Borknagar Lyrical Meanings???

[ShredLasVegas]

Hello to the guys in Borknagar. I love your work, especially on Empiricism and Collossus The European folk feeling mixed in with black metal is awesome, and very very very well done.

But especially on Empiricism I was wondering what from or where you got your inspiration to write the lyrics??

A few tracks that really sweep me off my feet are:
Gods of My World
The Stellar Dome
The Element Synchronicity
Liberated (especially this one)

Your lyrics revolve, on this album, seemingly to me, around natures laws, the universe, and descriptions of these things. But you also mention Machiavelli on "Liberated" and seem to get philosophical in some ways on other songs too.

Would you guys consider yourselves a pro-European or racialist band?

Any input on this would be awesome. Especially on the philisophical thoughts and inspirations that go into your lyrical writing.

Thank you very much.

 

[Asgeir Mickelson]

I'll let the other guys decode their own lyrics for you, but the band is definitely NOT pro-european or pro any race at all. However, I believe the human nature makes everyone at least a tiny little bit pro-your-own-country solely on the fact that you live and breathe there. If you have a child I bet you think he/she is just a little bit smarter than all other children.

- Asgeir

 

[The Grimace]

Asgeir, I wanna ask you this since you're my favorite Borknagar lyricist, are you more of a 'write good lyrics then figure out what they mean afterwards' kind of writer, or do you always have a 'theme' or 'story' in mind beforehand? Maybe a bit of both, like there's always the central coherent idea keeping it together but then there are some individual lines that are just flowing poetic verse?

I just ask because there's always those few lines whose meaning I can't quite decipher... specifically, what does 'the pendulum upholds the carnal deceit' mean, in the context of the song? The one line of 'Colossus' I could never quite place, and it's one of my favorites.

 

[Asgeir Mickelson]

Asgeir, I wanna ask you this since you're my favorite Borknagar lyricist, are you more of a 'write good lyrics then figure out what they mean afterwards' kind of writer, or do you always have a 'theme' or 'story' in mind beforehand? Maybe a bit of both, like there's always the central coherent idea keeping it together but then there are some individual lines that are just flowing poetic verse?

It depends. I constantly write tiny bits and pieces of lyrics. Most of the time I write with a specific theme in mind but if I can't get a lyric finished I change the theme a little bit to get new ideas.

I just ask because there's always those few lines whose meaning I can't quite decipher... specifically, what does 'the pendulum upholds the carnal deceit' mean, in the context of the song? The one line of 'Colossus' I could never quite place, and it's one of my favorites.

The colossus-lyric is my theory about the universe as an infinite process of birth and death. At some point everyting (universe) explodes (the "big bang" theory) and at some point it all implodes - then it starts again, and again... So, "the pendulum" means this process and "the carnal deceit" is when everything implodes and 'stops to exist' (yes, I like metaphors). When I say "deceit" I also think of the humans who doesn't accept science. Religious people believe in fantasies and can't cope with the fact.

Thanks for asking!

- Asgeir

 

[Vintersorg]

Hello to the guys in Borknagar. I love your work, especially on Empiricism and Collossus The European folk feeling mixed in with black metal is awesome, and very very very well done.

But especially on Empiricism I was wondering what from or where you got your inspiration to write the lyrics??

A few tracks that really sweep me off my feet are:
Gods of My World
The Stellar Dome
The Element Synchronicity
Liberated (especially this one)

Your lyrics revolve, on this album, seemingly to me, around natures laws, the universe, and descriptions of these things. But you also mention Machiavelli on "Liberated" and seem to get philosophical in some ways on other songs too.

Would you guys consider yourselves a pro-European or racialist band?

Any input on this would be awesome. Especially on the philisophical thoughts and inspirations that go into your lyrical writing.

Thank you very much.

My lyrical contributions to Borknagar is mostly based on mankind in relation with nature, how we see that nature always take care of itself( action-reaction...) when Man mostly have actions in focus, then we suddenly notice that out of that stupidity we get a reaction..but many time we can't put the process on reverse..só we just have to suffer the consequences of our narrow-minded thinking...I can also see( in retorspective) that I tend to use a cyclic theme..birth-progression-law-collapse-rebirth...

mr V

 

[Anagnorisis]

i have noticed scientific themes,but was has been striking to me is the apparent study behind the lyrical content.
you guys touch on an issue that has really interested me latelly.....
there seems to be some references to quantum physics in alot of the lyrics.is that some thing you guys are into?
if so are you also in to rellitivism(as in perception being reality)and its application to and with quantum theory?
please excuse spelling and gramatical errors,its early yet.
Aust and Anagnorisis

 

[--]

i took a class and was told there were 3 possible courses the universe could be on.
1. expand/collapse: big bang, decelerated expansion, accelerated collapse, big crunch
2. infinite expansion at decelerated rate, approaching the limit of acceleration=0
3. expansion at decelerated rate changes to expansion at accelerated rate.

