Deadsoul Tribe were an Austrian progressive metal band founded by Devon Gra… Read Full Bio ↴Deadsoul Tribe were an Austrian progressive metal band founded by Devon Graves (known as 'Buddy Lackey'), and was formed by Devon Graves in 2000. Graves was originally the vocalist for another progressive metal band, Psychotic Waltz, where he was credited as Buddy Lackey, but departed from the group in 1997, claiming that he felt himself to be the band's "weakest link". In Deadsoul Tribe Graves serves as the principal songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist as well as the producer on all of its releases. The remainder of the band consisted of Adel Moustafa on drums and Roland Ivenz on bass, with Roland "Rollz" Kerschbaumer, who joined the band in 2002, providing additional guitar work. The band's sound is characterized by heavy usage of tribal rhythms, dark atmospherics, and unusual time signatures.

Several Deadsoul Tribe tracks, such as "Black Smoke and Mirrors" on A Murder of Crows and "Toy Rockets" on The January Tree feature Devon Graves on flute, an instrument he picked up largely due to his admiration for Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson.
The band's fifth studio album, A Lullaby for the Devil, was released on September 11, 2007.

On November 20, 2009, the band split up.

Discography
Deadsoul Tribe (2002)
A Murder of Crows (2003)
The January Tree (2004)
The Dead Word (2005)
A Lullaby for the Devil (2007)

Once
Deadsoul Tribe Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Once
I was strong
Now I see
I was wrong
What I need
All along
I ve received
Now it s gone

Once
You were here
And I wanted you near
Now I ve made
What I ve feared
Now I ve made
What I feared

You keep me wanting you

When I think of you
I wish that you were here
Every now and then
I dream about you my dear
I d tell you my regret would never disappear
If I could see you once again

Once
I believed
Now I feel so deceived
That I should be relieved
That our love is bereaved

You keep me wanting you

When I think of you
I wish that you were here
Every now and then
I dream about you my dear

I d tell you my regret would never disappear
If I could see you once again

Overall Meaning

These lyrics by Deadsoul Tribe in the song 'Once' explore the sentiment of regret and longing for someone from the past. The singer seems to recognize that they were once "strong" but now see that they were "wrong." The song suggests that they had someone close to them who they "wanted" to be near, but they made a mistake that has led to them feeling "deceived" and that their "love is bereaved," indicating that the person they wanted to be close to is no longer with them. The chorus repeats the line "You keep me wanting you" which conveys a strong sense of longing.

The singer seems to regret not being able to tell this person how they really felt about them and professing that their "regret would never disappear if [they] could see [them] once again." The lyrics carry a deep sense of emotion and the tone of the song is somber and melancholic, which is enhanced by the instrumentation, including minor chords and a slow tempo.

Overall, the song 'Once' is about the regret we often feel when we lose someone we care about and how we wish we could go back and do things differently. The song's lyrics and emotion seem to evoke a sense of nostalgia and a desire to hold on to memories of those we care about.

Line by Line Meaning

Once
At a point in the past

I was strong
I had confidence and power

Now I see
I understand something now

I was wrong
I made a mistake

What I need
What I truly desire

All along
From the very beginning

I've received
I have been given something

Now it's gone
It has been taken away

You were here
You were present with me

And I wanted you near
I desired your closeness

Now I've made what I feared
I've brought about the thing I was afraid of