Bereft
Fen Lyrics
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Hollow...
Ashen.
Life promises only death.
And thus I am again sentenced to solitude,
In silent contemplation, a vision framed in grey
Falls upon world-weary eyes and brings torpor.
The years behind left drained and colourless.
I look within to fan the embers,
Charred and enervated beyond recall to flame.
For so long, I have journeyed, one weary step upon another,
The dust of a decade's failures ground underfoot.
And so I fix my gaze to myriad desolation.
The harsh wind punished a frail simulacra
On the precipice of spiritual oblivion,
Without and within only ashes remain.
As the elements now I shall be.
As one with the enduring stone and the onrishing waters of wild rivers.
As one with the burnished hue of the dawn
And the misty closure of the twilit evenfall.
To cross the foils and stygian peatfields.
To stride unfeeling towards the eternal periphery.
These bitter lands have borne witness to so much
That I now embrace within a lonely
And burned-out will.
When only distant memories chime across a spiritual vacuum,
The last vestiges of life long since extinguished.
A dying visage whipped by storms charged with the stench of despair.
The entirety of my essence, the nucleus of my humanity now scoured.
I am Bereft.
The lyrics to Fen's song Bereft depict a sense of loneliness, emptiness, and hopelessness. The singer talks about life promising only death, and how this realization sentences him to solitude yet again. The years behind him have been drained and colorless, leaving him hollow and ashen. He tries to fan the embers within him, but they are enervated beyond recall to flame. He then looks out to the harsh wind punishing a frail simulacra, which is a representation of his own fragile self. He accepts his fate and decides to become one with the elements, enduring stone, wild rivers, and the burnished hue of the dawn. He understands that he must cross the foils and stygian peatfields and stride unfeeling towards the eternal periphery. The singer embraces the bitter lands that have borne witness to so much and now holds on to his lonely and burned-out will.
The song, Bereft by Fen, was released in 2017 as part of the album, Winter. Fen is a British atmospheric black metal band formed in 2006.
Line by Line Meaning
Alone...
Feeling lonely and isolated
Hollow...
Feeling empty and devoid of emotion
Ashen.
Feeling lifeless and drained
Life promises only death.
Having a bleak outlook on life and feeling as though death is the only outcome
And thus I am again sentenced to solitude,
Forced into being alone once more
In silent contemplation, a vision framed in grey
Reflecting quietly with a dreary mindset
Falls upon world-weary eyes and brings torpor.
Becoming exhausted and unmotivated due to a constant negative outlook
The years behind left drained and colourless.
Past experiences have left one feeling depleted and without any interest
I look within to fan the embers,
Searching internally for a spark of hope
Charred and enervated beyond recall to flame.
Feeling exhausted and unable to reignite one's passion or drive
For so long, I have journeyed, one weary step upon another,
Having been traveling for a long time, feeling constantly tired and fatigued
The dust of a decade's failures ground underfoot.
Carrying the burden of past mistakes and failures
And so I fix my gaze to myriad desolation.
Looking out into a vast emptiness and bleakness
The harsh wind punished a frail simulacra
Being battered by the elements and feeling weak and fragile
On the precipice of spiritual oblivion,
Feeling as though one is on the brink of losing touch with their spiritual self
Without and within only ashes remain.
Feeling as though there is nothing left, both inside and out
As the elements now I shall be.
Feeling as though one has become part of the world, just like the elements
As one with the enduring stone and the nourishing waters of wild rivers.
Becoming connected to nature and feeling as though it is a part of oneself
As one with the burnished hue of the dawn
Feeling connected to the beauty of sunrise
And the misty closure of the twilit evenfall.
Feeling connected to the mystical nature of twilight and dusk
To cross the foils and stygian peatfields.
Undertaking a challenging and difficult journey
To stride unfeeling towards the eternal periphery.
Heading towards the unknown future without feeling any emotion
These bitter lands have borne witness to so much
Acknowledging that the harsh environment has seen much hardship
That I now embrace within a lonely
Feeling as though one must accept this environment, even if it is solitary
And burned-out will.
Feeling exhausted and drained, with almost no willpower left
When only distant memories chime across a spiritual vacuum,
Feeling disconnected from past memories and experiences
The last vestiges of life long since extinguished.
Feeling as though there is little life left inside
A dying visage whipped by storms charged with the stench of despair.
Reflecting on a life that has been battered by hardship and misery
The entirety of my essence, the nucleus of my humanity now scoured.
Feeling as though everything that made one human has been depleted and lost
I am Bereft.
Feeling completely empty and without any hope
Contributed by Anna F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.