Tiamat is a metal band that formed in Täby, Sweden in 1988. Their music has… Read Full Bio ↴Tiamat is a metal band that formed in Täby, Sweden in 1988. Their music has been the subject of debate, utilizing subgenres like death metal, doom metal, progressive and gothic, but more recently they have focused on what has been described as atmospheric gothic metal with ethnic, psychedelic and experimental elements.

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

Love In Chains
Tiamat Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I shout and call for rejoicing
I hear the sound of angel wings
Escape us as we close the ring
And into the fire we will fall
Our desire, our flame, our call
So be it, once for all

And you are the dream and I am the lie

I am the Devil and you are my disguise
I'm all the pain you always tried to keep inside

Love in chains
We break free
There is a time
For you and me
Not today
Not tomorrow
But one day our sorrow
Shall go away

All our being is spellbound
A black magic hellhound
Let us have another round for our love
Many hours we shall wait
But it will never be to late
In life or death we'll intergrate one day

Trough rain and stormy weather
Shall always be together

Together here forever
Forever

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Tiamat's song Love In Chains suggest a desire to break free from societal constraints and norms that keep the singers captive. The opening lines of the song, "I shout and call for rejoicing, I hear the sound of angel wings" might signify a longing for freedom, and the angel wings could represent the flight to that freedom. The next line, "Escape us as we close the ring," implies that while the singers long for freedom, they could still be holding on to their chains.

The following lines, "And into the fire we will fall, our desire, our flame, our call, so be it, once for all," suggests that the singers are willing to take risks and burn their old selves in the pursuit of the new. The second verse, "And you are the dream, and I am the lie, I am the Devil, and you are my disguise, I'm all the pain you always tried to keep inside," could signify the singers' need to redefine themselves and break free from their old notions of identity.

The lines, "Love in chains, we break free, there is a time for you and me, not today, not tomorrow, but one day our sorrow shall go away," shows that the singers recognize their present constraints but hold on to a hope that they will eventually be free. The final lines, "Trough rain and stormy weather, shall always be together, together here forever, forever," could suggest the singers' commitment to each other, no matter what comes their way.

Line by Line Meaning

I shout and call for rejoicing
I cry out to celebrate and feel joy

I hear the sound of angel wings
I can hear the sound of heavenly wings

Escape us as we close the ring
As we come together, we cannot escape the situation

And into the fire we will fall
We will accept our fate, even if it causes us pain

Our desire, our flame, our call
Our passion and love is strong and undeniable

So be it, once for all
This is our fate, we accept it fully

And you are the dream and I am the lie
You are my perfect fantasy and I am not truthful

I am the Devil and you are my disguise
I am the ultimate evil and you hide it well

I'm all the pain you always tried to keep inside
I am the source of all your hidden pain and suffering

Love in chains
Our love is constrained and limited

We break free
We strive to break free from our limitations