april ethereal
Opeth? Lyrics
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Beyond the embrace of Christ.
Like the secret face within the tapestry.
Like a bird of prey over the crest.
And she was swathed in sorrow, as if born within its mask.
Her candlelight snuffed, the icon smiled.
Emptiness followed by her wake.
I could clasp her in undying love.
She faced me in awe. 'twas a token of ebony colour.
Embodied in faint vapour.
Wandering through April's fire.
Compelled to grasp and to hold the one that was you.
I will endure, hide away.
I would outrun the scythe, glaring with failure.
It is a mere destiny I thought, a threshold I had crossed before.
The rain was waving goodbye, and when the night came
The forest folded its branches around me.
Something passed by, and I went into a dream.
She laughing and weeping at once: "take me away".
I don't know how or why, I'll never know WHEN.
In "April Ethereal," Opeth delivers a deeply emotional, introspective set of lyrics that invite fans to explore the hidden meanings behind them. The song's opening verse reads like a meditation on the nature of the divine and its role in our lives, with the singer peering through the looking-glass and feeling unencumbered by the embrace of Christ. The next lines suggest a sense of confinement or entrapment, with the image of a bird of prey hovering over the crest and a female figure swathed in sorrow as if born within its mask. The line "Her candlelight snuffed, the icon smiled" suggests a sort of inversion of the Christian imagery normally associated with candles and icons, adding a layer of darkness and ambiguity to the scene.
The second stanza continues this sense of emotional intensity, with the singer offering to clasp the sorrowful figure in "undying love" and experiencing a "ghostlike rapture" as the final word becomes theirs. The use of the word "token" in the next line further underscores the idea of something passing between the two figures, with the suggestion that it represents a gift or a promise of some kind. The third stanza shifts towards a more poetic and abstract register, with the singer envisioning themselves running from death (represented by the "scythe") and feeling as though they have crossed a "threshold" into some kind of new phase. The final lines of the song reinforce the sense of ambiguity and uncertainty that pervades the lyrics, with the singer expressing a desire to be taken away but acknowledging that they might never know how or when it will happen.
Line by Line Meaning
It was me, peering through the looking-glass.
I was staring at my own reflection
Beyond the embrace of Christ.
I am not part of any religion
Like the secret face within the tapestry.
I am concealed, like a hidden message within a woven artwork
Like a bird of prey over the crest.
I am a predator, watching over my domain from above
And she was swathed in sorrow, as if born within its mask.
The woman I see is consumed by grief, as if it is an intrinsic part of her identity
Her candlelight snuffed, the icon smiled.
Her light has been extinguished, and yet the symbol of her faith remains unchanged
Emptiness followed by her wake.
She leaves behind only a void, devoid of any meaning or purpose
I could clasp her in undying love.
I could hold her close with a love that transcends death
Within ghostlike rapture the final word was mine.
In a state of spiritual ecstasy, I had the last word
She faced me in awe. 'twas a token of ebony colour.
She looked at me in wonder, wearing a black symbol
Embodied in faint vapour.
Her presence was ethereal, barely tangible
Wandering through April's fire.
I am lost in a fiery, transformative experience
Compelled to grasp and to hold the one that was you.
I am driven to hold onto the memory of you
I will endure, hide away.
I will survive, but retreat into solitude
I would outrun the scythe, glaring with failure.
I would attempt to cheat death, even though its inevitability is staring me in the face
It is a mere destiny I thought, a threshold I had crossed before.
I believed that my fate would be determined by what I had already experienced
The rain was waving goodbye, and when the night came
The rain was ending, and darkness was approaching
The forest folded its branches around me.
I was embraced by the enveloping darkness of the forest
Something passed by, and I went into a dream.
I had a hallucination or vision
She laughing and weeping at once: "take me away".
The woman I remember is both happy and sad, and asks for me to take her with me
I don't know how or why, I'll never know WHEN.
I cannot explain what happened or why, and I will never know when it will happen again
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MIKAEL LARS AKERFELDT, SVEN PETER MALCOLM LINDGREN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind