The group was formed in 1992 in Bergen by former Immortal guitarist Jørn Inge Tunsberg and ex-Dark drummer Remi; they were later joined by Janto Garmanslund on bass and second guitarist Wilhelm Nagel. Their first demo, Alone Walkyng, was recorded in June 1993 at Grieghallen and produced by Pytten; this demo was later to be re-released on CD through the Italian label Wounded Love in 1996. In 1993, Tunsberg was convicted, along with fellow black metal musician Varg Vikernes (of Burzum), for the burning of a Norwegian church in Åsane, which led to a prison sentence. Following the release of the demo, the band signed with Full Moon Productions and recorded their first album ,...Again Shall Be, again at Grieghallen, in June/July 1994. Around this time, they also replaced Nagel with Stig Hagenes on second guitar.
Hades recorded their second album Dawn of the Dying Sun at Grieghallen in 1996, which was released through Full Moon in 1997. The band supported the release of this album with extensive touring throughout Europe, as well as in Mexico and the USA. In 1998 the band was forced to change their name from Hades to Hades Almighty, following complaints from an American act already with a prior claim to the name. Following the name-change, the band began working on their next album, as well as playing at the Wacken Open Air festival.
In September 1998 the band released entered Prolog Studios (Dortmund, Germany) to record Millenium Nocturne, released under license from Nuclear Blast through Hammerheart. They toured Europe to support of the album with Immortal and Benediction, and a separate spate of gigs in the Benelux region with Mayhem and Primordial. Their fourth album Pulse of Decay was released in 2001 through Psycho Bitch Records. Hades Almighty signed a management contract with Khaoz Productions in 2003, and a record deal with Dark Essence Records in 2004; the label re-released Pulse of Decay in 2004 with bonus tracks (including a cover of Manowar's "Each Dawn I Die") and a DVD section including the video for the band's own track "Submission Equals Suicide".
Apocalypse
Hades Almighty Lyrics
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No more tears
Apocalypse
Are you afraid
Devils dance their psychotic waltz
By the sound of your pumping heart
Your daemons rape your angels
Like poison through your veins
You are starving
You're heaving for your breath
Satisfy your need
Oohh face the hollow eyes of death
Private apocalypse
Tranquillised and numb
Thorns are growing
Through your soul
A deathlike silence
Just before the storm
All things angelic
Left for hate
Apocalypse.
Your undeniable fate
Devils dance their psychotic waltz
Your heart is pumping faster
Private apocalypse
Face the seven sins
The devils always win
Private apocalypse
No more tears to cry
Apocalypse
Are you afraid to die
The lyrics of Hades Almighty's song Apocalypse seem to describe a person's private apocalypse or their individual end of the world. The song opens with the lines "No more tears, Apocalypse, Are you afraid" which suggest that the person has reached a point where they have no more tears left to cry and that they are ready to face their end. The devils are dancing their psychotic waltz, and the person's daemons are raping their angels. This could be interpreted as the person's negative thoughts and inner demons taking over, leading them to their ultimate destruction.
The lyrics continue to describe the feeling of starvation, as though the person is suffocating and struggling to breathe. They are facing the hollow eyes of death, and their private apocalypse has left them feeling tranquilised and numb. Thorns are growing through their soul, leading to a deathlike silence before the storm. The song implies that the person has been left with nothing but hatred and that their end is inevitable.
The chorus repeats the opening lines, as if to drive home the point that the person has reached the end of their journey. The devils are still dancing their psychotic waltz, and the person is facing the seven sins. The song ends with the line "No more tears to cry, Apocalypse, Are you afraid to die?" which suggests that death is imminent and the person has to face it without fear.
Line by Line Meaning
Private Apocalypse
A personal end of the world scenario
No more tears
There is no use crying about what is to come
Apocalypse
The end of the world
Are you afraid
Questioning if the listener is scared of what is to come
Devils dance their psychotic waltz
Evil forces are rejoicing in the coming destruction
By the sound of your pumping heart
The terror of it all makes your heart race
Your daemons rape your angels
Your good intentions are corrupted and overpowered by evil desires
Your apocalypse can start
The onset of your personal end of the world scenario is in sight
Like poison through your veins
Anxiety courses through your body
You are starving
You are craving for salvation but won't get it
You're heaving for your breath
Your fears are suffocating you
Satisfy your need
Desperation makes you take action towards your own destruction
Oohh face the hollow eyes of death
Confronting the inevitability of dying
Tranquillised and numb
Feeling nothing, accepting the end
Thorns are growing
Pain and suffering spread throughout you, threatening your soul
Through your soul
The abyss of your inner self is filled with anger and sorrow
A deathlike silence
The absence of any shred of hope, as though life itself had already ended
Just before the storm
The calm before the complete devastation
All things angelic
Things that were previously good turn evil
Left for hate
Love is gone, and hate consumes all
Your undeniable fate
There is no escaping fate even though it's undesirable
Your heart is pumping faster
You're experiencing an adrenaline rush as catastrophe approaches
Face the seven sins
Your actions have led you down the path of sin and will lead to destruction
The devils always win
Evil is bound to triumph in the face of such tragedy
No more tears to cry
Your tears have dried up from the constant grieving
Apocalypse
The end of everything
Are you afraid to die
Questioning the listener's fear of death at the point of imminent disaster
Contributed by Noah C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.