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 Slechtvalk. Голландская группа, на заре карьеры была one man-band, а на момент записи этого альбома действовал состав из 5 человек, скрытых за грозными малопонятными псевдонимами.
Инструментальное интро звучит неожиданно мягко и позитивно (по-моему, совершенно «не в кассу»). Самое точное сравнение - Blackmore’s Night, хоть убейся. Следующий номер – «Call to Arms», «боевичок» с интересными акустическими моментами, постоянными ритмическими сбивками, и распевками в духе viking metal, уже «дает стране угля». Дальнейшие треки от «Mortal Serenity» (особенно удачная песня) и до «Under the Moonlit Sky» - суть такие же крепкие боевички, то с фэнтезийной, то с депрессивной атмосферой.
Наибольшее же недоумение вызвала композиция «The Spoils of Treason», по структуре почти «думовая», но при этом один в один повторяет мелодическую линию и аранжировку вступления Раммштайновской «Mein Herz Brennt». Вся песня подряд. Такие дела, да…
Основой пения служит типичный для pagan каркающий вокал, немного женского сопрано, героические мужские хоралы… Музыка варьируется в диапазоне от pagan до sympho-black, но схожа более всего с Cradle Of Filth и Dimmu Borgir.
В итоге «At the Dawn of War» являет собой нескучный, весьма мелодичный среднетемповый pagan black, перед которым можно поставить приставку «epic». В категорию «нетленок» этот альбом вряд ли войдет, но музыка достаточно интересная, запоминающаяся, и записанная на очень высоком уровне. В проигрыватель на вечер-другой закинуть стоит. |
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The world has not seen in all times for a great threat
Has come to us,
The black armies of the lord of death.
As we hailed our old brethren from the western shores,
The eastern horse riders arrived.
But we saw no sign of our southern kin,
We wondered if they already died.
All captains have joined the King in his pavilion to discuss the war at hand.
The light of early dawn already broke the night,
When our captain informed us we were going south.
„Last night a falcon arrived
With a message from the southern army.
It seems their retreat has been cut off,
They now stand with their backs against the wall.
If we do not act quickly,
They soon will be defeated,
We must hurry, before it's too late.
If not for them, we would long be dead,
Now it's time to repay our ancestor's debts.“
If only half of the rumours were true,
That would mean we would be sent to a slaughter.
Although we don't fear death,
We don't want to die in vain.
„We'll face a great host of enemy soldiers,
But don't despair, my noble men,
For we don't go to war alone.
Our King has a great army coming from the east,
We'll meet them along the way.“
We've heard of such an army,
But we thought it was just a phantom story
Told by crazed old men who lost their wits.
But if it's true,
Then the victory would be ours for the taking.
Now we just wonder,
What are we still doing here?
3. Mortal Serenity
The horde of destruction came riding on the storm
And left my serenity slowly to rot.
This once so bright future now frozen in pain,
A deep dark sadness solemnly rose.
Paralyzed crawling in this struggle unseen,
I felt down, exhausted, and entered a dream.
I awoke and gazed through the mist and the rain,
A gloomy cold landscape, the new dwelling for me.
Forgotten dwelling in this struggle unseen,
A breathless whisper from out of a dark path in mind.
A veil of cold laughter now covers this pain,
The black storms returned and I freely go in.
With this vision of pain, now I march on to war.
Reality sharpened and willing to fight.
New strength burns in me, decided to go.
My fist clenches cold steel, as we hailed our liege.
Hail! Hail!
Voiceless screaming – sleepless dreaming,
Tearless crying – breathless sighing.
“And there in a distance,
In the forest bare and cold, “
The pale beauty strays to find me nevermore.
4. On The Eve Of Battle
Silently we marched through forests and marshes
Our arrows waiting on our bows
My men, grim and prepared for the fight
A pale army of soldiers
Yes, we're marching to war
To war
Advance to war, banners high, towards our destiny
Advance to war, towards our destiny
With past battles on our minds
We wander towards the battlefields
The glorious battlefield
And then we reached the treeline of the enchanted forest
And there on heather fields a great battle was at hand
Standing and gazing at the frontline of the battle
A furious warcry filled the sky
Advance to war, banners high, towards our destiny
Advance to war, towards our destiny
And although many have fallen and many will fall in this ancient battle
Our captain blew on the horn and roared out loud,
"At the tips of our swords, they will only find death!"
Death
Death
Death
5. Besieged
We are besieged by our enemies,
Their armies have gathered around us;
A great host of horses, chariots and men.
We can’t live through such a vast number.
Will we fall to the might of our enemies?
We are outnumbered and outclassed.
If we surrender they might show us mercy.
“And live at the cost of everything? “
No. Surrender is not an option.
Have you not taken heed to the promises of old?
Have you already forgotten what was told?
Raise your head and look on the mountains.
Those with us are far more than those against us.
Our King has sent his best to our aid
So we will not fall to the might of our enemy.
Don’t you see the vast army of fiery horses and chariots?
I pray your eyes will be opened,
So your despair will flee.”
6. The Spoils Of Treason
We had grown tired of this endless war.
We thought it was time to leave and to govern ourselves.
Fearing punishment for our betrayal,
We asked our old enemies to defend our cities.
They kept the King’s forces at bay,
But it had cost us all we ever had.
After they had consumed most of our stock,
They forced our children to serve
As their soldiers in the war,
From which we only tried to escape.
“We saw the smoke rising“
From beyond the forest’s canopy
The sight made our hearts fill with sorrow.
