Since then, at an uncertain hour,
That agony returns :
And till my ghastly tale is told,
This heart within me burns.
I pass, like night, from land to land ;
I have strange power of speech ;
That moment that his face I see,
I know the man that must hear me :
To him my tale I teach.

What loud uproar bursts from that door !
The wedding-guests are there :
But in the garden-bower the bride
And bride-maids singing are :
And hark the little vesper bell,
Which biddeth me to prayer !

O Wedding-Guest ! this soul hath been
Alone on a wide wide sea :
So lonely 'twas, that God himself
Scarce seeméd there to be.

O sweeter than the marriage-feast,
'Tis sweeter far to me,
To walk together to the kirk
With a goodly company !--

To walk together to the kirk,
And all together pray,
While each to his great Father bends,
Old men, and babes, and loving friends
And youths and maidens gay !

And to teach, by his own example, love and reverence to all things that God made and loveth.
Farewell, farewell ! but this I tell
To thee, thou Wedding-Guest !
He prayeth well, who loveth well
Both man and bird and beast.
He prayeth best, who loveth best
All things both great and small ;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.

The Mariner, whose eye is bright,
Whose beard with age is hoar,
Is gone : and now the Wedding-Guest
Turned from the bridegroom's door.

He went like one that hath been stunned,
And is of sense forlorn :
A sadder and a wiser man,
He rose the morrow morn.
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Tuesday, May 24, 2005

Rime Of The Ancient Mariner - Iron Maiden
Another Iron Maiden, 'cause I can't find any other I feel like putting up. This song is 13 minutes of kick ass!

Hear the Rime of the Ancient Mariner
See his eyes as he stops one of three
Mesmerizes one of the weeding guests
Stay here and listen to the nightmares of the sea

And the music plays on as the bride passes by
Caught by his spell and the Mariner tells his tale

Driven south to the land of the snow and ice
To a place where nobody's been
Through the snow-fog flies on the Albatross
Hailed in God's name, hoping good luck it brings

And the ship sails on, back to the north
Through the fog and ice and the Albatross follows on

The Mariner kills the bird of good omen
His shipmates cry against what he has done
But when the fog clears they justify him
And make themselves a part of the crime

Sailing on and on and North across the sea
Sailing on and on and North 'til all is calm

The Albatross begins with its vengeance
A terrible curse, a thirst has begun
His shipmates blame bad luck on the Mariner
About his neck the dead bird is hung

And the curse goes on and on at sea
And the curse goes on and on for them and me

"Day after day, day after day, we stuck nor breath nor motion.
As idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean.
Water, water everywhere, and all the boards did shrink.
Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink."
[Samuel Taylor Coleridge 1798-1834]

There calls the Mariner, there comes a ship over the line
But how can she sail with no wind in her sail and tide?

See...onward she comes
Onward she nears, out of the sun
See...she has no crew
She has no life, wait but there's two

Death and she Life in Death, they throw their dice for the crew
She wins the Mariner and he belongs to her now
Then...the crew one by one
They drop down dead, two hundred men
She...she Life in Death
She lets him live, her chosen one

[Narrative]
"One after one, by the star dogged moon, too quick for groan or sigh, each turned his face with a ghastly pang and cursed me with his eye. Four times fifty living men (and I heard nor sigh nor groan), with heavy thump, a lifeless lump, they dropped down one by one."

The curse it lives on in their eyes
The Mariner he wished he die
Along with the sea creatures
But they lived on, so did he

And by the light of the moon
He prays for their beauty not doom
With heart he blesses them
God's creatures all of them too

Then the spell starts to break
The Albatross falls from his neck
Sinks down like lead into the sea
Then down in falls comes the RAIN!

