The Story of Kingfisher Sky:
In 2001 Ivar de Graaf made one of the toughest decisions of his life: he decided to leave the successful Dutch band Within Temptation to concentrate on his own music.
Together with singer Judith Rijnveld he explored a way to combine both their influences into songs that didn't bound themselves to a specified genre or style. With influences like Porcupine Tree and Kate Bush, but also Classical singers as Cecilia Bartoli and traditional Folk music in their mind they started recording songs in their home studio in 2005.
When they finished seven songs they approached Suburban Records. Judith and Ivar signed the deal in november 2006. Eric Hoogendoorn was the first member to join the band playing the bass guitar. In January 2007 Daan Janzing was introduced to Ivar and Judith by Ruud Jolie, (Ivar's former colleague from Within Temptation). After a short audition on guitar Daan joined Kingfisher Sky. In March George van Olffen joined the band on keys. Because of the beautiful solo in the song 'Through my Eyes' on the demo and his 15-year old friendship with Ivar, Edo van der Kolk completed Kingfisher Sky.
In May 2007 the band Kingfisher Sky recorded their first album 'Hallway of Dreams' produced by Jochem Jacobs (Textures) and Bouke Visser (Split Second Sound). Kingfisher Sky's debutalbum 'Hallway of Dreams' was released in Oktober 2007 by Suburban Records. Suburban Records introduced Kingfisher Sky to SOZ Concerts and they started headlining in The Netherlands.
Because they wanted to give the audience something special during a show in their hometown, they asked Cellist Maaike Peterse in January 2008 to play the song 'Big Fish'. Because this cooperation was successful Maaike joined Kingfisher Sky as their seventh member.
In March 2008 Laser’s Edge Records (Riverside, Zero Hour) released their album in the United States and ‘Hallway of Dreams’ was released on Vinyl by Tonefloat Records (Porcupine Tree, Roger Waters). In August 2008 Disk Union released the album in Japan. Just recently ‘Hallway of Dreams’ also became available in the United Kingdom, Italy, France and Germany.
In July 2009 René Merkelbach joined Kingfisher Sky to replace George van Olffen on Keys who left to pursue other musical interests.
With the success of ‘Hallway of Dreams’ the second CD 'Skin of the Earth' was released on the 24th of september.
Persephone
Kingfisher Sky Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
disconnected from all that is pain
The place that I call my kingdom
has driven many mortals insane.
To this place I mean to take you
I have so much to show
Lay down your flowers my love
to this place we must go
Seasons change when I go to Hades
Why do you kick, why do you scream?
Do you not know what lies ahead?
You will sit beside me as my queen
here in the realm of the dead
You were promised to me by my brother
this may give you much grief
You can cry all you want for your mother
once you feast from oblivion you will never leave
The lyrics to Kingfisher Sky’s “Persephone” are rich with references to Greek mythology, specifically the tale of Hades and Persephone. Persephone is taken away from the “real world” to Hades, a place where mortals go insane. The singer, Hades, promises to take Persephone to his kingdom and show her everything. The seasons change when she goes to “Hades,” referencing the story that Persephone’s mother, Demeter, mourned her daughter’s absence by making the world colder and less fertile.
The second verse continues this theme by painting a picture of Persephone’s confusion and fear at being taken away from her familiar world. Hades tells her that she will become his queen, and he boasts about having been promised her by his brother (Zeus). He brushes off her possible grief in missing her mother, because once she becomes accustomed to his world, she will “never leave.” These lines highlight the power dynamics at play in the myth of Hades and Persephone - Persephone is not given a choice in her situation or her relationship to Hades.
Overall, “Persephone” is a haunting portrayal of a woman taken against her will to a dark, desolate underworld. The song touches on themes of control, power, and the loss of agency that Persephone experiences upon arriving in Hades.
Line by Line Meaning
Disconnected from life and the real world
Feeling without connection to the world around me, and the reality of it
disconnected from all that is pain
Not feeling any pain or hurt, because I am not feeling anything at all
The place that I call my kingdom
The place that I rule over, where I have power and control
has driven many mortals insane.
People who come to my kingdom often lose their minds, because it is so different and strange
To this place I mean to take you
I want to bring you to this place, to show you what it is like to be disconnected
I have so much to show
I have many things to share with you, things that you have never seen or experienced before
Lay down your flowers my love
Forget about the beauty of life, because you are entering a place of darkness and decay
to this place we must go
We have to go to this place, because it is the only way to experience the other side of life
Seasons change when I go to Hades
My presence in the underworld causes the seasons to change, because I am a powerful force in this world
Why do you kick, why do you scream?
Why are you resisting and fighting against this experience?
Do you not know what lies ahead?
Don't you understand the power and beauty that awaits you in this place?
You will sit beside me as my queen
You will be my partner in this place of darkness and decay, ruling over the souls of the dead
here in the realm of the dead
In this world of darkness and decay, where only the souls of the dead have the power to exist
You were promised to me by my brother
You were given to me as a gift, to be my partner in this world of darkness
this may give you much grief
This may cause you pain and sorrow, because it is not the life you imagined for yourself
You can cry all you want for your mother
You can cry and mourn the life you once knew, but it will not bring you back
once you feast from oblivion you will never leave
Once you experience the power and beauty of this world, you will never want to leave and return to the world of the living
Contributed by Benjamin I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.