In June 1998, GOTHICA released their second demo entitled "Proserpina" (demo of the month – METAL HAMMER Nr. 11 / November 1998). Thanks to this demo, GOTHICA signed the contract with the Swedish Cold Meat Industry label. In April 2000, GOTHICA appeared in the CD compilation "Intimations Of Immortality" vol. 5 by Energeia with the song "The Land Under The Waves" (demo version).
Spirits Of The Dead
Gothica Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
A voice made of numberless voices.
I'm turning round, looking for you,
But your sound springs from inside.
You reality without essence,
Eternal fire and icy pallor.
Tell me where you are from,
Thou obscure inhabitants of dark.
Are you meloudious and bewitching
Or terrifying and deceptive?
The first line of Gothica's "Spirits of the Dead" sets the tone for a haunting and chilling experience as the listener is pulled into the song's dark and mysterious world. The sonorous wake is a reference to the wake of the dead, the aftermath of a funeral and the gathering of mourners. The voice in the song is made up of countless individual voices, which suggests a collective, otherworldly presence. The singer is searching for someone, most likely one of the spirits mentioned in the title, but their sound seems to be coming from within the singer themselves, perhaps indicating that they have become possessed or influenced by the spirits in some way.
The second stanza continues the mysterious, slightly ominous tone of the song. The spirits are described as being both ethereal and eternal, possessing qualities of both fire and ice. The singer asks where they come from, suggesting that they are not of this world. The spirits are then described as either melodious and bewitching or terrifying and deceptive, giving the impression that they are both alluring and dangerous. The overall effect is unsettling and atmospheric, leaving the listener with a sense of unease and fascination with the supernatural.
Line by Line Meaning
Like a fast start is the sonorous wake,
The beginning of something new can be quick and intense, like the sound of an alarm that wakes us up.
A voice made of numberless voices.
The sound we hear is made up of many different voices, echoing and blending together.
I'm turning round, looking for you,
I search for something or someone that I cannot see, constantly turning and searching.
But your sound springs from inside.
However, the elusive presence is within me, and the sound I hear is coming from within myself.
You reality without essence,
The existence of this presence is real, yet it has no tangible essence or form.
Eternal fire and icy pallor.
It is a paradoxical being with elements of both everlasting passion and icy coldness.
Tell me where you are from,
I wish to know the origin or source of this mystifying presence.
Thou obscure inhabitants of dark.
This presence resides in the world of darkness and obscurity, unknown and enigmatic to the uninitiated.
Are you meloudious and bewitching
Does this being possess a captivating and enchanting quality, with a sonorous voice?
Or terrifying and deceptive?
Or is it a being that incites fear and deception? These are the conflicting emotions it stirs within me.
Contributed by Aubrey T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.