Although much of their music from the mid-1990s onwards has incorporated electronic sounds which would best define their genre as industrial metal, Samael was originally founded as an early 2nd Wave black metal band.
Their first demos presented a slow, doomy style of thrash metal with raw vocals, similar to that of Celtic Frost. Some of the songs would be included on Worship Him (1991) and Blood Ritual (1992).
Around the time of Ceremony of Opposites (1994), the band started using industrial-styled song techniques, employed by the use of keyboards and (minimalist) acoustic percussion. By this time, they had also left French record label Osmose Productions and signed with Century Media Records.
1995 - The Rebellion ep was released to much acclaim
Their album Passage (1996) saw them gather a larger audience, with the music video for the song "Jupiterian Vibe" getting airplay on MTV's Headbanger's Ball.
1998 saw the release of the "Exodus ep"
After the release of Eternal (1999), Samael would not renew their contract with Century Media. In 2004, "Reign of Light" was released through independent label Galactical Records.
In 2006, their album "Era One" was released on Century Media Records. It includes a bonus disc, "Lesson in Magic #1," which is entirely instrumental and done solely by keyboardist Xy. The album itself was recorded in 2001, and the bonus disc a year later. Both were rearranged and remixed in 2005.
In June 2007 they released the album "Solar Soul, which summed up and combined many of the styles of their previous albums since Passage.
April 2009 sees a new album from Samael, titled "Above. The album is a return to heavier territory for the band and has been labelled "Symphonic" blackmetal by some reviews in popular magazines.
In June 2010, Samael began recording demos for the next album. The album's first single, titled Antigod was released on November 19, 2010.[3] The album, titled Lux Mundi (which translates as "Light of the World"), was released April 29, 2011 in Europe and May 3, 2011 in North America. The same month they shot a video clip for the song "Luxferre" in Sweden with director Patric Ulaeus.
On December 29, 2016, Samael announced new album will be released in 2017. The following of “Lux Mundi” (2011) has been recorded in Switzerland during spring 2016 and mix in Sweden during the summer. In January 2017, the band signed to Napalm Records to release the album.
Crown
Samael Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You will find in mine the scorn and apathy
You will read my hatred as in a curs'd book
You will see yourself as I see you
It is a mirror sombre and opaque
Which protects me, which stifles me
A great ditch around the heart
There is a world in my head
A dead world where nothing lives
And it is there I am, too far,
Far too far to be rejoined
A crown of thorns is still a crown
I am a king in a kingdom of suffering
I have taken my time to reach this stage
I have taken pains to torture myself
To descend, to descend
Into pain, I exist
And if my brain is numbed
The thorn in my flesh
Can overcome apathy
There is glory in humiliation
A throne to be taken, a crown to win
I have no more tears,
And my smile has lost its brilliance
I have forgotten who I was,
I have killed my emotions
Crushed, empty, weary,
Always standing, I am a tree
Awaiting the lightning
The lyrics of Samael's song Crown depict a profound sense of alienation and detachment, conveyed through a metaphoric imagery of eyes being the mirror of the soul. The singer in the song suggests that if someone were to look into their eyes, they would see the scorn, apathy, and hatred that the singer harbors towards the world around him. It is a mirror, which encapsulates the singer's persona like a great ditch around the heart, isolating them from the rest of the world. The singer describes "a world in their head, a dead world where nothing lives," and this is where they reside, too far from reality to ever reconnect or be rejoined.
The song further develops the idea of suffering as a throne to be taken; pain and humiliation become sources of glory, and a crown of thorns becomes a symbol of power. The lyrics suggest that the singer has reached a stage of profound detachment, where they have killed their emotions and forgotten who they were. All that is left is a numbness that can be overcome only by experiencing pain. Thus, the song presents a unique interpretation of suffering as an almost desirable state, a throne or a crown that has to be seized by personal hardship.
Line by Line Meaning
If eyes are the mirror of the soul
My eyes reflect my emotions and feelings.
You will find in mine the scorn and apathy
My eyes show my bitterness and indifference towards the world.
You will read my hatred as in a curs'd book
My hatred is evident to all who understand me.
You will see yourself as I see you
You will see yourself reflected in my eyes, as I see you.
It is a mirror sombre and opaque
My mirror is dark and impenetrable.
Which protects me, which stifles me
My mirror shields me from the world, but also suffocates me.
A great ditch around the heart
There is a wide gap in my soul.
Which rejects, which estranges me
This gap separates and alienates me from others.
There is a world in my head
In my mind, there is an imaginary world.
A dead world where nothing lives
In this world, nothing is alive.
And it is there I am, too far,
I am stuck in this world far away from reality.
Far too far to be rejoined
I cannot leave this world and return to reality.
A crown of thorns is still a crown
Even though it causes pain, a crown is still a symbol of power and authority.
I am a king in a kingdom of suffering
I am a ruler in my own world of pain.
I have taken my time to reach this stage
It took me a long time to get to this point.
I have taken pains to torture myself
I deliberately cause myself pain and suffering.
To descend, to descend
I am constantly falling deeper into my own despair.
Into pain, I exist
My existence is defined by my suffering.
And if my brain is numbed
Even if I become emotionally numb,
The thorn in my flesh
The pain in my body,
Can overcome apathy
Can still break through my emotional wall.
There is glory in humiliation
I find pride in my own suffering and humiliation.
A throne to be taken, a crown to win
I see my suffering as a challenge to overcome and become stronger.
I have no more tears,
I have cried so much I can no longer shed tears.
And my smile has lost its brilliance
Even my happy moments are clouded by my despair.
I have forgotten who I was,
I have lost my sense of identity.
I have killed my emotions
I have become emotionless and detached from the world.
Crushed, empty, weary,
I feel broken, hollow, and tired.
Always standing, I am a tree
Even though I am rooted to my suffering, I remain standing strong.
Awaiting the lightning
I wait for something to strike me and bring me out of my misery.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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