The final track from our forthcoming third album in the BARDS series, "BARDS: Of The Shimmering Seraphs" 76 minute CD + 52 page full color book with original illustrations, lyrics, liner notes, and expansion poems. Each track is a major paragon from a custom tarot deck in the works. The album/book will be available in another month or so. Keep your ears peeled for updates. There will be SIGNS.

https://mystictapedeck.com/bards/the-dark-twins/

BARDS: Of The Shimmering Seraphs

The Dark Twins

A few things to say.
1. Sorry, this song is a long one: more than seven minutes, too many to expect to have listeners desirous to get to the end of a small marathon. Moreover, it is slow (the first refrain only comes after three minutes or so) and sung in Italian (the English translation is available, but it is never the same thing).
2. The photo shows two actors: Bekim Fehmiu and Irene Papas, protagonists of a wonderful TV series (‘Odissea’) aired in 1968. A show that enriched my childhood and conditioned my imagination (and my reading) forever.
3. I have long wished to be able to write a song about that story within the story of Ulysses' wanderings: his return to Ithaca and his failure to be recognised by Penelope. I succeeded in 1994, then producing a few versions of it. I recorded this one a few years ago, the sound quality was not excellent but now I have taken it up again, singing it all over again and changing the arrangement a little. I hoped at least to recreate an atmosphere musically suited to the story evoked.
Female vocals courtesy of Sound Doctrine.

LYRICS 

he speaks softly from afar
and his voice is like a stray dog
like a boat you can barely see
like a moon on a swing
suspended on the edge of a sea wave
he holds his breath to follow his song

she sings and as she sings she has dozed off
he takes her hand and
whispers ‘welcome back into my life, welcome back’

she still sleeps and dreams of making love
with this morning shadow
of these colourless eyes 
came from an icy adventure
of days that smell clean
of all nights and all days
of spells, escapes, memories 
of days lost without desires

and if she will not listen to his words,
if evil will not slip from her heart
then who knows
where the wind will settle him
where he will lose himelf
where he will rest

[Penelope]
"Are you the night that burns
are you this sky that falls on me
are you this ship that arrives
are you this fire congealed inside me
... (You're all I need) ..."

she squints her eyes and moves slowly
as if to let the world to feel
all the weight of this abandonment
of this vanished illusion 
of her infinite sadness
sadness that perfume the nights and days
spent alone with this wound

but he is not only the thought of every morning
he is in the sand in the waves
that have always bounced on the shore
he is the cement of this house
is the receding fear
is the storm ever closer
he is this morning shadow
and she will listen to his words
and the sea will deposit him on her heart
and then who knows
maybe the wind will settle 
the circle will close
and she will recognise him

[Penelope]
"... (You're all I need) ...
are you the night that burns
are you this sky that still falls on me
are you this ship that arrives
are you this fire congealed inside me
are you my eyes you are my hands
are you my lips my skin of today and tomorrow
are you this peace that rises again
are you this home to recapture
this night to rest
... (You're all I need) ..."

------

Lyrics and music by Michele Ansani (1994).
Posted on SoundCloud: 2024, September 15

Nostos (il ritorno di Ulisse) **

SOFTPORTAL-Electricity made simple(Demo version)

Мої мрії були десь там
Десь там
Де закінчується океан
Океан
Що забрали ви, він віддасть
Відааасть.
Та зруйнує кожен мій паркан.
Паркааан -----

Настав той час коли вже все нове
Життя це зліпок - ти ліпиш себе
Тільки закрив очі, я знаю куди йти
Тільки тоді я бачу себе в собі.

Мої мрії були десь там
Десь там
Де закінчується океан
Океан
Що забрали ви, він віддасть
Відааасть.
Та зруйнує кожен мій паркан.
Паркааан.

Я пізнав і не забуду
Те що знав і те що буду
Життя це лише океан
І як розвіється весь цей туман
РОзвіється розуму омааан.

Мої мрії були десь там
Десь там
Де закінчується океан
Океан
Що забрали ви, він віддасть
Відааасть.
Та зруйнує кожен мій паркан.
Паркааан.

Все починається з тебе - усвідом це
Через любов йти - цей шлях простий
Душа сповнена надій, зможе творить
В царстві що ти створив тільки тобі жить. 

Мої мрії були десь там
Десь там
Де закінчується океан
Океан
Що забрали ви, він віддасть
Відааасть.
Та зруйнує кожен мій паркан.
Паркааан.

sQweal - Океан мрій

Vedran - Far from the Eyes, Far from the Heart 2025

Flatten the curve.
Flatten us all.
The sound of a skull rolling up against the wheel well.
The dignity of roadkill
similar to ours.
A bell goes off, and there is no more blood pressure.

Cross the death path
paved with soul tracers
reflecting in and out of the black night
with the speeding light.
A steady roar
the event, and it's sudden passing.
There is no explanation.

Who did this?
and what do they even know?
How far does regret trace the plates?
What is the purpose of anything different?

Shovel it off the road
to place it somewhere else 
so the vultures don't share the same fate.
Too fucking late.
There is no nature.

Who created this danger?
We did.
For our reason.
To get things quick.
To make things tick.

We massacre for efficiency.
We bomb for tyranny.
We starve for profit.
We argue
but neither side is the solution.
The opposite.

We've altered the earth so severely
exceeded it's capacity.
We don't deserve it.
We've been taught so quickly
all the methods to destroy it
and so quickly it responds.

The animals are disappearing
and there is no ark.
The waters rise.
The storms surge.
The drought lengthens.
The design: distorted and erratic.

Since we cannot evolve so quickly
we will either all be erased
or science will save us
but it will not happen 
with this current way.
There must be a massive change
but it may be too late.

Exponential destruction
yet we cease to stop it.
It will stop us.
and we deserve it.
and the heavens will sigh
a sigh of relief.

Words by Riley Robinson

Ether at Unease

I'm exactly who you think I am 
but I am not afraid 
i am never letting go
Certainty..you are saving my soul
through it all loving me more
when time opens the door
heaven is home
mistakes..won't tear me apart
so I lift my voice all my soul my heart
you will be there
when you can feel heaven is home lift your voice to the Lord
heaven is my home

Heaven is Home

Friday (Inst.)

Discernment

Las marimbas

Speedmike a eu la gentillesse de me proposer ce très joli morceau de guitare afin de poser une voix dessus. L'inspiration au piano m'est venue rapidement ce qui m'a permis d'écrire le texte.
Cela a été un réel plaisir de travailler sur ce morceau. 
Merci à toi Speedmike et à toi Lena qui est venue poser délicatement ta voix :)

Musique : Speedmike@user-https://soundcloud.com/user-423331569
Arrangement, piano, harmonica, texte & voix : Steph Ouna
Coeurs : Lena : https://soundcloud.com/user-262019520

Friday (Inst.)

James Geer