In Nick Perumov's "Chronicle of Hjorvard" Rakoth is the half-god, so-called "True Mage", who had the title Master of Darkness for using Darkness for his magic. He rose against the Young Gods accusing them of being Liars stealing mortals' freedom. After his second try he was defeated, disincarnated and bound to the world called "The Bottom of Worlds". With help of his friend, Hedin "Aware of Darkness", he returned and overthrew the Young Gods thus becoming the New God along with Hedin.
December, 1996 - the band is formed completely with coming of Black as vocalist with "clean" voice and changing bassist to Den. All music is written by Rustam and Ilya, lyrics - by Rustam. Now the band has its own face - Black's clean voice and Rustam's keys. The first song created is "Return of the Nameless" (first edition). The song becomes famous (in Obninsk) long before the first gig.
February, 1997 - the first concert together with Dissenter - techno-death band. The concert represents the fest titled "Rock against chemical dependence". Needless to say that everyone (especially some members of the band) is deadly drunk. Nevertheless the gig is extremely successful. Amazingly, public seems to know RAKOTH well although no tapes are distributed yet and no gigs were given before. RAKOTH plays own early songs "Return of the Nameless" (first variant), "Unholy Temple", "One Step Beyond" (which is unrecognizably transformed into the song "Beyond" later), "Dying Realm" and STORM's "Nagellstev".
March, 1997 - Tense relationship inside the band. Rustam claims to leave the band. Simultaneously Leshy and F. say they wanted to leave long ago. Band collapses. F., Leshy and Ilya form the band they call GORBUG and play black metal.
May, 1997 - Rustam decides to form new band and offers Black and Den to join. They plan to play doom with some other styles elements. Coincidentally, at the same time the band Dissenter falls apart and its guitarist/vocalist Dy wishes to play deeper music than death metal. Den invites him to the new band, which has no name yet. New line-up: Rustam - keys & voice, Black - voice, Den - bass, Dy - guitars. Leshy offers his help with drums. The band rehearses at Rustam's garage.
June, 1997 - Band is in search for the name. Many variants proposed (MEPHISTO, UNBORN, TEARS, DOWNFALL, IN THIS ROOM), but none satisfies. Finally, Dy proposes to use the name RAKOTH again. Taking into account that old band RAKOTH doesn't exist anymore and that the name was offered by Rustam in the beginning, the name RAKOTH is accepted.
July, 1997 - Leshy officially joins RAKOTH. The first demo "Tales of the Worlds Unreal" is recorded right in the garage.
August, 1997 - Tape is given to A. Arzamascev, the head of Arzamascev's Music Center (later - Signal Studios). He decides to allow the band to record free at his studio. Demo tape "Dark Ages Chronicle" is recorded live, with no post-mixing, during only 4 hours. The quality of recording is that high that noone believes in that short recording time and in live recording. Later, in review given in DEATHRIDER 'zine we can see: "This tape was recorded (according to legend) during only 4(!) hours…". Rustam starts sending the tapes everywhere.
September, 1997 - Solo-concert. As in the first case, the public knows the band well, so the gig goes perfectly. October, 1997 - Leshy suddenly leaves RAKOTH. He plays with Fascist (now Tuur) and Ilya (now Vuulko) in their band they renamed into Темнозорь. They play so-called "true" pagan metal.
February, 1998 - First review on "Dark Ages Chronicle" appears in VAE SOLIS web-zine. Positive one. All later reviews are positive as well.
March, 1998 - Latvian distro-label starts distributing "Dark Ages Chronicle". April, 1998 - Rustam starts his solo-project Umbral Presence in order to create something more aggressive (and personal) than RAKOTH.
June, 1998 - Another Latvian distro, Beverina Productions, starts distribution of "Dark Ages Chronicle".
August, 1998 - The band enters Signal Studios to record their new creation. By the strange coincidence they begin the recording at the same day which was chosen (a year ago) for recording of "Dark Ages Chronicle". It is 18th of August. After the week of work they finally can celebrate the birth of their first full-length (57 minutes) album, titled "Superstatic Equilibrium". During the same session Rustam records the demo for Umbral Presence, "…et germinet Chaos". Both tapes are immediately sent to Elven Witchcraft.
November, 1998 - "Superstatic Equilibrium" and "…et germinet Chaos" are now officially distributed by Elven Witchcraft.
April, 1999 - "code666" is interested in getting RAKOTH's tape. Rustam sends "Superstatic Equilibrium" to Italy.
June, 1999 - "code666" offers a deal to RAKOTH.
August, 1999 - The contract for recording of one album is signed.
November 1999 - The New Album “Planeshift” is out on code666 production (ITALY)
March 2000 - Planeshift took 100/100 on Aardschok Magazine (Holland) & 6/6 on Scream Magazine (Norway), and tons of other highly positive reviews.
April 2000 - a new Deal is signed with code666 for two more albums.
May-June 2000 - composing and arranging new songs for the next album…
... a lot of interesting things between 2000 — 2008 undescribed to fit the format yet...
September the 4th, 2008
After 2,5 years of cooperation Zafod B. the Utkinson announces the great start of his new project(s) which makes him leave Rakoth immediately. The band is still working on its new album nevertheless.
Planeshift
Rakoth Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Light and dark Attributes of blind duality
Choking here, searching for escape From the
Poisonous vapour Of all-consuming dementia
Long to breathe Looking around I see only hazy
Shades, faint reflections of what could be a
Mind, unable to realize all sarcasm of their
Pathetic futile existance... Feeble thoughts,
Feeding and breeding... And dying as their time
Comes Just for it was "destined". Lambs...
Colours dim, sun dying slowly Daylight bidding
Last farewell Taking a glance around just once
I'm ready for the planeshift Need no one, no
Priest, no opfer The ritual's only a genious play
All ceremony is a hermetic act My
Consciousness unfolds Leaving this world,
Dimension so hollow Leaving the realm of virtue
And sin I deny No chant, no prayer I need I
Search for the way inside myself And memories
Rise before my eyes What am I leaving behind?
What shall I pass by in my journey? And
Observing the sombre past I find diamonds How
It is unbearable to leave But impossible to stay
Doubts thrown away Thoughts clear, now
Nothing stops me I banish last ghosts of past
Withered spirits of serenity And soon my rest
Shall be ruined Veil of slumber shall fall apart
Aroused from my sleep I'll rise And shall begin
Living Flash of light, mental thunderstrike Mind
Shell cracks then shatters Turns reason
Unleashed Dark unveils umbral dismal depths
Shining stellar planes All mine Now and for ever
More I'm unbound To wander free among the
Stars To play with nebulas To create worlds at
My own will To reign them or let them be And
Destroy them at my caprice To roam through
The crystal spheres Of universal silent symphony
Rakoth's song Planeshift speaks to the universal themes of ignorance, duality, and the search for escape. The grey landscapes and attributes of blind duality mentioned in the first stanza paint a picture of a world devoid of meaning or purpose, where the only escape is from the poisonous vapour of all-consuming dementia. The singer longs to breathe and seek meaning in their existence, but they are surrounded by a world of people who lack will to learn and who only feed, breed, and die according to what was "destined." The singer prepares for the planeshift, a ritual that is a hermetic act and not reliant on any outside forces like priests or sacrificial offerings.
In the second stanza, the singer delves into what they are leaving behind and what they will pass by on their journey. Memories rise before their eyes as they observe the sombre past and find diamonds amid the darkness. Although it is unbearable to leave, it is impossible to stay. The singer banishes the last ghosts of the past, withered spirits of serenity, and prepares for the veil of slumber to fall apart. The flash of light, mental thunderstrike, and mind shell cracking and shattering symbolize the singer's awakening to their true self. They are unbound to wander free among the stars, to play with nebulas, create worlds at their own will, reign over them or let them be, and destroy them at their caprice. They are free to roam through the crystal spheres of universal silent symphony and create their own destiny.
Overall, Planeshift is a contemplative exploration of themes that are timeless and universal. It speaks to the human experience of searching for meaning in a world that often feels meaningless and the journey towards self-discovery and ultimate freedom.
Line by Line Meaning
Pale grey landscapes
The universe is dull and bleak.
Light and dark
The concepts of good and evil.
Attributes of blind duality
These qualities are often viewed without understanding their context or true nature.
Choking here, searching for escape
Feeling trapped and seeking a way out.
From the Poisonous vapour
The toxic confusion and misinformation surrounding us.
Of all-consuming dementia
The overwhelming collective insanity that prevails.
Long to breathe
Desiring clarity and understanding.
Looking around I see only hazy
Seeing a lack of comprehension and purpose in others.
Shades, faint reflections of what could be a
Their potential is obscured from view.
Mind, unable to realize all sarcasm of their
Unaware of the irony in their pathetic existence.
Pathetic futile existance...
Their sad, pointless state of being.
Feeble thoughts, Feeble needs, non-existent will to learning - only Feeding and breeding...
Humans are weak-minded, driven by basic instincts.
And dying as their time Comes Just for it was "destined".
Living their predestined, meaningless lives and dying without having achieved anything significant.
Lambs...
Humans are like docile, helpless sheep.
Colours dim, sun dying slowly Daylight bidding Last farewell
The world is fading away and darkness is taking over.
Taking a glance around just once I'm ready for the planeshift
Looking around for the last time before leaving the physical world.
Need no one, no Priest, no opfer
Rejection of religious dogma and need for intermediaries.
The ritual's only a genious play All ceremony is a hermetic act
The ritualistic process is both creative and solitary.
My Consciousness unfolds Leaving this world, Dimension so hollow Leaving the realm of virtue And sin I deny
The transition of consciousness from the physical world to a greater spiritual dimension, rejecting concepts of right and wrong.
No chant, no prayer I need I Search for the way inside myself
No external guidance is necessary, seeking personal enlightenment.
And memories Rise before my eyes
Life events flash before the eyes during the transition.
What am I leaving behind? What shall I pass by in my journey?
Reviewing the impact of one's life on others and what will be missed in the next phase.
And Observing the sombre past I find diamonds
Discovering hidden gems in past experiences.
How It is unbearable to leave But impossible to stay
Feeling reluctance to leave behind the familiar world, but recognizing it cannot last forever.
Doubts thrown away Thoughts clear, now
Putting aside doubts and gaining clarity.
Nothing stops me
Fully embracing the next phase without hesitation.
I banish last ghosts of past
Letting go of lingering regrets, fears, and doubts.
Withered spirits of serenity
Negative influences that had prevented peace of mind have been eliminated.
And soon my rest Shall be ruined
The time for resting and reflection is coming to an end.
Veil of slumber shall fall apart Aroused from my sleep I'll rise
Waking up to the new reality and beginning to explore it.
And shall begin Living
Embracing life in this new form.
Flash of light, mental thunderstrike Mind Shell cracks then shatters Turns reason Unleashed
A sudden burst of insight and realization.
Dark unveils umbral dismal depths
Exploring the darkest depths of the universe.
Shining stellar planes
Discovering new, dazzling aspects of the universe.
All mine Now and for ever More
Personal ownership of the experience and commitment to it for eternity.
I'm unbound To wander free among the Stars
Limitless possibilities for exploration and discovery.
To play with nebulas To create worlds at My own will To reign them or let them be And Destroy them at my caprice
Exercising complete control over the new environment and all its possibilities, including the power to create and destroy at will.
To roam through The crystal spheres Of universal silent symphony
Immersion in the beauty and harmony of the universe.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind