Barren Earth was formed in Helsinki, Finland in the autumn of 2007. This ne… Read Full Bio ↴Barren Earth was formed in Helsinki, Finland in the autumn of 2007. This new ambitious, progressive death metal band was originally conceived in late 2006. With a head full of new, brutal, yet melodic songs, Olli-Pekka Laine (ex-Amorphis, Mannhai) asked drummer Marko Tarvonen (Moonsorrow), to form a new progressive death metal group with him. Around 2005 Tarvonen, keyboardist Kasper Mårtenson (ex-Amorphis, Ben Granfelt Band) and Laine played in a prog-rock project called The Camel Gang (influenced by The James Gang and English prog-rock band Camel), so they knew they already had the chemistry. Tarvonen agreed to go for it, Mårtenson and guitarist Janne Perttilä joined the band as well, and little by little things started snowballing towards the first incarnation of Barren Earth.

At the end of 2007 Tarvonen, Laine, Mårtenson and Perttilä gathered together, and laid down the final plans. Still lacking a lead guitarist, the guys called their old friend Sami Yli-Sirniö (Kreator, Waltari), as they knew his playing style to be a perfect match. Rehearsals began immediately, and by the summer of 2008, Barren Earth found themselves in the studio, recording the four first songs they had put together. When it came down to finding a vocalist, the name of Mikko Kotamäki (Swallow The Sun) popped up. The band knew that Kotamäki’s skills in growling and singing were what the fresh promotional recording screamed for. Luckily he agreed to join, and Barren Earth had found its final form.

The music of Barren Earth combines elements of modern and traditional death metal, with 70's prog rock and folk. Among the band's influences are artists like Paradise Lost, Opeth, Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull and also some pioneers of Finnish prog.

The members' individual backgrounds in many internationally known and acclaimed outfits is a testament to the quality of the band's music. These same backgrounds are obviously also echoed in Barren Earth's music.

In January of 2014 Barren Earth announced that Faroese native Jón Aldará will replace Mikko Kotamäki as the lead vocalist.

Flicker
Barren Earth Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I could hold that hand no more
I turned away and tried to swim back to the shore
To let go of joy and fear
Forsaking all that will melt down to tears
Forever shifting place and time
Caught in delusion
This dream is only mine
Released from

All sorrow
You bring tonight
Reflecting
A sunrise
As I close my eyes
In the distance for evermore
Swimming miles and miles to never reach the shore
Last flicker of reality
All I can portray is only real to me
Released from
All sorrow
You bring tonight
Reflecting
A sunrise
As I close my eyes
Drifting with
True wonders
To never touch the ground
Merge sorrow
With beauty
As I close my eyes
Another truth
A different sun
No infinity could be the only one
So I embrace
The other side
And it hits me with sunlight
And shatters the space
Purpose and time
Rejoice this night
Is shifting worlds

A thousand suns
No one can share this end of time

Overall Meaning

In Barren Earth's song "Flicker," the singer is depicting a moment in which they feel disconnected from reality, searching for a sense of peace and release from sorrow. The lyrics "caught in delusion, this dream is only mine" suggest that the singer is aware that their search for inner peace is not necessarily based in objective reality. The mention of swimming towards the shore provides a sense of struggle towards finding resolution, but ultimately they are unable to find solace in the external world. They then shift towards finding internal release, as they reflect on a sunrise and merge sorrow with beauty, accepting and appreciating their internal experiences regardless of their relationship to external reality. The singer represents their experience as a journey towards the "other side," where they are met with a "different sun" and a newfound sense of freedom and clarity.

Overall, the lyrics of "Flicker" convey a sense of detachment from external reality and a search for individual resolution through embracing inner experiences.

Line by Line Meaning

I could hold that hand no more
I couldn't keep holding that hand any longer

I turned away and tried to swim back to the shore
I left and attempted to go back to where I came from

To let go of joy and fear
To abandon both happiness and fear

Forsaking all that will melt down to tears
Abandoning everything that will ultimately cause sadness and tears

Forever shifting place and time
Constantly moving through both location and time

Caught in delusion
Trapped in a false belief

This dream is only mine
This dream only belongs to me

Released from All sorrow You bring tonight Reflecting A sunrise As I close my eyes
Freed from all sadness, you bring a new dawn that I see when I close my eyes

In the distance for evermore
In the distant future forever

Swimming miles and miles to never reach the shore
Swimming for countless miles without ever reaching the shore

Last flicker of reality
The final trace of what is real

All I can portray is only real to me
What I perceive is only real to myself

Drifting with True wonders To never touch the ground
Drifting with genuine astonishment and never touching the ground

Merge sorrow With beauty As I close my eyes
Combining sorrow and beauty as I shut my eyes

Another truth A different sun No infinity could be the only one
Another reality, another sun - no infinite can be the only one

So I embrace The other side And it hits me with sunlight And shatters the space
So I accept the opposite side, and it fills me with sunlight and breaks down barriers

Purpose and time Rejoice this night Is shifting worlds A thousand suns
Reason and time celebrate tonight as worlds shift among a thousand suns

No one can share this end of time
Nobody can experience the end of time with me

Contributed by Callie C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS