In 1997, the first Ice Ages album, titled "Strike the Ground", was released. In contrast to the orchestral and melancholic atmosphere of Die Verbannten Kinder Evas or the fantasy world of Summoning, this project takes a more aggressive and darker turn.
The second album to be released on Napalm Records in late 2000, "This Killing Emptiness", follows the style of the debut. However, it boasts of a superior sound quality and a more mature writing style that blends ominously with the ever-present deep and distorted voice (and sometimes raw and clearer voice) of Richard Lederer.
In opposite to other releases of the electro scene, the rhythmical structure is more complicated and the tunes are more polyphonic. The aim of Ice Ages is to follow its own typical dark, melodic and sluggish way, and not to follow any modern trends.
After some serious problems with his other projects his whole musical productivity got a huge undesired rest. Anyway this time was not lost, during that time Richard started to deal very intensely with new software synthesizers (mainly with "Reaktor 5") to get more sound possibilities and a wider flexibility of sound creation for Ice Ages. Filled with all those experiences he started to create the new songs in a short time and finally after a delay of 7 years the new album "Buried Silence" is almost completed. The lyrics are again written by Grom, but this time they are especially written for the music, having not existed before and adapted to the music as on the last album.
The new songs follow the style of "This Killing Emptiness"; they are again very dark, slow, and melodic, with a heavy distorted drum-sound, but this time maybe using rougher melodic sounds in most songs and also even increasing in the complexity of the rhythms. the new album will be released end of june again under napalm records.
Heartbeat
Ice Ages Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Feel this trembling sound, take care don't let it plunge you into misery
Dreadful dreams will be your home divine
In your narrow mind, a torturous path will lead you to your enemy
Mindless lives will greet you from afar
Walls that bind their minds will be for you the boarder to your emptiness
Breath this life like it will breath in you.
Come out of your shell, believe in me- your eyes will see just endlessness.
Take this forces if you like
Leave your memories here, in my forgotten soul
Drag your burdens to the dark
Let them be beside mine- in obscurity
These lyrics are a call to connection and vulnerability. The singer, in offering their heart and their heartbeat to another person, is asking that person to be careful with their trust and to recognize the power that comes with holding someone's heart in their hands. The trembling sound of the heartbeat is both a physical sensation and a metaphor for emotional vulnerability- it's something that can make us feel alive but also can lead us into misery if we're not careful.
The second stanza uses some more ominous language, with talk of dreadful dreams and a torturous path. It's possible that the singer is warning the recipient of the heart that opening oneself up can be painful and difficult, and that it may lead to conflict with others. The line "mindless lives will greet you from afar" suggests that there may be people who don't understand or appreciate the level of vulnerability the singer is offering. But ultimately, the singer is urging the recipient to "breath this life like it will breath in you" and to "come out of your shell". They believe that if the recipient can do so, they will see "just endlessness" - presumably meaning infinite possibilities for connection, growth, and love.
The last stanza is perhaps the most interesting. The singer offers to share their own burdens with the recipient, as though to say that they are not asking for perfect vulnerability and trust- they are willing to meet the recipient halfway by also being vulnerable and open. The line "leave your memories here, in my forgotten soul" is particularly intriguing- it suggests that both the singer and recipient have been carrying the weight of past traumas or baggage, and that they may be able to let go of some of that by sharing it with each other.
Line by Line Meaning
Here my heart; my heartbeat is your time
My heart beats in sync with yours, and my life revolves around you.
Feel this trembling sound, take care don't let it plunge you into misery
Listen to my heartbeat, let it empower and inspire you, don't let it overwhelm you with sadness.
Dreadful dreams will be your home divine
You will live in a world of dark and foreboding dreams, which will feel like home.
In your narrow mind, a torturous path will lead you to your enemy
Your limited thinking will lead you down a painful road to face your adversary.
Mindless lives will greet you from afar
You will encounter people whose lives lack depth or purpose from a distance.
Walls that bind their minds will be for you the boarder to your emptiness
The mental constraints they live under will highlight the emptiness in your own life.
Breath this life like it will breath in you.
Embrace life with every breath, as if it is a part of you.
Come out of your shell, believe in me- your eyes will see just endlessness.
Open up to me, trust me, and you will see the boundless possibilities of life.
Take this forces if you like
Accept my strength and energy, if you desire it.
Leave your memories here, in my forgotten soul
Don't hold onto your past, let it remain with me in my fading memory.
Drag your burdens to the dark
Release your troubles and sorrows into an abyss of darkness.
Let them be beside mine- in obscurity
Let your burdens join mine in obscurity and become meaningless.
Contributed by James O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Asgardt13
Masterpiece, the entire work and the concept of this project. Opus Magnum!