So many lives wasted,
In spite of our warnings.
Could we have done more to keep them from leaving?”
On our search for independence
We lost all the freedom we once had.
We are now little more than slaves in our own country,
Cheated into a life of misery.
“We saw the smoke rising“
From beyond the forest’s canopy
The sight made our hearts fill with sorrow.
So many lives wasted, in spite of our warnings.
Could we have done more to keep them from leaving?”
7. Thunder Of War
A thunder of war roared through the sky,
As the armies ran towards each other.
Bone-breaking blows of warhammers,
Shields crushed, steel broke, flesh torn apart.
Gut-ripping strokes of foul swords fell,
Impaled by spears, blood spitting dying.
Pierced by arrows on the blood drenched fields,
The penetrating stench of death.
More enemy forces leapt out of the hills,
Overwhelming our flanks.
But then our captain rose the banner and screamed:
“You’ll fight to the end,
Don’t fear no defeat!”
And now new strength was found,
The turn in the fight.
As a falcon shrieked and pierced the sky above,
Into amazement the enemy fell.
Our flanks reformed and we fiercely charged again.
Yes, once again a furious warcry filled the sky,
The glorious falcon, our victory is near.
With our captain in the frontline,
Holding the banner of the falcon up high.
And so we charged on to fight...
With the swing of the blunt battle axe and the reaping halberds.
The terrifying screams of our enemies,
Now brutally slaughtered at will.
In the frenzy,
Fair young men left with shattered faces
And strong heroes’ arms left dismembered.
That was the price of our victory.
8. Black Raven Death
A falcon was sent into the air by his master,
To begin his hunt for food.
With firm beats of his wings he ascended
Into the sky to begin his search.
There his eyes spotted far below him a black figure
Stirring in the depths.
Circling high up in the sky,
The falcon awaited the best moment to strike.
With great speed the falcon dove upon his prey,
His wings folded to reduce the drag of the winds.
The prey didn’t notice the threat from above,
When all of a sudden his sight went black.
Sharp talons piercing the flesh,
Death came swiftly.
There was no way to escape.
The slain bird was heavier then he expected.
The falcon couldn’t maintain his altitude.
He felt reluctant to let go of his prey,
But the threat of sharp rocks was at hand.
Then a southern wind went through the air...
Drifting on the warm current,
Carried by the wind,
The falcon quickly climbed again.
He shot through the sky over the forest,
When he heard his master’s call.
In return the falcon gave a shriek
As an answer to his name.
His master wondered what the falcon was carrying,
The large black shadow he firmly held.
The black raven is dead.
He has killed himself a black raven
An unusual prey for a falcon,
But still the black raven is dead.
9. Desertion
Loyalty, a fading memory of the past.
The spies of our enemy are within our ranks.
Sowing dissension, inciting revolt
Their poison spreads like a plague.
Blinded to the deception of our enemy,
They deny his existence.
All houses are rising against each other,
The unity of the early days is gone.
The unity of our glory days is gone.
Only a few loyal remaining at our side,
Too few to conquer,
But enough to pose a threat.
Forever loyal to our cause we fight until the bitter end.
In the wake of our steadfast spirits
The hearts of many men are rekindled.
As we charge on the boundaries of our existence,
New armies are mustered to our cause.
10. Under A Moonlit Sky
A gentle wind, that rustles the leaves, is whispering in my ear.
A bright moon gazes at me through the forest's canopy, lighting my path.
Wandering through the forest, I marvel at it's beauty
All shades of moss, covering the grounds on which I softly tread
Sometimes I sense a wild animal staring in wonder at my appearance
And silently I watch them, wondering if they are aware of what's coming to them
But a strange unnatural noise in the distance startles the animal, and I see it speeding off.
I softly weep, for I know that the days of comforting silence are gone.
Under a moonlit sky, I wander through the forest, marvelling at it's beauty, the serenity, the natural silence
The sky is red with the burning fire of the trees
It makes me weep
I see some heavily mutilated animals, running towards me in panic
I am shocked at the selfishness of the men who thought of this destruction
Of the earth on which I was born and raised
Under a moonlit sky, I wander through the forest, a deathly silence around the scorched ghostlike trees
Even for the creatures of the wild, there is no escape from the wars which scorch the earth
Defeat will mean the final death of us all
11. Cries Of The Haunted
[Bonus Track]
Why hast thou forsaken me?
Why hast thou turned away thy face
From me thy servant in distress
Oh Lord bent me thine ear!
All night long I drown in my tears
My bones are vexed,
My heart is sore and vexed
Water rises to my lips
My throat is sore, I cannot speak
Lord I beg thee to free me of this grief
Which still haunts my soul,
And makes my heart grow cold
I am merely all skin over bone
My flesh is too weak to resist the temptations
Which the evil layeth upon my path
I fear I yield to this heavy burden
What has become of the son, who loved me
For so many years and
Now calls me into doubt
He who has worshipped me for so long
Now lives under the spell of the wicked
That brings his soul
Only further in Darkness
Away from love and closer to hatred
Don't you know that I'll always love you?
Return to me and I'll take care of you
I'll bring peace in your mind
And rest in your troubled heart
I will treat you as my son
I'll make you a warrior of the Light"
Nightly creatures still haunt my soul
Crawling against the walls of my broken heart
Screaming inhuman blasphemous words
Exalting the hordes of demon lords
Where are you God?!?!
"Here, waiting for you my son."
I will always love you Lord
Even in times of terrible Darkness
Nothing can stop me from worshipping you
Even if it means the end of my earthly life