There is more than one artist with this name.

1) Doom metal band fro… Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one artist with this name.

1) Doom metal band from Coventry, England. The group was formed in 1989 by Lee Dorrian (formerly vocalist of Napalm Death), Mark 'Griff' Griffiths (a Carcass roadie) and Gary 'Gaz' Jennings (previously a member of UK thrashers Acid Reign). The band forged a link between early doom metal and a 1990s extreme metal aesthetic, making doom slower and heavier. Their debut album, Forest Of Equilibrium, is considered a classic of the genre, though the band would later add psychedelic and progressive rock influences and play in a more uptempo and groove-oriented fashion.

In 1989 Lee Dorrian left his former band Napalm Death mainly because he was getting sick of the punk scene and did not like the death metal direction Napalm Death was heading towards. Cathedral was formed after Lee Dorrian and Mark Griffiths met and discussed their love for doom bands like Candlemass, Dream Death, Pentagram, Trouble, and Witchfinder General.

The only original band members in the current line-up are Lee Dorrian and Garry 'Gaz' Jennings on guitars, although Jennings did once leave the band in their early history, only to rejoin shortly afterwards.

After no news from the band since they toured for The Garden of Unearthly Delights, they played their first show in two years at Damnation Festival 2008, in Leeds. They played a new song and have confirmed dates for 2009 including Hellfest.

The band began to wind down their live performances in 2012. Shortly after, it was announced they would be splitting up after the release of "The Last Spire" (2013).

2) An American progressive rock band, whose 1978 album, “Stained Glass Stories,” was later released on CD by Syn-phonic in 1991. Cathedral’s sound is strongly reminiscent of Yes’s Relayer era, with many qualities of Gentle Giant. They are undoubtedly a major influence for the early 90’s prog rock band Anglagard. The band released a follow-up album in 2007 titled, “The Bridge”.

3) A Spanish group of the 90’s. It was founded by the ex-keyboardist of “Medina Azahara”, Pablo Rabadán. The principal members are: Pablo Rabadán with the acoustic piano and the synthesizers, Manuel Varona at the vocal and electric guitar, Pablo Jiménez at the electric bass and Gérman Castro with the drums. They recorded only one disc of really good quality, its name is “Vendidos al Sol” (1996). The band plays a mixture of classic hard rock and a little of progressive and symphonic sound pure with Pablo’s keyboards.

4) A progressive rock band from Washington DC in the early 1990s, with the albums Kingdom of Ends, and There in the Shadows. Keyboardist Todd Braverman continued to explore progressive music with the band Ad Infinitum.

The Garden
Cathedral Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

[Pt.1: Thorns Of Creation]

New light has formed, from the darkness torn
Of dust and sand, mankind is born
Our garden evergreen, it's flowers, so serene
We sing along with birds naked, free
Our curiosity led us to a tree
We ate from it the fruits of poisoned destiny

[Pt.2: Trouble In The Garden]

Horns of goat, tongue of serpent
Head of dog, body of man
He has chosen to pervert God's land
In his heaven
The Garden Of Unearthly Delights

Flowers of blood grow in love's garden
Upon the black grass of betrothal
We have chosen to pervert God's land
This our heaven
The Garden Of Unearthly Delights

[Pt.3 Into The Valley Of Violent Orchids]

[(I) Cadaverous Butterfly]
Stillborn beauty greets the air
Cadaverous Butterfly draws near
Skullish face, scarlet wings
Eerie grace of death she brings
Haggard marble crosses bare
Entrance to her pesty lair
Skullish face, Vampire wings
Demon's ace fluttering
Poisoned perfume leads you there
Carnivorous insect has you snared
Fallen prey, mesmerised
Skullish face eats your eyes

[(II) Blind Mans Gaze]
In steaming woodlands you awake,
Eyes dripping blood
Rats digging a grave at your feet as
Storm clouds gather above
In earths garden, nature sings mans requiem
Damp, numb, lost on the cold ground
Whilst spiders explore your flesh
Raise your head from mossy stone and
Slimy dew on which you rest
In death's sanction - all life's beauty is its end

[Pt.4 Flight Of The Reaper]

[(I) Court Of The Cosmic Judge]
Witching moon burning - frozen sun ashamed to rise
Earth's vampires thirsting - for a final taste of life
Flight of the reaper, coming back to greet man's end
Cosmic Judge awakens, from his council we're expelled
White dove on fire - flies into Azrael's sky
Black-winged messiah - accepts man's sacrifice
Flight of the reaper - he arrives at his promised land
Our funeral curator - cups the earth with skeletal hands

[(II) Tunnel Of Death]

[Pt.5 Alarm Bells In Paradise]

[(I) Mourning Of A Paused Dawn]
Dawn creeps on, as night withdraws
Orchid sun - rises paused

[(II) Black Bulbophyllum Sunrise]
Buldophyllum, Barbigerum
Purpureoachis, Dyanum
Dendrochilum, Cobbianum
Orchis - Mascula

[Pt.6 Exit The Valley Of Violent Orchids]

[(I) Through The Concrete Meadows Of Life]
You pass the valley of death
Rejoin the ghoulish droll procession
You thought you had left
Orikifirus sends down hearses
From the kingdom of dead our sun
Whores to oblivion now are taken
To your promised land

[(II) Chains of Morality]
Burning in the flames of pious self-shame
A pure, divine existence can't be reborn again
For your virtue there is no reward
Grand illusions of a heaven flawed

Break the skeletal chain - to be reborn again
No lies, no shame, an existence profane
Celebrating our freedom
In this prison of God's kingdom

[Pt.7 {ie Pt.c (c)} Back To The Garden]

Fireless sun, Morgue like planet
Deceased minds now control it
We have chosen to accept God's land
This is our heaven
The Garden Of Unearthly Delights

[Pt.8 Pool Of Sleeping Minds]

[Pt.9 Endtyme]

Soldiers now walk through the streets so cold
Concrete walls, dark buildings fall
Our garden has turned grey, its beauty gone away
Earth became a grave for mature's way

Seeds of decay have grown into today
Endtyme has come, all light fades away

Overall Meaning

The song "The Garden" by Cathedral is a journey through the different stages of human existence and the consequences of our actions. Part one of the song describes the creation of mankind and the innocence that comes with it. However, this innocence is short-lived as the humans' curiosity leads them to eat from the "tree of knowledge," which ultimately poisons them. In part two, the consequences of our actions are seen as the devil takes over and corrupts the idea of a "Garden of Unearthly Delights." The flowers are now growing with blood and the soul of love has withered away. Part three takes us on a journey through a valley of violent orchids where we encounter death, both through the cadaverous butterfly and the blind man's gaze. Part four is an interpretation of the end of the world as the reaper arrives and judges humanity. Finally, part five and six describe the journey back to the original garden, which has now been taken over by deceased minds, and the acceptance of what has happened. Part seven describes a "pool of sleeping minds" which suggests that there is peace in the end, and finally, part nine concludes with the end of humanity.

Overall, "The Garden" tells a dark and thought-provoking story about the consequences of taking knowledge without thinking about the consequences.

Line by Line Meaning

New light has formed, from the darkness torn
Out of the darkness has come light, bringing forth new creation.

Of dust and sand, mankind is born
Humanity is born of the simple elements of earth.

Our garden evergreen, it's flowers, so serene
The garden is a place of peace and tranquility, a place of natural beauty.

We sing along with birds naked, free
The garden is a place of freedom and harmony with nature.

Our curiosity led us to a tree
Curiosity and exploration led to discovery in the garden.

We ate from it the fruits of poisoned destiny
The pursuit of knowledge led to a disastrous outcome for mankind.

Horns of goat, tongue of serpent
The perversion of nature and the implantation of evil in God's creation.

Head of dog, body of man
A grotesque depiction of humanity corrupted by sin.

He has chosen to pervert God's land
The embodiment of evil has chosen to corrupt the beauty of God's creation.

In his heaven The Garden Of Unearthly Delights
The corrupted Garden represents a twisted version of heaven.

Flowers of blood grow in love's garden Upon the black grass of betrothal
Love in this corrupted Garden is tainted with bloodshed and darkness.

We have chosen to pervert God's land This our heaven The Garden Of Unearthly Delights
Humanity has made the choice to embrace sin and corruption, turning the Garden into a distorted version of paradise.

Stillborn beauty greets the air Cadaverous Butterfly draws near Skullish face, scarlet wings Eerie grace of death she brings
The beauty of death and decay is symbolized by the cadaverous butterfly.

Haggard marble crosses bare Entrance to her pesty lair Skullish face, Vampire wings Demon's ace fluttering
The entrance to death's domain is marked by foreboding symbols and the presence of sinister beings.

Poisoned perfume leads you there Carnivorous insect has you snared Fallen prey, mesmerised Skullish face eats your eyes
The lure of death is irresistible and inevitably leads to destruction and decay.

In steaming woodlands you awake, Eyes dripping blood Rats digging a grave at your feet as Storm clouds gather above
Nature is a place of violence and fear, where danger and darkness lurk amidst the beauty of the forest.

In earths garden, nature sings mans requiem Damp, numb, lost on the cold ground Whilst spiders explore your flesh Raise your head from mossy stone and Slimy dew on which you rest In death's sanction - all life's beauty is its end
Nature represents the inevitability of death, a place where life ultimately meets its end.

Witching moon burning - frozen sun ashamed to rise Earth's vampires thirsting - for a final taste of life Flight of the reaper, coming back to greet man's end Cosmic Judge awakens, from his council we're expelled White dove on fire - flies into Azrael's sky Black-winged messiah - accepts man's sacrifice Flight of the reaper - he arrives at his promised land Our funeral curator - cups the earth with skeletal hands
Death is personified in the flight of the reaper, and the judgment of the cosmos is coming for humanity.

Burning in the flames of pious self-shame A pure, divine existence can't be reborn again For your virtue there is no reward Grand illusions of a heaven flawed Break the skeletal chain - to be reborn again No lies, no shame, an existence profane Celebrating our freedom In this prison of God's kingdom
The pursuit of perfection is self-destructive, and true freedom comes from embracing imperfection and rejecting the illusion of a false paradise.

Fireless sun, Morgue like planet Deceased minds now control it We have chosen to accept God's land This is our heaven The Garden Of Unearthly Delights
Humanity has accepted a lifeless, soulless existence and embraced the corrupted Garden as its final destination.

Dawn creeps on, as night withdraws Orchid sun - rises paused
The new day begins, but the beauty of nature is stagnant and unchanging.

Bulbophyllum, Barbigerum Purpureoachis, Dyanum Dendrochilum, Cobbianum Orchis - Mascula
The beauty of nature is celebrated through the names of various flowers.

You pass the valley of death Rejoin the ghoulish droll procession You thought you had left Orikifirus sends down hearses From the kingdom of dead our sun Whores to oblivion now are taken To your promised land
Even after passing through the valley of death, humanity is still caught up in a procession of darkness and despair, never truly leaving the grip of death.

Soldiers now walk through the streets so cold Concrete walls, dark buildings fall Our garden has turned grey, its beauty gone away Earth became a grave for mature's way Seeds of decay have grown into today Endtyme has come, all light fades away
The destruction of the natural world has brought about the end of humanity, as darkness and decay overwhelm the beauty of God's creation.

Contributed by Alex B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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