(1) The story of Yearning began at the turn of 1994/1995 when during some gloomy winterday of Finland two individuals, guitarist/vocalist J. Palomäki (R.I.P) and drummer T. Kristian decided to satisfy their burning desire for dark and emotional Metal music.
They started under the name Flegeton, which was taken from Dante Alighieri's (1265-1321) most famous work Divina Commedia, representing a river of blood in the Seventh Circle of Hell. Few songs were already written and after awhile of searching they found another guitarist Tero Kalliomäki and made a 4-track tape called Trough the Desolate Lands. Material on this tape could be described as melodic dark/death metal and as these songs suffered from a lack of originality it wasn't widely distributed.
In July '95 band went to MDM-studio, Tampere with their new bass player Mr. Woodland. The result, The Temple of Sagal demo was a huge step forward with clean and harmonic vocals, acoustic guitars, keyboards and most of all a touching sorrowful atmosphere.
The demo contains following songs:
1. Silent Caves
2. Obliteration
3. The Temple of Sagal
4. In the Hands of Storm
These songs were widely praised by enthusiasts of melancholic and mighty music. It also caused a record deal offer from French-based label Holy Records. The band agreed and contracted to Holy for a two full-length albums.
In February '96 band went to Tico-Tico studio, Kemi with their new material. At this point a name was changed to Yearning, because they felt their old name didn't represent the overwhelming amount of feeling, which has become their trademark. Yearning recorded "Autumn Funeral" during these sessions. This song is known from the Hold Records compilation The Holy Bible.
With material inspired by a mighty nature of Finland and dark inner landscapes of an artistic mind Yearning went to Tico-Tico Studios again, to record their debut full-length album With Tragedies Adorned. The album was recorded between 16th and 29th of September '96. It contains 60 minutes of rich, beautiful music full of sorrow and anguish. Besides basic rock metal instruments, flutes, acoustic guitars and keyboards enrich the sound and atmosphere on this album. With Tragedies Adorned was released on the 28th of February, 1997 and during the spring the band promoted their debut and performed live.
The song titles are:
1. Remnants of the Only Delight
2. Bleeding for Sinful Crown
3. Flown Away
4. Haze of Despair
5. The Temple of Sagal
6. Release
7. In the Hands of Storm
8. Canticum
The band visited Tico-Tico Studios on 18-19 October 1997 to record it's own interpretation of Paradise Lost's "Eternal" for a Paradise Lost tribute album released by Holy Records. After this, the band started to prepare for the first European tour which took place 26 December 1997 to 12 January 1998. The tour consisted of 16 gigs in Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and France. Other bands on the road were Greek Nightfall and French SUP.
After the tour it was time for intensive writing and composing process. New tunes of gloom and sadness were more majestic and symphonic and the ceremony of capturing the sound took place on 18 August to 9 September 1998 at Tico-Tico Studios. This second album by Yearning, Plaintive Scenes was released in February 1999. It contains the following hymns:
1. Naivete
2. Unwritten
3. Grey
4. Soliloquy
5. Plaintive Scenes
6. Soliloquy II
7. Eyes of the Black Flame
8. Nameless
The year 1999 brought the departure of former guitarist Tero Kalliomäki, bass player Mr. Woodland, and flutist/vocalist Lady Tiina Ahonen due to personal and musical disagreements. The founding members continued, with composer/vocalist J. Palomäki handling all necessary instruments in the studio and T. Kristian still on percussion. The outcome, the 3rd album of Yearning entitled Frore Meadow was recorded once again at Tico-Tico Studios on 2 through 29 May 2000. This atmospheric album was more clearly inspired by progressive, gothic and classical music, the with familiar characteristics of Yearning: a sorrowful, melancholic mood. It was released 15 January 2001 on Holy Records, and contains eleven tracks:
1. Bleak
2. Solitary
3. Autumn
4. The Fall
5. Years of Pain
6. Forsaken
7. Frore Meadow
8. The Race
9. Elegy of Blood
10. In Strange Slowfooted Fever
11. Disappearance.
Yearning recruited new musicians for live appearances: Matti S. (guitar), Loikas (bass), Jouni J.N. (keyboards). In 2001 Yearning toured France with a label mates Gloomy Grim and Misanthrope.
New material was composed and arranged very carefully during the years of silence. The outcome, Evershade, the fourth album of Yearning, was finally recorded this time at Astia studio with Anssi Kippo as a co-producer 9th-22nd of June 2003 as a two piece line-up.This album was released at the end of September 2003, being the most mature opus of the band to date. Massive arrangements and great melodies reign on this impressive album. It has 8 tracks:
1. Nocturne
2. Statues Amidst a Frozen Sand of Time
3. Conditio Humana
4. Aureole
5. Evershade
6. Deathbearer
7. Contemplation
8. A Day When the World Started to Weep
After a quiet period while J. Palomäki began working on the funeral doom project Colosseum Yearning recorded their fifth and final album. On this record, T. Kristian was replaced by the drummer Aki Kuusinen. The final album, titled Merging Into Landscapes, was released on Holy Records in July 2007, and featured 11 tracks:
1. Prologue: Nascentes Morimur
2. Kaleidoscopic Inscape
3. Sphere of Disgust
4. Return
5. Datura Stramonium
6. October Rain
7. Lethean Waters
8. Merging Into Landscapes
9. Dead
10. The Dying Morn
11. Epilogue: Nemo Ante Mortem Beatus
Following this album, J. Palomäki continued to compose three Colosseum albums. His death in 2010 marked the end of both groups.
(2) Yearning is an emoviolence band from Montréal, Quebec, Canada. Their album MMXXII was released on 30 January 2022 by the Canadian label No Funeral Records.
Dead
Yearning Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And now I know I will never live again
Empty streets follow my way on the road
This dead end that leads to nowhere
I have been dead all my life
And now I am waiting for the second death
Near the end I wished at last to feel alive
But sensation never came
I know the way
I'm not of kin to human filth
But mirror never lies I must admit
Decline and fall of human kind
Is all I see, all I can find
So fucking many ways to die
Instead of being dead alive
The demons of my consciousness
Lull me to sleep in hollow darkness
The lyrics to Yearning's song "Dead" express a profound sense of hopelessness and despair from the perspective of someone who feels as though they have been "dead" for their entire life. The empty streets that follow their path on the road reflect the sense of aimlessness and futility that surrounds their existence. The dead end that leads nowhere symbolizes the pointlessness of their existence and the lack of any real purpose or meaning. The second death that they are waiting for represents a final release from this state of being, a chance to escape the emptiness and hopelessness that permeate their existence.
Despite their desire to feel alive, the sensation never comes, symbolizing the sense of disconnection and isolation that they feel from the world around them. The lyrics suggest that the singer sees themselves as fundamentally different from "human filth", perhaps suggesting a misanthropic outlook on life. However, the final line of the song suggests that despite this sense of superiority, the demons of their consciousness ultimately lead them to a state of darkness and despair.
Line by Line Meaning
I have been dead all my life
I have never felt truly alive or fulfilled in my existence
And now I know I will never live again
The realization that my life is futile and I will never experience true happiness
Empty streets follow my way on the road
I feel isolated and alone, with no direction or purpose in life
This dead end that leads to nowhere
My life feels like an endless cycle of emptiness and despair
I have been dead all my life
Reiteration of the feeling of emptiness and lack of fulfillment in life
And now I am waiting for the second death
I am eagerly awaiting the end of my life, as I believe it is the only way to escape my misery
Near the end I wished at last to feel alive
As my life is coming to a close, I long to finally experience true happiness and fulfillment
But sensation never came
Unfortunately, I was never able to experience the happiness I had longed for
I know the way how to end it all
I have contemplated and planned my own death
I know the way
I have a plan for my own suicide
I'm not of kin to human filth
I view other humans as lower beings, and do not feel connected to them
But mirror never lies I must admit
I reluctantly acknowledge that I too am human, despite my disdain for others like me
Decline and fall of human kind
I see the world around me as deteriorating and doomed to fail
Is all I see, all I can find
I am unable to see anything positive in the world, and only notice its flaws and imperfections
So fucking many ways to die
There are numerous ways in which one can end their own life
Instead of being dead alive
I feel that I have been dead inside all along, even when I was alive
The demons of my consciousness
The negative thoughts and emotions that plague me constantly
Lull me to sleep in hollow darkness
My negative thoughts and emotions put me in a perpetual state of sadness and despair
Contributed by London J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
rocknymm
hello from venezuela yearning is the best doom metal band that ive heard juhani (rip)....still rockin wherever you are......and thanks for your music. i cant stop listen this albun....thank you septembergirl for posting........
Ænigma Xeno
❤
v f
you're welcome. they're playing doom metal, though, they've never really been all that popular.
v f
They're from Finland.