“The Air is alive!” This song is designed to elicit the feeling of the insatiable need for adventure/discovery. Confounded by its mystery, the knight becomes resolved to set out on a quest to discover the Secret of the Stone (find the meaning of life) and he feels the burning restlessness of someone who can’t wait any longer (“I’ve waited far too long, been sleeping way too long”).
Lyrically, this track covers a lot of ground. The knight makes his proclamation of adventure, declaring that he will set out on his quest in the first verse (“I live to roam the earth, and I will find my worth”). Immediately after that line, he is visited by a dark figure shrouded in a cloak with lots of eyes on his head. (“Many eyes to see many truths” was a line describing the character that didn’t end up making the final cut into the song. Not really an important detail at all, but I’m already typing stuff, so why not?)
The figure in the cloak represents God, and the rest of the track is a dialogue between God and Man. He warns the knight “The Secret of the Stone is Grave, it lays to waste the hearts of men,” meaning that the quest for answers the knight is about to embark on has destroyed many men before him. Finding the answers does not guarantee closure for him, and he may wish he had never set out in the first place. This line also has a literal interpretation which is a pretty major plot spoiler for the entire album, so if you’re clever you only need to listen to the first verse of the first track and you can forget the rest! (Just kidding, pls keep listening to our fire mixtape?!?).
The man in the cloak with lots of eyes (God) also tells the knight that “If you go there will be none to walk beside you, who can share your burden or reach out to guide you,” meaning that if he takes up the quest, the knight will be utterly alone and that it is a journey he must make for himself (ultimately nobody else can command your worldview, but you must internalize a belief system on your own). The knight listens to the man in the cloak, but after short consideration decides to press on anyway (“I’ll march on all the same”) and swears to never rest until he finds the answers he seeks (“I go into the Great Unknown, I’ll let it lead where it will, I’ll never be standing still).
Understanding that the knight will not be dissuaded, the cloaked man offers him some guidance (“There is a great fortress in the air; the answer that you seek is hidden there”). Enter the Castle in the Clouds. This is the first mention of the Castle, and it remains the subject of fixation for the protagonist for the rest of the album, always stringing together the tracks no matter what they talk about.
There is also some pretty steep significance to the phrase “this road before me” which crops up at a couple of different points throughout the album. The “road” in question represents the journey of a lifetime: it is the combination of religious/spiritual enlightenment, trials and difficulties, victories, challenges, and the human experience at large. It is also the literal road that leads to the Castle in the Clouds along which the knight travels for the duration of the album.
lyrics
The air Is Alive!
I’ve waited far too long, been sleeping way too long and now I
Take Back My life!
I live to roam the earth, and I will find my worth
The secret of the Stone is Grave, it lays to waste the hearts of men
I warn you do not seek it, turn away while you still can.
So I go into the Great Unknown
I’ll let it Lead where it will, I’ll never be standing still
I go into the Great Unknown
This road before me will shape my story
If you go there will be none to walk beside you
Who can share your burden or reach out to guide you (x2)
I'll march on all the same (x2)
I will show my face
I will prove my name
I will find my place
I will open up the gates
There is a great fortress in the air
The answer that you seek is hidden there
So I go into the Great Unknown
I’ll let it Lead where it will, I’ll never be standing still
I go into the great unknown
This road before me will shape my story
supported by 30 fans who also own “Secret of the Stone”
I was quickly overwhelmed the moment I listened to "Interlude." Oriental atmosphere reminiscent of Egypt is very intertwined through all. Supreme Truth has something in common with Linkin Park's Meteora. Catsfist
Scalding metalcore from Spain, “Where the Waves Are Born” swings from clean to growled vocals over blindingly intricate fretwork. Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 19, 2023
Sharptooth fight bigotry with melodic hardcore, their breakdowns an ideal vehicle for singer Lauren Kashan's incendiary insights. Bandcamp New & Notable Jul 15, 2020
supported by 22 fans who also own “Secret of the Stone”
At first I wasn't so sure about getting this one, it was part of a long list of music I had to listen to, and I knew that at the time I liked it and kept it in my list to buy for a reason but couldn't remember why, but I do remember now, this is way too intense to be forgotten,you made a new fan to this day and will follow you closely from now on! SlashedSucubus
