Swallow the Sun was formed in early 2000 by Juha Raivio, joined soon by Pasi Pasanen came along (both had played in Plutonium Orange). They rehearsed a couple of songs, one of them being "Through Her Silvery Body" which would end up on their first demo, Out of This Gloomy Light. In 2001 Markus Jämsen, whom Raivio and Pasanen already knew from their earlier bands, joined as a second guitarist, and Mikko Kotamäki from Funeris Nocturnum as singer; then Aleksi Munter (keyboards) and Matti Honkonen (bass), also of Funeris Nocturnum, joined the band. In the spring of 2002 they started arranging songs for the demo, which was recorded in January 2003 at Sam's Workshop with Sami Kokko, who also mixed the demo.
A record deal with Firebox Records was signed a few months after the recordings of the demo, and Swallow the Sun entered studio at late July 2003. During the following three weeks they recorded their debut album, The Morning Never Came.
In February 2005, Swallow the Sun released their second album, Ghosts of Loss. Their single, "Forgive Her..." gained 4th place on the Finnish Top 20 singles chart in its first week of release, and stayed on the charts for 6 weeks. Their album entered the charts as well: #8 in between Gwen Stefani and System of a Down.
During the year 2006 they signed to Spinefarm Records and did a small European tour. In January 2007 they released their third album, Hope, which includes a cover version of the Timo Rautiainen & Trio Niskalaukaus song "Alavilla mailla" (which they translated into "These Low Lands") as a bonus track on the digipack edition, sung by Tomi Joutsen, the frontman of fellow Finnish metal band, Amorphis. There is also a guest appearance by Jonas Renkse of Katatonia on the song "The Justice of Suffering". They went on a US tour with Katatonia, Scar Symmetry and Insomnium in late 2007.
In September 2008, they released an EP called Plague of Butterflies. In October, they announced a December tour of the UK of ten live shows supporting Apocalyptica.
On May 18, 2009 Swallow the Sun announced that Kai Hahto of Wintersun will be joining to fill the void left by former drummer Pasi Pasanen. Swallow the Sun confirmed on 12 June that their next album would be entitled New Moon and is being produced by Jens Bogren, they also stated that Kai Hahto would be doing the drums on this album.
Emerald Forest and the Blackbird is their fifth studio album. The album was released February 1, 2012, by Spinefarm Records. It was also released on limited LP on both green and white vinyl by Svart Records.
Official site: http://www.swallowthesun.net
The Justice of Suffering
Swallow the Sun Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the pale souls you have tasted
The sings of filthy passion
Will soon turn to cries of pain
When I claim what is mine
Through the justice of suffering
When the paying of her sins come closer
And the moment you dirt her skin with your fingers
You will be sentenced the same
Every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
For my anger is greater
Than the hand that once swept your cheek
And my anger is greater
Than the human I was
I will claim that is mine
Through the justice of suffering
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
Is this poison in your womb
Worth of the burning flesh
In this pyre of ghost lovers
But every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
The night will end…
It will end in tears soon
The lyrics of “The Justice of Suffering” by Swallow the Sun express a feeling of deep betrayal and anger towards a lover who has tasted the “pale souls” of other lovers. The singer of the lyrics curses the love for this person and wishes for them to feel the pain they have caused others. The language used is quite violent, with references to blood and burning flesh. The sense of justice the singer desires is one of suffering for the one who has caused so much pain.
The lyrics also contain a sense of personal betrayal, with lines like “And my anger is greater than the human I was” implying that the singer feels as though their own humanity has been lost in the face of this betrayal. The lyrics end with a question about whether the love this person has for their current lover is worth the burning flesh and suffering that will come with it.
Overall, the lyrics of “The Justice of Suffering” convey a sense of intense pain and desire for retribution. The language used is bleak and violent, with the singer seeing no hope for a light or positive outcome.
Line by Line Meaning
I curse the love for you
I condemn the love that you and my partner share
And the pale souls you have tasted
And the people you have been with before me, who were weak-willed and easily controlled
The sings of filthy passion
The signs of immoral and corrupt intimacy between you two
Will soon turn to cries of pain
Will soon lead to suffering and agony for both of you
When I claim what is mine
When I make you realize that my partner belongs to me, and to no one else
Through the justice of suffering
Through the punishment you deserve for causing me emotional pain
When the paying of her sins come closer
When my partner realizes the cost of her betrayal
The night will end in tears
It will lead to a sad and gloomy night for both you and my partner
And the moment you dirt her skin with your fingers
And the moment you touch her inappropriately, causing her to become impure
You will be sentenced the same
You will be punished just like she will be punished for betraying me
Every second with her I count
Every moment she spends with you is a moment I am aware of
And for every second you will suffer too
And for every moment she spends with you, you will also suffer in the same way as she will
No light will save them now
There is no hope left for my partner and you
When the words of hope have all been spoken
When all words of reassurance and optimism have been said
And I wash the blood from my hands
And I let go of the guilt and regret I feel for wanting revenge
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
And let my partner and you lay lifeless and forgotten among the flowers
For my anger is greater
My rage is stronger than what I was before
Than the hand that once swept your cheek
Stronger than the gentle and loving touch my partner once gave you
And my anger is greater
And it surpasses my humanity
Than the human I was
I am no longer the person I was before
I will claim that is mine
I will take back what is rightfully mine
Through the justice of suffering
Through the pain and suffering you both deserve
Is this poison in your womb
Is this relationship with my partner worth the destruction it will cause?
Worth of the burning flesh
Worth the pain and agony it will bring
In this pyre of ghost lovers
In this fire of the forgotten and lost lovers
It will end in tears soon
Their happiness will not last, and they will soon regret what they have done
Contributed by Katherine L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
RZ SnR
I curse the love for you
And the pale souls you have tasted
The sings of filthy passion
Will soon turn to cries of pain
When I claim what is mine
Through the justice of suffering
When the paying of her sins come closer
The night will end in tears
And the moment you dirt her skin with your fingers
You will be sentenced the same
Every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
For my anger is greater
Than the hand that once swept your cheek
And my anger is greater
Than the human I was
I will claim that is mine
Through the justice of suffering
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
Is this poison in your womb
Worth of the burning flesh
In this pyre of ghost lovers
But every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
The night will end...
It will end in tears soon
CrazyKoenie
I say it’s never too late to discover beautiful music of bands that been around. This song is... well it’s perfect
Rafael Lago
Jonas sounds amazing as usual. Everybody who is seeking a singer for a clean emotional passage should hire the guy.
RZ SnR
I curse the love for you
And the pale souls you have tasted
The sings of filthy passion
Will soon turn to cries of pain
When I claim what is mine
Through the justice of suffering
When the paying of her sins come closer
The night will end in tears
And the moment you dirt her skin with your fingers
You will be sentenced the same
Every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
For my anger is greater
Than the hand that once swept your cheek
And my anger is greater
Than the human I was
I will claim that is mine
Through the justice of suffering
No light will save them now
When the words of hope have all been spoken
And I wash the blood from my hands
And let them lie silent and cold on the flowers
Is this poison in your womb
Worth of the burning flesh
In this pyre of ghost lovers
But every second with her I count
And for every second you will suffer too
The night will end...
It will end in tears soon
Ana Leyva
These lyrics are so deep, I can feel the anger... and when Jonas sings I feel like breaking down...
CrazyKoenie
Just want to mention the guitar and bass embellishments at 3:12 & 6:03 are perfect.
Dustin Hotz
Hell yeah
Suznne Chamberlain
Jonas' voice gives me goose bumps.
Lordbutcher93
Jonas renkse's vocals are the most impressive ive listen to for a long time!they are so wow!
Joseph
I spent five years in utter solitude at the family cottage trying to find myself, this song among others by this band was my nighttime walk song, there is nothing more calming then looking at a lake in the dead of the night with this in your ears!!!
DarkWitchMetal
Swallow the Sun + Jonas Renske of Katatonia = great work!!!!