Founding mem… Read Full Bio ↴Bay Laurel was a Swedish gothic rock band founded in 1990.
Founding member Mattias Jonsson (bass) was an ex-Celestial Signs member, whilst Rickard Löfgren (vocals) and Johan Carlsson (keyboards) both had prior affiliations to the death metal outfit Dawn of Decay. In May 1995 Daniel Bergstrand produced the album "Under a Clouded Sky", issued on the Noxious label, the band comprised Löfgren, Jonsson, Carlsson, guitarists Anders Karlsson and Petter Miller with Tobias Gustafsson on drums. "Days of Joy" followed in December 1996.
Their EP "Bitter Intoxins" was released in February 1998 and included cover versions of Depeche Mode's "To Have and to Hold", David Bowie's "Heroes" and Leonard Cohen's "First We Take Manhattan". This set was recorded minus Miller, Jonsson and Gustafsson with the introduction of bass player Dan Borg and drummer Chris Montgomery. The band released "Where Pain Comes to Die" in May 2000.
Bay Laurel disbanded in 2001.
Celestial Signs
Bay Laurel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Meet the forsaken day and the darkening end.
Do not cover your childrens eyes with your bloodstained
hands.
Let them see the abyss where you all shall dwell.
Lower your eyes from the sky becuase there are no celestial
signs.
The lyrics to Bay Laurel's song Celestial Signs paint a bleak, dystopian picture. The song seems to be addressing a society that is coming to an end, experiencing a sort of apocalyptic despair. The opening line "Wake up from your sleep and feel the agony burning" sets the tone, as the lyrics describe a society living in a state of denial, blind to the reality of their situation. However, the next line hints at a coming darkness, the "forsaken day" that will bring this denial to an end. The lyrics then turn to address parents, urging them not to shield their children from the dire situation, but instead to let them see "the abyss where you all shall dwell." This is a powerful statement, suggesting that the children of this society are also doomed to suffer the same fate as their parents. Finally, the last line "Lower your eyes from the sky because there are no celestial signs" is a poignant metaphor. In many cultures, "celestial signs" represent hope or affirmation of a greater purpose. However, in this song, these signs are absent - the society is looking to the sky for guidance or salvation, but finding none.
Overall, Celestial Signs seems to be a commentary on the human tendency to deny problems until it's too late. The lyrics suggest that societies often ignore looming dangers until it's too late, and then cling to whatever hope they can find - in this case, looking to the sky for celestial signs. The final line, however, suggests that sometimes hope is just an illusion, and that in the face of impending doom, the only thing left to do is accept the reality of the situation.
Line by Line Meaning
Wake up from your sleep and feel the agony burning.
Rise from your slumber and feel the pain that surrounds you.
Meet the forsaken day and the darkening end.
Face the end that seems to be a punishment from above.
Do not cover your childrens eyes with your bloodstained hands.
Don't hide the truth from your kids, no matter how gruesome it is.
Let them see the abyss where you all shall dwell.
Let your offspring know that the future seems bleak and obscure.
Lower your eyes from the sky becuase there are no celestial signs.
Stop staring at the sky, as there are no indications of salvation coming your way.
Contributed by Cameron R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.