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
The Malicious Paradise
Tiamat Lyrics
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A living evil on golden wings
He comes to take me to the abandoned land
The land where darkness is ablazed
A leap in the dark, a step into the forgotten
Through the gates of the betrayal breeze
I know that the time has come for me
..My soul is given to the shadows
He will give you the dark and black
A ghastly scream from an inhuman shape
And your body is laid to rest
A giant evil inside your soul
Will take you to the malicious paradise
A ghastly scream from an inhuman shape
And your body is laid to rest
A giant evil inside your soul
Will take you to the malicious paradise
I glorify my gloomy fate
As I reach the point of sins
I glorify the land of the dark,
The place where I am one
I deny the faith of christ
'cause I have seen the truth
The truth is evil, dark and black
And the evil is for all of us
He comes to bring your soul to where it belongs
He will give you the dark and black
A ghastly scream from an inhuman shape
And your body is laid to rest
A giant evil inside your soul
Will take you to the malicious paradise
A ghastly scream from an inhuman shape
And your body is laid to rest
A giant evil inside your soul
Will take you to the malicious paradise
The lyrics of Tiamat's "The Malicious Paradise" describe the arrival of a malevolent entity who arrives at night, when the moon is worshipped. This being is described as a "living evil on golden wings" and offers to take the singer to the abandoned land, where darkness is ablaze. The singer ultimately accepts the offer, knowing that their soul will be given to the shadows.
The song touches on themes of rejection of Christianity and the embrace of darker forces. The lyrics mention denying the faith of Christ and seeing the truth, which the singer believes is evil, dark, and black. The last stanza of the song describes the singer glorifying their gloomy fate and reaching the point of sins, while denying any notion of redemption or salvation.
Overall, the lyrics paint a picture of a person who has embraced darkness and evil, rejecting traditional morality and religion. The arrival of the malevolent entity is portrayed as a welcome event, as the singer sees it as an opportunity to surrender their soul to the shadows.
Line by Line Meaning
He comes at night when the moon is worshipped
A malevolent presence appears under the cover of night when the moon is celebrated.
A living evil on golden wings
An entity of wickedness with wings of gold.
He comes to take me to the abandoned land
The malevolent being intends to take the singer to a forsaken territory.
The land where darkness is ablazed
The place to which the artist is taken is illuminated by a fiery darkness.
A leap in the dark, a step into the forgotten
The artist is making an uncertain, perhaps perilous journey into obscurity.
Through the gates of the betrayal breeze
The treacherous wind carries the singer through a passage or portal.
I know that the time has come for me
..My soul is given to the shadows
The singer is aware that their time has arrived and that they are yielding their soul to the darkness.
He comes to bring your soul to where it belongs
He will give you the dark and black
The ominous entity's purpose is to deliver souls to their rightful abode and bestow upon them darkness and despair.
A ghastly scream from an inhuman shape
And your body is laid to rest
A giant evil inside your soul
Will take you to the malicious paradise
The voice of something otherworldly emits an eerie cry as the artist is struck down and an immense iniquity takes root in their spirit, leading them to a world of malevolence.
I glorify my gloomy fate
As I reach the point of sins
The artist finds satisfaction in their foreboding destiny as they cross an immoral threshold.
I glorify the land of the dark,
The place where I am one
The singer praises the realm of obscurity where they feel harmonized.
I deny the faith of christ
'cause I have seen the truth
The artist forsakes the teachings of Christianity due to their perception of a different veracity.
The truth is evil, dark and black
And the evil is for all of us
According to the singer, the reality is that evil reigns and envelops everything.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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