FOREFATHER LYRICS

1. Havoc On Holy Island

In placid halls beside the tide
The tiresome scrape of quill on hide
Passes every plodding hour
In the care of a hollow power
Lying alone, treasures abound
Spells sent forth throughout the lands
But stubborn hearts are not beguiled
Beyond the waves a wrath is riled

Longships break the waters
Dragonfire paints the sky
Anger rends the silence
Harried by a wild warcry
Relics through ravaged altars
White Christ servants flee
Havoc on Holy Island
Punishment from the sea

A lonesome life they embrace
Walled within this hallowed space
Toiling for a higher cause
Loyal slaves to heavenly laws
Macabre rites with rag and bone
Praise to corporal idols shown
But empty words cannot resist
Whirlwinds wreck the fragile bliss

[Solo: Wulfstan]

So he bade them go, carry forth
To the daunting halls of the north
Promise of salvation they brought
Pilgrims in a distant domain
Wily words spreading like a plague
So was a land led astray

'Her wæron reðe forebecna cumene ofer Norðhymbra land,...ormete þodenas and ligrescas, and fyrenne dracan wæron gesewene on þam lifte fleogende. Þam tacnum sona fyligde mycel hunger,...[and] earmlice hæþenra manna hergunc adilegode Godes cyrican in Lindisfarnaee...' - AS Chronicle 793
[Here came dreadful forewarnings over the land of the Northumbrians: huge whirlwinds and flashes of light, and firey dragons flying in the sky. After these tokens soon followed much hunger, and the harrying of wretched heathen men destroyed God's church on Lindisfarne.]

Longships break the waters
Dragonfire paints the sky
Anger rends the silence
Harried by a wild warcry
Relics through ravaged altars
White Christ servants flee
Havoc on Holy Island
Punishment from the sea

2. The Anvil

England's on the anvil - hear the hammers ring
Clanging from the Severn to the Tyne
Never was a blacksmith like our Norman King
England's being hammered into line

England's on the anvil - heavy are the blows
Ordered by the tyrant bastard son
Destiny has cursed us with the maker of our woes
England's being hammered into one

Sorrow for the conquered, wretched is their doom
Marshalled from the mountains to the shore
Withered in the shadow of the ruthless victor horde
Toiling in the silent throes of war

England’s in the furnace, tempered by the flames
Cast into a spiral of decline
Grievous is the pounding in this iron-fisted forge
England’s being fashioned by design

'With bloody sword came he
Cold heart and bloody hand
Now rule the English land'
- Heimskringla

England's on the anvil - hear those hammers ring
Clanging from the Severn to the Tyne
Never was a blacksmith like our Norman King
England's being hammered, hammered into line

Glowing on the anvil, faithful sons awake
Banish this usurper from the throne
Furl his sacred standard tight fixed with dragon seal
And send it with our blessings back to Rome

3. By My Lord I Will Lie

Hark to this folk's decree
Spear and sword-edge we'll yield to ye
Here a good warrior stands
Sworn to steadfastly guard this ground

Brace, harness the wolf within
Faith, to flee is the gravest sin
By my lord I will lie
Clash, enemy striking forth
Hold, never give up the cause
By my lord I will die

Come, wave-wolves to war
Fare ye freely across the ford
Fate alone shall decide
Who shall master this battle site

Brace, harness the wolf within
Faith, to flee is the gravest sin
By my lord I will lie
Clash, enemy striking forth
Hold, never give up the cause
By my lord I will die

'Hige sceal þe heardra, heorte þe cenre,
mod sceal þe mare, þe ure mægen lytlað.'
- Battle of Maldon
(Thought shall be the harder, heart the keener,
Courage the greater, as our strength lessens.)

Then spoke the old man, shield raised to the sky
Shamed be the ones who seek to abandon the strife
Long I am lived, here I will stay
One with my lord, not turn away
Loud over the sword-play besieged warriors heard
Proud men inspired by the wise spearman's words
Long I am lived, here I will stay
One with my lord, not turn away
Here on the cold ground loyal in death I will remain

Brace, harness the wolf within
Faith, to flee is the gravest sin
By my lord I will lie
Clash, enemy striking forth
Hold, never give up the cause
By my lord I will die

4. Fire Of Baited Blood

Graven faces gather in the hall
Messengers bring word from the shore
Ill winds behind hostile sails
Black wings approach beyond the pale

Fire of baited blood
A hearth of ancient stone
We must resist, hold fast to this
To keep the spoils of Rome

Fell serpents slink through the reeds
Outriders hunt them unseen
The lord wills bring victory with speed
Bannermen give pledge on bended knee

Fire of baited blood
A hearth of ancient stone
We must resist, hold fast to this
To keep the spoils of Rome

Break the chains of fear
Prepare the course for war
Make no retreat, repeat the feat
Of fathers gone before

May your blade be swift and just to the end
Take our hopes, in you we trust to defend
Win this fight and send them back to the sea
Let them spread the fame of our mastery

Defend!

Fire of baited blood
A hearth of ancient stone
We must resist, hold fast to this
To keep the spoils of Rome

Break the chains of fear
Prepare the course for war
Make no retreat, repeat the feat
Of fathers gone before

Defend!

5. Curse Of The Cwelled

Snared under fire-blackened skies, fettered in humbling irons
Burned are the staples of life
Crushed by a torturing hand, terrors demolish the land
Low is the spirit of man
Yield prostrate in decay, dignity stolen away
Grim is the price that was paid
Brave are the ones who defy rulers in castles on high
Slowly a nation will die

Arrogant conquering powers, pompous in ivory towers
Crows at the carcass devour
Oil in a deadly machine, cruelty reigning supreme
Sneering at all that has been

But we will rise, cast them aside
See the tyrants flee to the hostile sea
And we will own all that will be
Never fade or fall, ever breaking free

See the fires on the hills
Hear the hammers ring
Feel the thrill of the fight
Let the storm begin

'Worhton [hie] castelas wide geond þas þeode, and earm folc swencte, and a syððan hit yflade swiðe. Wurðe god se ende þonne God wylle.' - AS Chronicle 1066
[They built castles all across the land, and oppressed the wretched people, and afterwards it grew ever worse. May the end be good, when God wills.]

Harshly, the wretched compelled; bearing the curse of the cwelled
Plundered is dwelling and feld
Roaming, the ousted adrift; stoic, the stalwart persist
Bleak is the conqueror's gift

But (so) we will rise, cast them aside
See the tyrants flee to the hostile sea
And we will own all that will be
Never fade or fall, ever (we are) breaking free

See the fires on the hills
Hear the hammers ring
Feel the thrill of the fight
Let the storm begin

6. Awakened Hate

In the darkness an ancient power lies
If you rile the beast, in time he will arise
Thieves disturb the peace, a reckless seed to sow
A rage will be unleashed, purging fire bestowed

Heed their steady words, vast the columns grow
No sign or show, awakened hate!
See their level gaze, mark the coming age
It won't abate, awakened hate!

Stricken down, a fighting man was tamed
In his tomb he lies but never truly waned
Such a primal force can never be restrained
Soon he will return to raise the flag again

Heed their steady words, vast the columns grow
No sign or show, awakened hate!
See their level gaze, mark the coming age
It won't abate, awakened hate!

Deep in the dark it is found
In restless caverns far under the ground
Walls of the citadel groan
Halls of the fortress come crumbling down

Heed their steady words, vast the columns grow
No sign or show, awakened hate!
See their level gaze, mark the coming age
It won't abate, awakened hate!

7. Painted With Blood

Soldiers of the stonefolk through narrow paths wind
Celebrated warriors, the grand emperor's pride
The old woodland watches with cold forbidding eyes
Terror is unleashed as the forest comes alive

Painted with blood, a line in the sand
Mangled and broken by bold Hermann's hand
In the land of Germania they faltered and fell
Wasted by fate, legiones redde!

