Biography:
Initially, the band played straightforward black metal under the name Treblinka. After having recorded the album Sumerian Cry in 1989, vocalist/guitarist Johan Edlund and bassist Jörgen Thullberg parted ways with the other two founding members, and subsequently changed the name to Tiamat. The Sumerian Cry album, as recorded by Treblinka, was released as Tiamat's debut album in June 1990.
After the debut, Edlund's leadership would modify the band's style with influences ranging from Mercyful Fate, Candlemass, Pink Floyd and King Crimson, with Sumerian lyrical themes. German guitarist Waldemar Sorychta would produce and contribute instrumentation to many of the band's albums, as well as those by Tiamat's own tour and labelmates, including Moonspell, Rotting Christ, Lacuna Coil and Samael.
1994's critically acclaimed Wildhoney mixed raw vocals, slow guitar riffs and synthesizer sounds which sounded different from other extreme metal bands active at that time. An almost continuous forty-minute piece of music, Wildhoney was considered to be a landmark release within the progressive/doom metal genres and would lead to the band's appearances at the Dynamo and Wacken Open Air metal festivals in 1995. The group would play a second gig at Dynamo two years later.
Upon the release of A Deeper Kind of Slumber (1997), Edlund relocated from Sweden to Germany and declared himself the only permanent member of the band; all albums that would follow would cement the band into a more gothic rock sound, quite different from the extreme music they did in the years before, with recent albums showing a The Sisters of Mercy influence.
The band signed to Nuclear Blast Records in June 2007. Tiamat released their new album Amanethes April 18, 2008.
Lineup:
Johan Edlund - vocals, guitar (Treblinka, Expulsion, LucyFire, Dark Age, Ayreon)
Anders Iwers - bass (Desecrator, Ceremonial Oath, In Flames, Cemetary, Mercury Tide)
Lars Skjöld - drums (Jupiter Society)
Thomas Wyreson - guitar
Former members:
Andreas Holmberg - drums (Expulsion)
Stefan Lagergren - guitar (River's Edge, Expulsion, Mr Death, Treblinka, Judge And Jury, Tranquility)
Jörgen Thullberg - bass (Expulsion, Mr Death, Treblinka)
Niklas Ekstrand - drums (Face Down)
Kenneth Roos - keyboards
Johnny Hagel - bass (Sundown, Sorcerer)
Magnus Sahlgren - guitar (Celeborn, Dismember, Lake of Tears)
P.A. Danielsson - keyboards (Veni Domine)
Thomas Petersson - guitar
Fredrik Ĺkesson - guitar (Southpaw, Talisman, Krux, John Norum, Arch Enemy, Sabbtail, Opeth, Shock Tilt)
www.churchoftiamat.com
Light In Extension
Tiamat Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The earth is shaking, the underworld's born anew
It's a cosmic fusion, a disillusion man
Gather your stuff and get going as fast as you can
It's all that I dream of when I pray to the devils themselves
The dust of Babylon fallen is on somebody else
A new sun will rise for you
And in the still of the night
The moonchild will watch you too
We're falling to pieces and that's why we're hunting you down
While you're falling from heaven we rise from the underground
No more turning the other cheek, no liers in wait
Waiting is over, the black knights have opened the gates
The opening line of Tiamat's "Light in Extension" captures a sense of menace and imminent danger, as they sing "We're shards of glass but we're coming to get you." This is followed by an apocalyptic vision of the earth shaking and the underworld being born anew, signaling a cataclysmic shift in the fabric of reality.
The lyrics then seem to address the listener directly, urging them to "gather your stuff and get going as fast as you can" in response to this impending doom. However, the song's tone quickly shifts as Tiamat implies that the destructive cosmic forces at work may be part of a larger plan, which the singer "dreams of when I pray to the devils themselves."
And yet despite the overwhelming sense of chaos and destruction, there is also a glimmer of hope in Tiamat's lyrics. They sing of a new sun rising and of a moonchild watching over us in the still of the night. It's as if, amid all the upheaval, there is the promise of something better on the horizon.
Line by Line Meaning
We're shards of glass but we're coming to get you
We may be fragile, but we are determined to pursue and conquer you
The earth is shaking, the underworld's born anew
The world is experiencing tremors as the underworld is being reborn
It's a cosmic fusion, a disillusion man
This is a unification of galaxies, a disillusionment for humanity
Gather your stuff and get going as fast as you can
Pack your belongings and leave as quickly as possible
It's all that I dream of when I pray to the devils themselves
I yearn for this outcome when I pray to even the devilish entities
The dust of Babylon fallen is on somebody else
The residue of Babylon's downfall now belongs to someone other than me
And in the aeon of hope
In a future era of optimism
A new sun will rise for you
You will experience a new dawn
And in the still of the night
During the tranquil hours of the night
The moonchild will watch you too
The moon's offspring will also keep an eye on you
We're falling to pieces and that's why we're hunting you down
Our impending fragmentation is the reason for our pursuit of you
While you're falling from heaven we rise from the underground
As you fall from the heavens, we ascend from underground
No more turning the other cheek, no liers in wait
We will no longer tolerate being passive or waiting for others to act
Waiting is over, the black knights have opened the gates
The wait is over, the black knights have opened the doors
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind