The band began in 2001 as a solo project for Edwards while his primary group, 16 Horsepower, were taking a temporary hiatus. The band's first live shows were performed by Edwards and multi-instrumentalist Daniel McMahon; the debut, self-titled Wovenhand album was released in 2002 on Glitterhouse Records. Performances following this record were executed by Edwards, McMahon, drummer Ordy Garrison and cellist Paul Fonfara. 2003 saw a release of Blush Music, the score to a dance performance mostly composed of reworked material from the first record. Touring behind this album saw Shane Trost replacing Fonfara.
In 2004, Consider the Birds was released on the Sounds Familyre label, who has also released the previous Wovenhand releases domestically. Edwards performed the bulk of the instrumentation in the studio; he and Garrison toured behind the record as a two-piece.
2005 saw both the demise of 16 Horsepower and the Wovenhand debut of guitarist Peter van Laerhoven, a Belgian guitarist - McMahon and Trost were now inactive with the group. 2006's Mosaic album featured more input from Garrison and van Laerhoven, but still read like an Edwards solo album for the most part. Touring behind the record saw the inclusion of Pascal Humbert, 16 Horsepower's founding and long-time bassist. Nonetheless, Edwards also played solo tours at this time billed as Wovenhand.
2008's Ten Stones, conversely, was the first record from the group written and performed collaboratively; the project had thus evolved into a proper band, albeit with Edwards firmly at its head.
Since 2002, they have released 8 albums: Woven Hand (2002), Blush Music (February 2003), Consider The Birds (2004), Mosaic (2006), Ten Stones (2008), The Threshingfloor (2010), The Laughing Stalk (2012) and Refractory Obdurate (2014).
The current members of the live band (as of 2008) are Ordy Garrison (also of Slim Cessna's Auto Club) on drums, Peter van Laerhoven on guitar, and Pascal Humbert (also of 16 Horsepower and currently Lilium) on bass.
http://www.wovenhandmosaic.com
The Beautiful Axe
Woven Hand Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Holds a candle to you
I see you are a hummingbird
Living in the shadows of law
Cleave her to vivid of dreams
Picture before you
The living word
To prepare a place
Let the sound together hold you
To the humble he has given grace
From the proud he hides his face
From the proud he hide his face
Joy has come
It rises with the son
He the highest on the horizon
Joy has come
In the mind that I see
Beautiful the axe that flies at me
In the yard
More than forty birds
For to write upon my mind
We fall out into the street
As the last one flies
The last one in kind
On the morning of the second day
And old skin vision of my hope and stay
A flaw in the man whichever way
Thinking of his color
The lyrics to The Beautiful Axe by Woven Hand are abstract and open to interpretation, but can be seen as referencing religion and the idea of overcoming obstacles. The opening lines speak of the night holding a candle to the subject of the song, possibly referencing the illumination and guidance of faith. The mention of a hummingbird living in the shadows of law can be interpreted as a metaphor for a free spirit constrained by societal norms and rules, but still able to move in the world with grace and beauty. The following lines of "cleave her to vivid of dreams" and "picture before you the living word" further suggest a spiritual message, perhaps urging the listener to embrace their innermost desires and seek enlightenment.
The song then transitions into Christian imagery with the line "He did ascend away to prepare a place", alluding to Jesus ascending to heaven to prepare a place for believers. The next few lines speak of humility and pride, with the assertion that God gives grace to the humble but hides his face from the proud. The final verse of the song is enigmatic, speaking of birds and an old vision of hope and stay, possibly referencing past experiences and memories. The final line suggests a melancholic reflection on the idea of race or skin color and how it may affect one's experiences in life.
Overall, The Beautiful Axe by Woven Hand is a complex and poetic song that combines spiritual imagery with personal introspection and reflection on societal issues.
Line by Line Meaning
The night holds
The darkness embodies everything that is happening tonight
Holds a candle to you
You are the only shining star in this dim evening
I see you are a hummingbird
You are as agile and delicate as a hummingbird
Living in the shadows of law
You are always trying to stay within the bounds of the law so that you won't be caught
Cleave her to vivid of dreams
Get rid of the distractions and focus on your most vivid dreams
Picture before you
Imagine what your ultimate goal looks like
The living word
The power of the living word is unstoppable
He did ascend away
He went up above to fulfill his destiny
To prepare a place
To get everything ready for what's to come
Let the sound together hold you
Allow the sound to take you to that special place
To the humble he has given grace
Those who are humble will receive endless benefits from Him
From the proud he hides his face
He doesn't associate himself with people who have excessive pride
Joy has come
Happiness has finally arrived
It rises with the son
It grows and becomes stronger each day, like the sun
He the highest on the horizon
His power is unmatched and rises high above all others
In the mind that I see
What I'm looking at right now is just a figment of my imagination
Beautiful the axe that flies at me
I see what's coming at me as something beautiful, even though it may be dangerous
In the yard
We are outside, in a makeshift area
More than forty birds
There are a lot of birds around us, over forty in total
For to write upon my mind
To create a lasting impression on the mind
We fall out into the street
We stumble out into the open area where everyone can see us
As the last one flies
The final bird takes off
The last one in kind
The very last bird that is of that species
On the morning of the second day
This happened on the morning of the second day
And old skin vision of my hope and stay
An old, worn-out dream of mine that gives me hope and keeps me going
A flaw in the man whichever way
There is something inherently flawed in every person, no matter how you look at them
Thinking of his color
Judging someone based on their skin color
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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Neptunes Daughter
on The Refractory
"We are not his witness" is incorrect..
The correct lyric is " Are we not His witness?, nevertheless"