The band… Read Full Bio ↴Shape of Despair is a funeral doom metal band from Finland.
The band was founded in 1995 as Raven by Jarno Salomaa (guitars, later also keyboards), Tomi Ullgrén (bass, later also guitars) and Toni "Otso" Mäensivu (drums, later also vocals) as a faster, instrumental black metal-isch band following the footsteps of their contemporaries like Strid, Burzum, Darkthrone and Unholy. The trio soon realized that the music they played wasn't as good as they would have wanted, lacking the atmosphere and emotion of the bands that influenced them. They needed to either step up their songwriting game or try something else completely. During the summer of '95 Raven recorded their rehearsals with a simple cassette recorder, capturing all the songs that later became the Alone In The Mist demo, for the first time on tape. After listening to the rehearsal tape and realizing they actually had something in their hands they could stand behind, Raven wanted to record the tracks in a proper studio. It took the band three years to do it. Raven entered Arkki-studio in early '98. They still hadn't tried any vocals until the very last minute, when they decided they wanted to test how the songs would sound with Mäensivu's vocals and were surprised how well they actually fit. The Alone In The Mist demo [1] was not released until 2016, when the band thought it was the proper time to do it. They changed their name in September 1998 to Shape Of Despair. The decision to change the name came down to basically not wanting to be confused with the UK hard rock stalwarts Raven. Obviously, their new moniker fit their new sound better too.
In 2000 they signed a deal with Spikefarm Records and released their debut album Shades of...with Samu Ruotsalainen on drums.
The second album Angels of Distress, released on September 2001, featured Pasi Koskinen on lead vocals. Sami Uusitalo joined up in 2002 to play bass for the third album Illusion's Play. It was released in 2004.
In 2005, the band released a compilation titled Shape of Despair, featuring rare and unreleased material from the group, including tracks from the band's first demo Alone in the Mist and a new song called Sleeping Murder, recorded over a four-day period at Sundicoop Studios in Savonlinna, Finland. After a 5-year lull the band released the EP Written in My Scars and a split EP with Before The Rain.
Their 4th full-length album Monotony Fields was released on June 15, 2015 by Season of Mist.
Entwined in Misery
Shape of Despair Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
...and emptiness falls before me...
And silence this life,
Every word is whispered through me
And all emotions will cry,
Leaving me still alone.
For nothing
It brings fir me.
Everythings is entwined in misery.
All these years in absence
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
The lyrics of Shape of Despair's song, Entwined in Misery, convey the feelings of loneliness, emptiness, and despair in the face of unrequited love. The opening lines, "All these years in absence, forgiveness does not reveal itself," suggest that the singer has been pining for someone for many years, but their feelings have gone unacknowledged. The lack of forgiveness may refer to the fact that the object of the singer's affections has not reciprocated their feelings, or that the singer has been unable to forgive themselves for harboring these emotions for so long.
As the song continues, the singer describes themselves as being surrounded by a sense of emptiness and silence - a stark contrast to the intensity of their inner emotions. The phrase "every word is whispered through me" suggests that the singer is struggling to express themselves and communicate their feelings to the object of their affection. The line "And all emotions will cry, leaving me still alone" reinforces the idea that the singer's love is unrequited and that they are trapped in their own emotional world.
Ultimately, the singer acknowledges that their suffering is unlikely to end any time soon. The repetition of the line "Every moment still awaits, for nothing it brings for me" suggests a sense of hopelessness and resignation. The final line, "Everything is entwined in misery," encapsulates the overarching feeling of the song - that the singer's love has become inseparable from their pain, and that they are trapped in a cycle of emotional suffering.
Line by Line Meaning
All these years in absence
Throughout a long duration of time where there was an emotional void
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
An attempt to reconcile with past mistakes or pain has not been successful
...and emptiness falls before me...
A feeling of nothingness or despair looms over one's existence
And silence this life,
In response, one becomes withdrawn from the world
Every word is whispered through me
Communication with others becomes hushed, lacking in genuine connection
And all emotions will cry,
Despite this, the person is still overwhelmed with emotional turmoil
Leaving me still alone.
Making them feel more solitary than ever
Every moment still awaits,
Each passing second holds no promise of progression or happiness
For nothing
And this realization brings only a sense of nihilistic resignation
It brings fir me.
There is no future hope to cling onto
Everythings is entwined in misery.
The pain and suffering is inextricably linked with every facet of existence
Contributed by Sadie M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Erick Macías
Darker than your darkest... Deeper than the deepest you've ever been. Shape of Despair is just... Unique
satanyc
Entwined In Misery
All these years in absence
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
...and emptiness falls before me...
And silence this life,
Every word is whispered through me
And all emotions will cry,
Leaving me still alone.
Every moment still awaits,
For nothing
It brings fir me.
Everythings is entwined in misery.
All these years in absence
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
disturbanite8
This song has a soundscape reminiscent of that which is twilight yet conglomerate with a dark ambience. Those two factors meld well together seamlessly which is definitely a major reason this song captivates me.
Jeff steeler
incredibly fuckin powerful and moving music. when i listen to the brutal grindcore and death metal stuff, there is something that is missing as far as total brutality. the darkness they all try to create is nothing compared to funeral doom. maybee the most powerful music ever to be created.
Dottie Gold
This is actually semi symphonic death doom, funeral doom isn't as powerful.. just as epic though
Ερεβος - Black Metal - San Juan - Argentina
Masterpiece!
Sin Luz En El Bosque
All these years in absence
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
...and emptiness falls before me...
And silence this life
Every word is whispered through me
And all emotions will cry
Leaving me still alone
Every moment still awaits
For nothing
It brings fir me
Everythings is entwined in misery
All these years in absence
...forgiveness does not reveal itself...
BeerThrower
grindcore .... darkness ? I THINK that's the one of the extreme musical generes that don't have "darkness" as objective to reflect in their music. It's all about social and political problems and issues...
olivier Leroux
Goodvibe lovemusic
Pretérito Hierático
Cavern Cosmic Awakening