Amorphis - The Karelian Isthmus (1992)

AMORPHIS LYRICS
The Karelian Isthmus (1992)

1. Karelia
2. The Gathering
3. Grails Mysteries
4. Warriors Trail
5. Black Embrace
6. Exile Of The Sons Of Uisliu
7. The Lost Name Of God
8. The Pilgrimage
9. Misery Path
10. Signs From The North Side
11. Vulgar Necrolatry


1. Karelia

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: T. Koivusaari E. Holopainen]

"The sound of thousand warriors
The fields of thousand battles
Still, in our hearts we can hear
the great hymn of Karelia."


2. The Gathering

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: T. Koivusaari]

As I sense their steel,
As I see the mighty one,
As we all gather once again
the gods of war summon us...
summon us

North wind blows to our valley
men with ships, with swords, with honour

Their horses between flames,
their dogs eating enemy childs,
Our heavenly father, what is this mortality,
do you see my mortal agony

Look, I see the shield up high
this must be the sign from my lord
this can be my death - sentence
what a fine day to die

Taste of blood comes up high
Wind blows hard, our men fall...
one by one
This oath claims me
I must bleed for my generation

Strong is the enemy,
strong is my sword
the hammer is rising
I feel their cold steel

Now when I leave this world
I shall open the mighty oaken gate
and we all shall gather once again


3. Grails Mysteries

[lyrics & music: E. Holopainen]

I shall have a son,
out of Cornwall shall he come,
that shall be a wild boar,
bristled with steel...
he shall be a man most brave and
noble in thought

Thou shall kneel for him,
for every man shall humble in front of our lord
I stood upon the sand of the sea
and the great wind told me to carry on
He shall once know the secret of Holy Grail

And so was the coronation made
And there was he,
sworn unto his lords and the commons
to be true king


4. Warriors Trail

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: T. Koivusaari & E. Holopainen]

As the sun falls down
and the swell crashes into the shore

The great warriors of doom and wind
ride high
Silent is the silence,
the only breathing of horses sound,
Cold northern steel, shining blade, pleases us
And we all live under the black mark

Oh lord, lead us to the paradise
My lord, is this the promised land
is this your gift

Let us fly into your dreams
Let us taste some blood

Sorrow - the unknown force
Hate - respect your enemy
Bitterness - shall be forever
Silence - nothing left

Let us fly into your dreams
Let us taste some blood


5. Black Embrace

[lyrics: J. Rechberger]
[music: T. Koivusaari & E. Holopainen]

Terror, when the darkness binds your limbs
Terror, when the fear freezes your nerves
Horror, when the pain climbs up your veins
Darkness, creeping under you skin

Moment of life,
when we all have to choose,
which way to go
and for whom to sacrifice your life

Invoke the god - pray
To lead you back to life - pray
Cursed by religion - hate
Learned upon church - fake

In the verge of hell,
of human mind
Redemption of your soul,
as darkness binds you tight

Moment of life,
when we all have to choose,
which way to go
and for whom to sacrifice your life


6. Exile Of The Sons Of Uisliu

[lyrics & music: E. Holopainen]

A wave the sound of Noisiu's voice
his singing was ever sweet...
Noisiu's grave has now been made
and the accompaniment was mournful

For him I poured out - hero of heroes,
the deadly drink that killed him

Dear his short shining hair
a handsome man, even very beautiful

Dear the grey eyes that women loved
fierce they were foes


7. The Lost Name Of God

[lyrics: J. Rechberger]
[music: E. Holopainen, T. Koivusaari & J. Rechberger]

We have to know, we have to see
Religions so many, which one of them are so real,
That it makes us to believe ?
Crushing the chains of faith

To find the way of immortality,
We're hiding behind the cross
To find shelter,
we're searching for the name of god

In this maze of hatred
The name of god is lost

Under the flag of salvation
we are cleared this land of pagans
Under the cover of Christianity,
we stained our hands in blood

At these times of anguish
The name of God is lost

"I saw the coming of the end,
Sun stopped its shining,
Air is no longer fresh,
Then it was too late to realize,
that we can't breathe our hate."

The lost name of God


8. The Pilgrimage

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: T. Koivusaari]

In his eyes
The evil spirit rise
Turns to darkness with Satan's name

"As the time is right
dead bodies rise up from their graves
And when the time comes near
Oh, I see the prince of glory"

Holy month
Sacred hounds
Under the hill
Do you hear their call


9. Misery Path

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: E. Holopainen, T. Koivusaari & J. Rechberger]

We sail across the sea,
In our thoughts we float over mountains
All this vanity that we could hide
The truth

The truth is to be alive
and to live your life in fear by hate
and create our own gods

We all ourselves are created
our own images
Ourselves we are created
our own gods

In the misty morning
When the sun is rising,
When the whole sky is red like blood
Man can realize the real meaning of life
to love and respect your life

Your salvation,
or is just your damnation.

We all ourselves...


10. Signs From The North Side

[lyrics: E. Holopainen]
[music: E. Holopainen, T. Koivusaari & O.P. Laine]

True Celtic power
from the cape of Cornwall

Cry of hope, angels cry
This was omen, our sign, prediction

Distant gate, gothic grave
Through ages our clan still remain

In this proud land I grew up strong,
My tears are flowing all around
The wind is twisting my sorrow
I still believe in truth and hate

All through my life I have carried our ring,
The omen
All this was the fragment from my life

In this proud land I was born alone
I was taught to fight, taught to win
They told me the way of steel and secret
I am the unburied child, child without a nam,
Without fate,
I fight for peace and love,
I am reborn


11. Vulgar Necrolatry

[CD bonus track]

[lyrics: J. Ahlroth]
[music: T. Koivusaari]

Erosion of life I see
it makes the passion burn in me
Life it always withers away
Death will eternally stay

Corpses in their coffins
forever rest in peace?
There sleeping with the aspergillus
is this justice to the dead?

The atrocious sight of burial ecremony
Christians weeping for the departed
They won't understand, they should envy them!

The deceased they know, if there's a paradise
Or shall we feel, the purgatory!
I open the graves, admire the rot
I can feel the presence, of something beyond

Aureola of nauseating reek
Wings of shriveled skin
Holy beauty of a carcass
Divine sight for me to gaze upon!

Necrolatic! Reverence for putrefaction
Necrolatic! reverence for the stench

I kneel, before a carrion
I pray, before the dead
I know, they shall rise
I fear, for the scourge
I revere, power of the dead



Tomi Koivusaari - vocals, guitar, six string acoustic guitar
Esa Holopainen - guitar, twelve string acoustic guitar
Olli-Pekka Laine - bass
Jan Rechberger - drums, keyboards