Thank you for posting this. I'm a big fan of this band. In life, in interviews, Selim always claimed he wanted you to come to your own conclusions and meanings about the songs behind the band: without involving him in your own interpretations. But in this case specifically, I think it's impossible to part songwriter and song. Selim suffered profound depressive bouts in his life. His struggle led to his complex variation of Satanism, it led to TDB, Selim Lemouchi and His Enemies, his strange suicidal Facebook posts (one of which quoted a chaotic battle from Blood Meridian) and finally it led to his death. It is a song completely unlike anything else I've ever heard. Not just musically but lyrically. In my own interpretation, it's an epic poem about Selim's depression, personal suffering, beliefs, will to live, and fear of the beyond. And finally, what I think is something like a cathartic acceptance of our cosmic reality. While I don't agree with the absolute bleakness of his beliefs or his strange idea of an afterlife, I'll always remember Selim for this song. Though he spoke of his own life, it brought me comfort to know that I wasn't truly alone in my suicidal depression. I felt understood.
Lyrics [part III - ...and the holy cunt spewed forth abomination] To turn back at the threshold of salvation To erase ones name from the book of life To delve deep into the heart of the darkness For a truth one could never find I want nothing And in return give all Until all is nothing And nothing all I know that to act is pointless And pointlessness holy I cast grain in unclean ground And see potential drowned I see you I feel you I hear you I smell you I taste you You are as clear As crystal You are as dark As blood You are as beautiful As a blazing flame You are as unforgiving As frozen ground Your are as fleeting As a gust of wind [part II - wielding the hammer of the dead] I am carried forth By a great wind A powerful tug At the strings of my heart That urges me onward Through the listless times And shields me from its foetid grime Wind blowing, moon glowing, the owl goes by I cradle this fear deep within my heart I gaze upon the forests of the great divide And ask myself: “Am I ready now, to depart?” But for all its blessing and all its gifts The unrelenting waves of the world set me adrift And when at night the spirits are roiling through the sky I wish for wings so I could join their lawless ride But unseen hands grasp toward my throat I feel their horrid warmth as the sun does rise to gloat Defiant I remain and (even though) I lost all that I had I greet the dawn with the hammer of the dead For ever present is the song of my salvation And my words were never meant for you to hum And even though my voice is choked with Joy My song is a call for Grief to come [part I - upon the aimless path] To die is to learn a wisdom shiny A wealth of ruby revelation That the well of endless desperation Still hides, in deep blue glow All that was ever ours to know And so we set forth on an aimless path The horizon, a whore, pregnant with repudiation We carry on in indignant illumination Ever onward, with blood-stained skin Til the inception of the End’s Begin The fortitude of the anti-current Is in the blood we bleed To share in your pain Oh thou perfected nameless flame We call thee by thy first given name Vicious love so hungry and filled with ire My god is a consuming fire, a jealous God [prologue] The fragrance of tomorrow And tomorrow and tomorrow Incremental in our purpose Toward nothing we are aiming We are slipping, sliding, drowning and fighting On a desperate and holy road We shatter the boundaries before us Brothers Sisters In the solitude of god And the waters of nothingness A constant reminder That we Are Nowhere
Thank you for posting this. I'm a big fan of this band. In life, in interviews, Selim always claimed he wanted you to come to your own conclusions and meanings about the songs behind the band: without involving him in your own interpretations. But in this case specifically, I think it's impossible to part songwriter and song. Selim suffered profound depressive bouts in his life. His struggle led to his complex variation of Satanism, it led to TDB, Selim Lemouchi and His Enemies, his strange suicidal Facebook posts (one of which quoted a chaotic battle from Blood Meridian) and finally it led to his death.
It is a song completely unlike anything else I've ever heard. Not just musically but lyrically. In my own interpretation, it's an epic poem about Selim's depression, personal suffering, beliefs, will to live, and fear of the beyond. And finally, what I think is something like a cathartic acceptance of our cosmic reality. While I don't agree with the absolute bleakness of his beliefs or his strange idea of an afterlife, I'll always remember Selim for this song. Though he spoke of his own life, it brought me comfort to know that I wasn't truly alone in my suicidal depression. I felt understood.
Fleshy Great post
otherworldly brilliance
Lyrics
[part III - ...and the holy cunt spewed forth abomination]
To turn back at the threshold of salvation
To erase ones name from the book of life
To delve deep into the heart of the darkness
For a truth one could never find
I want nothing
And in return give all
Until all is nothing
And nothing all
I know that to act is pointless
And pointlessness holy
I cast grain in unclean ground
And see potential drowned
I see you
I feel you
I hear you
I smell you
I taste you
You are as clear
As crystal
You are as dark
As blood
You are as beautiful
As a blazing flame
You are as unforgiving
As frozen ground
Your are as fleeting
As a gust of wind
[part II - wielding the hammer of the dead]
I am carried forth
By a great wind
A powerful tug
At the strings of my heart
That urges me onward
Through the listless times
And shields me from its foetid grime
Wind blowing, moon glowing, the owl goes by
I cradle this fear deep within my heart
I gaze upon the forests of the great divide
And ask myself: “Am I ready now, to depart?”
But for all its blessing and all its gifts
The unrelenting waves of the world set me adrift
And when at night the spirits are roiling through the sky
I wish for wings so I could join their lawless ride
But unseen hands grasp toward my throat
I feel their horrid warmth as the sun does rise to gloat
Defiant I remain and (even though) I lost all that I had
I greet the dawn with the hammer of the dead
For ever present is the song of my salvation
And my words were never meant for you to hum
And even though my voice is choked with Joy
My song is a call for Grief to come
[part I - upon the aimless path]
To die is to learn a wisdom shiny
A wealth of ruby revelation
That the well of endless desperation
Still hides, in deep blue glow
All that was ever ours to know
And so we set forth on an aimless path
The horizon, a whore, pregnant with repudiation
We carry on in indignant illumination
Ever onward, with blood-stained skin
Til the inception of the End’s Begin
The fortitude of the anti-current
Is in the blood we bleed
To share in your pain
Oh thou perfected nameless flame
We call thee by thy first given name
Vicious love so hungry and filled with ire
My god is a consuming fire, a jealous God
[prologue]
The fragrance of tomorrow
And tomorrow and tomorrow
Incremental in our purpose
Toward nothing we are aiming
We are slipping, sliding, drowning and fighting
On a desperate and holy road
We shatter the boundaries before us
Brothers
Sisters
In the solitude of god
And the waters of nothingness
A constant reminder
That we
Are
Nowhere
Is it Selim doing the male vocals?
Yes, the song was sung by both Farida and Selim Lemouchi.