Spear-ravaged remnants break onto the plain
A last desperate surge but all is in vain
The last stragglers flee in humbling defeat
All overwhelmed, the slaughter is complete

Painted with blood, a line in the sand
Mangled and broken by bold Hermann's hand
In the land of Germania they faltered and fell
Wasted by fate, legiones redde!

Ire, cold foreign rule inflames
Lust for rebellion gains
Tribes band together
Glory and freedom seized
Overlords brought to their knees
Fame everlasting

Painted with blood, a line in the sand
Mangled and broken by bold Hermann's hand
In the land of Germania they faltered and fell
Wasted by fate, legiones redde!

8. Rustics To Remain

Pestilence reigns over lord and the serf
Bones of the fallen lie deep in the earth
Acres lie bare now the ploughman is dead
Mutiny rises, the plague has been spread
Plea to the sovereign, unjust high esteem
Sacred divinity - blind villeins dream
Gift of fraternity on bended knee
New found belief with a promise deceived

Gesture for freedom, a brazen decree
Rise of a madness, a new potency

Panic is rising, the blaze has been set
One rebel army to fill them with dread
Menace united, a new show of force
Embers ignited, there’ll be no remorse

Flagrant betrayal, an act of disdain
Flash of the blade and the rouser is slain
Spark for revulsion, the mass held at length
Tighten the shackles - a cruel show of strength

Facing the enemy, troops eye to eye
One wayward arrow - a turn of the tide?

Panic is rising, the blaze has been set
One rebel army to fill them with dread
Menace united, a new show of force
Embers ignited, there’ll be no remorse

Watching in the rebel ranks
Archers incited now flex their bows
Power in their fingers, yearning to release
Spirits stirred by the words of the priest

[Solo: Athelstan]

Let fly your arrows and hold firm the line
This is your moment, now is the time

Panic is rising, the blaze has been set
New rebel army to fill them with dread
Menace united, a new show of force
Embers ignited, there’ll be no remorse

The vanquished march back to their pen
The sorry hearts of beaten men
A fading hope shot down in flames
Forever rustics to remain!

9. Edge Of Oblivion

Edge of oblivion, heads in the sand
Wolves in the fold raping the land
Shadows of men by meekness consumed
Weak willing slaves marching to doom

Dire whirlwinds growing, the craven fall deaf
Seek no compassion, mailed fist you will get
Standing defiant, the bold brazen few
Storm-battered monoliths, guardians of truth

Edge of oblivion, bewildered they fall
Madness and chaos darken the halls
Powerless servants basking in woe
Headlong to nothingness, gladly they go

At the final hour they see the chasm opens wide
The feckless fall into the void

Dire whirlwinds growing, the craven fall deaf
Seek no compassion, mailed fist you will get
Standing defiant, the bold brazen few
Storm-battered monoliths, guardians of truth

Edge of oblivion, heads in the sand
Wolves in the fold raping the land
Shadows of men by meekness consumed
Weak willing slaves marching to doom

10. Master Of Fate

Veiled in despair kneels the ill-fated son
Drowning in unnumbered tears
Wretched, the steadfast one watches on high
Pawn in the dark enemy's game
There on the brink the great worm lies slain
Foulest deceit he has sown
Free from his spell, mournful she leapt
Taken by the waters below

Out of a dream, the far-farer heard this tale of agony
Tragedy born in tangled threads of cruel destiny

Those roaring waters he will not defile
Beseeches the black, fickle blade
Answered, the bloodstained on death's iron falls
Ruthless, the curse meets it end

Out of a dream, the far-farer heard this tale of agony
Tragedy born in tangled threads of cruel destiny

Master of fate
Mastered by doom

"Hail, Iron of Death! Wilt thou take the Master of Fate?"
"Yea, I will drink thy blood. I will slay thee swiftly."

Out of a dream, the far-farer heard this tale of agony
Tragedy born in tangled threads of cruel destiny

11. The River-Maid's Farewell

[Instrumental]








FOREFATHER LYRICS