Hear the groans of the long dead seamen
See them stir as they start to rise
Bodies lifted by good spirits
None of them speak and they're lifeless in their eyes

And revenge is still sought, penance starts again
Cast into a trance and the nightmare carries on

Now the curse is finally lifted
And the Mariner sights his home
Spirits go from the long dead bodies
By their own light and the Mariner's left alone

And then a boat came sailing toward him
It was a joy he could not believe
The Pilot's boat, his son, and the hermit
Penance of life will fall onto him

And the ship it sinks like lead into the sea
And the hermit shrieves the Mariner of his sins

The Mariner's bound to tell of his story
To tell his tale wherever he goes
To teach God's word by his own example
That we must love all things that God made

And the wedding guest's a sad and wiser man
And the tale goes on and on and on and on...
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Monday, May 23, 2005

The Wicker Man - Iron Maiden
Today's song is The Wicker Man, an Iron Maiden song. Enjoy.

Hand of fate is moving, and the finger points to you.
He knocks you to your feet, and so what are you going to do?
Your tongue was frozen now, you've got something to say.
The piper at the Gates of Dawn is calling you his way.

You watch the world exploding every single night.
Dancing in the Sun, a newborn in the light.
Say goodbye to gravity, and say goodbye to death;
Hello to eternity, and live for every breath.

[Chorus]
Your time will come, your time will come.
Your time will come, your time will come.

Ferry man wants his money; you ain't gonna pay him back.
He can push his own boat as you set up off the track.
Nothing you can contemplate will ever be the same.
Every second is a new spark, sets the universe aflame.

You watch the world exploding every single night.
Dancing in the sun, a newborn in the light.
Brothers and their fathers holding hands and make a chain.
The shadow of The Wicker Man is rising up again.

[Repeat Chorus]
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Sunday, May 22, 2005

I-Dagoth-o-Lín-Cuil
Well, here's one I wrote. It's in Sindarin and the translation is after it. I didn't write the repeats in the translation, and the translation may look strange because I tried to translate the Sindarin literally. I'm pretty sure I got all the Sindarin right, though it's kinda hard since the two sources I used (one for the words, the other for the grammar) said two different things for certain grammatical features. Oh well...

[1st Verse]
Alae! Mín Baudh heria sí; i raim uin minas dannar.
Morn naur harna in gelaidh uin iaur, malthen tawar.
In Mennil nellar i caun o auth; nuram an mín aglar!
In gwann aphadrim o mín noss erui mín mellyn nar.

[2nd Verse]
In Ionnath uin Dúath dan mín beleg Arabarad tular.
In maethyr o Arabarad, anrûth, lín hethyl orthar.
Edtogo i Odothui Dae o in delu erain ai linnar.
Laer o thang an in gwaith uin laindyr, ai gwannar.

[Chorus]
Noro lim! An I-Dagoth-o-Lín-Cuil.
Dû tôl am mín; angol noer thiar.
Noro lim! An I-Dagoth-o-Lín-Cuil.
Morngwaew ristar in menil or!

[Post-Chorus]
NORO LIM!

[3rd Verse]
I annui ram dânna; tíriam, nîr, vi delos a anwar.
Vi nîf ammen, mín Gwedeir, mín mellen, gwannar.
Maetham lim, na megyl a thengail; in cyth darthar.
Uireb fuin orthor mín a mín Arabarad na caran agar.

[Repeat Chorus]
[Repeat Post-Chorus]

[Bridge]
Uireb fuin orthor mín a mín Arabarad na caran agar.
Caran agar, caran agar, i agar siria sui sirion.
Uireb fuin, uireb fuin, i fuin loda trî i gwelu.
GWATHO LÍN MEGYL NA MORN A CARAN; AGAR A I FUIN!
[Repeat 3rd Verse]

GWATHO LÍN MEGYL NA MORN A CARAN; AGARA A I FUIN!

[Repeat Post-Chorus]

Translation:

[1st Verse]
Behold! Our Judgement begins now; the walls of the city are falling.
Black fire wounds the trees of the ancient, golden forest.
The Heavens sound the outcry of war; we ride to our glory.
The departed men of our clan alone our friends are being.

[2nd Verse]
The Sons of Darkness against our mighty Arabard [Noble-Tower] come.
The warriors of Arabarad, in anger, thy broadsword-blades raise.
Bring forth the Seventh son of the hateful kings who are singing
Songs of oppression to the people of the freed lands, who are dying.

[Chorus]
Ride on! To The Battle Of Your Life.
Nightfall comes upon us; magick flames appear.
Ride on! To The Battle Of Your Life.
Black winds are rending the skies above!

[Post-Chorus]
RIDE ON!

[3rd Verse]
The western wall falls; we watch, weeping, in abhorrence and awe.
In front of us, our Brothers, our friends, die.
We fight on, with sword and shield; the enemies endure.
Eternal gloom conquers us and our Arabarad with red blood.

[Bridge]
Eternal gloom conquers us and our Arabarad with red blood.
Red blood, red blood, the blood is flowing like (a) great river.
Eternal gloom, eternal gloom, the gloom is floating through the air.
STAIN THY SWORDS WITH BLACK AND RED; BLOOD AND THE GLOOM!

STAIN THY SWORDS WITH BLACK AND RED; BLOOD AND THE GLOOM!

That's one long post...
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Saturday, May 21, 2005

Last Absu Song / Stone Of Destiny (...For Magh Slecht And Ard R
This is the last Absu song that I'll be posting. Only because I ran out of them though! I'll post some other stuff after this, probably something I wrote, then some Iron Maiden.

We are three high kings in honor.
We are the midst of Dagda's spell -
We are three armored forces, and
We are the gold-torqued leaders.
Three wild horsemen:
Three fearless in combat -
Three gold-crowned conjurers of clash, yet
Three clannish chiefs from the Kingdom of Midhe...

The leading, foremost tyrant -
The subsequent tormentor, and
The past intimidator of Cythr¡ul
Are impending.
"Has there ever been a better idol than Dagda?
Will there ever be a better icon than myself?"

"In the yes of myself, I fervently speak."
The trio goes out at dawn.
Fiercely, we plan to fight our assailants:
Three of us versus three thousand: complete.

"In the eyes of myself, I adroitly scream!"

"WE WILL ARRIVE AT THE STONE OF DESTINY." (Tara)
"WE WILL REACH THE PERDITION OF IBID." (Cythr¡ul)

INVINCIBLE: we are to their spears!
INTREPIDLY: we occupy our posts!
A FORECAST OF DESTINY!
INVISIBLE: they are to their hands!
INSOLENTLY: they amuse their own pride!
INTERCHANGEABILITY: INNERCHANGEABILITY!

"With the sway of myself, weather means disaster.
I affirm each day for the men of the brave."

[Repeat Verse]

As our swords of steel, their mead, and courage are fused.
Is it not the throne for our Master of the Gulch?
On its trim are rings of pearls, polished.
One seat remains near the jaded citadel.

[First Supposition - Narration:]
"The plains of adoration do lie somewhere below Tara, way below Tara, as a matter of fact.
Sometimes give as Moyslaught and as always, Crom Cruach is welcomed."

"With the sway of myself, weather means disaster.
I affirm each day for the men of the brave."

[Final Supposition - Narration:]
"The notorious Klan stands by the ramparts at Tara where all enemies are approaching.
Being bound by a geis, the three have no choice but to stand against the feeble units.
Enveloping in an opaque mist, they suddenly find themselves in a magical place where they are
received by the deity Manann¡n and a courtly witch. Finally, they begin to walk up the steep
grassland of Tara, with wand and sword, which enables them to distinguish the truth from the lies."

It is the chair for our Master of the Tor.
It is embellished with bullion: marked.
It remains on top of the lofty mound.
It streams gray and silver lining.
It will be an accolade given to us.
That is, by the third of the last king.
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Friday, May 20, 2005

Vorago (Spell 182)
I am not limited to this Underworld.
I am settled in this Barrenness.
I am kept in this Emptiness.
I am not restricted to this Underworld. (182)

I travel Earth in the train of You.
I offer Earth to reach the field of You.
I walk Earth to see the mark of You.
I proffer Earth to feel the lure of You. (182) (FOREKNOWLEDGE)

Hail to you, prime mover of the Deep.
Sun of the heart: possessor of Voids.
The awe of whom created This.
The thirst of this revered Abyss. (182) (ADAEOT)

[Pre-Chorus:]
BEINGS, BY-COMINGS, THOUGHTS...
MONADS, ATOMS, WAVES...
APERTURES, GULFS, CHASMS...
RESULTS AMONGST RESULTS!

[Chorus:]
I have made, for myself, a space within Time.
I mutely descend to the cavity of my Cell.
I am the furtive seeker ensnared Underneath.
Vorago!

[Chorus II:]
My gray wand is your Bout.
Your grandeur is my Time.
My sunray is your Beam.
Your splendor is my Turn.
My circlet is your Crown.
Your allure is my Shape.
My pattern is your Kind.
Your extent is my Scope.

My seat is your Center.
Your merit is my Dint.
My throne is your Rule.
Your misdeed is my Sin.
My void is your Stone.
Your retort is my Key.
My stone is Yourself.
Your result is my Fate.

[Post-Chorus:]
VORAGO! [x4]

[Repeat Chorus]

[Pre-Chorus II:]
SEEING THROUGH ILLUSIONS!
NAUGHT = MANY = TWO!
SEEING THROUGH ILLUSIONS!
ONE = ALL = EIGHT!

[Repeat Chorus II]

"O' you abyssic essence who is before me and who follows after my heart,
usher me in at your usherings,
for you are the one who guides me,
who escorts my anima under the Earth,
as I am a soul who is stark in Vorago."
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Thursday, May 19, 2005

Four Crossed Wands (Spell 181)
[Chorus I:]
I'm the Knight of Wands-
Yodh is in the name
I'm swift and violent:
TRANSIENT!
The fiery part of Fire-
I'm a lightning flash
Between the symbol,
And the natal force.

[Chorus II:]
She's the Queen of Wands-
H© is in the name
She's fermenting, yet
TRANSMITTING!
The watery part of Fire-
She's quick to receive
Between the surface,
And the process of (pro) creation.

Kan! King!
51st Hexagram
A warrior in complete armor
With wand in the left hand and torch in the right. (181)

Su­! Queen!
17th Hexagram
Her crown is topped with a winged sphere,
And rayed with flames. (181)

[Chorus III:]
He's the Prince of Wands-
Vau is in the name
He's manifesting, but
TRANSCENDING!
The airy part of Fire-
He's the "Dying God!"
Between the virtue,
And the Leader of his caste.

Y® King! Y® King!
42nd Hexagram
A shrouded warrior in full-scale armour-
On his chest, he bears the sigil "TO MEGA QHRION."

[Chorus IA:]
FOUR CROSSED WANDS!

Ž Queen! Ž Queen!
27th Hexagram
Her crown is surged with a disque of the Sun
And once again, rayed with fire.

[Repeat Chorus IA]

"They observe no regular rule in the ordering of their hearts."

[Repeat Chorus IA]

[Chorus IV:]
She's the Princess of Wands-
H© is in the name
She's crystallizing, yet
TRANSPOSING!
The earthy part of Fire-
She's absorbing
Between the Silence,
And the 10th of May.
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Wednesday, May 18, 2005

From Ancient Times (Starless Skies Burn To Ash)
Blazing to their pikes
Turning to dust
Gusting with the wind
They (still) dream of an older delusion

Reigning, raining
Dampening the empire
Their excursion burns with the ashes

Calm lakes mirrored
Glistening everywhere
They rove through the waters and fires

Silent seas paused
Enlightening low light
Their visions for imperishability

The weakened flesh
Expecting downfall
Their ashes spread through lightless, starless skies

The Eminence
Not expecting wind
They (now) think of a newer illusion

[Chorus:]
PRAISE - The ancient times
AS EARTH - Equates their end
COMMAND - The ancient times
LIKE TARA - Shall never pretend
DIES - Irae, dies illa
QUIDQUID - Latet adparebit
NIL - Inultum remanebit
DEPOSE - Towards ancient times

[Repeat Chorus]

[Repeat All Verses In Reversed Order Excluding The First & Last]
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