3 was the current belief, that the universe is getting farther away from itself faster than before. it also implies a closed geometry with a finite boundary yet no center. this has something to do with hubble’s law and red shifts and cosmic microwave background, but sorry i don’t have any text references only notes.

i can see the birth/death cycle on smaller scales, to a present state, birth/death is now repeated forever. but i don’t know how to find (3) as a theme in nature. i associate with many nondualistic ideas, yet i think assimilation of other thoughts is necessary to form a more complete picture. this is where science comes in, despite inherent limits. (so i'm seeing a no-reason vs. reason picture, no wonder i'm confused.)

i wanted to ask you guys if it was your belief that science is approaching the understanding of mysticism/spiritualism, as it has in the past? is science the ultimate answer? or how do you derive spiritual beliefs through shifting scientific paradigms and is there a term for it?

 

[Necramentia]

The colossus-lyric...

what i like best about the colossus lyric is just the last two lines, which sum up the entire song in concept, can be applied to so much about life ("nothing but the process is infinite/eternal, endless, indefinite"). the process is the archetype, the concept that transcends human progression and activity. that the only thing that will ever last until the end of humanity is subconscious creations of human nature that we cannot change by any amount of human progress through understanding. action means nothing, no matter how lasting the affect, as future action will render it useless (ex: inventions outdating past inventions). where humanity constantly progresses in the realms of knowledge, nothing can ever change our nature. it's probably why i quoted it once, as much as i'm against quoting lyrics for the message behind it so much...it's better than writing all this.

 

[skidzo]

i took a class and was told there were 3 possible courses the universe could be on.
1. expand/collapse: big bang, decelerated expansion, accelerated collapse, big crunch
2. infinite expansion at decelerated rate, approaching the limit of acceleration=0
3. expansion at decelerated rate changes to expansion at accelerated rate.

3 was the current belief, that the universe is getting farther away from itself faster than before. it also implies a closed geometry with a finite boundary yet no center. this has something to do with hubble’s law and red shifts and cosmic microwave background, but sorry i don’t have any text references only notes.

i can see the birth/death cycle on smaller scales, to a present state, birth/death is now repeated forever. but i don’t know how to find (3) as a theme in nature. i associate with many nondualistic ideas, yet i think assimilation of other thoughts is necessary to form a more complete picture. this is where science comes in, despite inherent limits. (so i'm seeing a no-reason vs. reason picture, no wonder i'm confused.)

i wanted to ask you guys if it was your belief that science is approaching the understanding of mysticism/spiritualism, as it has in the past? is science the ultimate answer? or how do you derive spiritual beliefs through shifting scientific paradigms and is there a term for it?

Science cannot be the ultimate answer as science grows constantly.
Many famous scientists, newton for example was a philosphic writer, Einstein of course did many phylosophical work after giving the physical fundations that lead to nuclear power (the understanding of the energy and time in space).
Some new studies about the universe and the birth of the universe tell us that Time in the very beginning bowed to the side, forming a circle and became its own root. From here we dont know why exactly this all happened, all must have started once and all the energy created itself or maybe it was the lack of energy that created that what scientists still don't know for shure and call our universe.

<numbers are the essence of all things an the metaphisical principle of rational order in the universe. >
well if this was exactly told like this by pythagoras we don't now but many people came to that sentence over 2000 years ago.
They really beleived that every thing can be reduced to numbers.
Now can you reduce your brain to numbers???, well it will be hard work but I think you can (not practically of course) do that.
If you beleive in a soul than you have to look in the numbers of your brain
propably you can find something like that there... enough!

cheers mates!

 

[Øystein G. Brun]

Interesting debate guy's! Well, I have more or less always rejected to decode my lyrics. The lyrics I write, is to me, art of the moment. It's almost like typing down what my mind dictate, at the current time. Ofcourse, I have a starting point-an idea- when writing, but in the end of the day it's all about compressing a long chain of thoughts down on a piece of paper. So when a journalist asks me what certain lyrics/lines means or something like that, I basically just return the question to them.
It's easy to talk in general terms about the basis for each of my lyrics, but it is close to impossible to "re-relate" to a certain chain of thought's that I had ages ago....
So as you may understand, I am not too fond of lyrics that has a very clear storyline. Boring! He, he....

 

[ShredLasVegas]

Thanks for all the replies... i have to agree that Collosus is awesome, and will always be that way eternally, indefinitley and endlessly...lol...to me anyway.

 

[--]

if you say lyrics are the art of the moment, then where does writing/composing music fit in...in the moment or grows over time? and later how do you relate to it?

i have no musical talent but i'm an artist and am generally displeased with everything i've done. of course i think it's great while i'm in the process creating. i've heard the only perfect piece of work is the next project. ...but you still end up with a collection of failures. and still something makes you try again. the only good thing is that someone else may appreciate the work irregardless of your personal opinion.

maybe it's about the creator becoming divorced from the creation, since it has been given it's own life or energy, is it beyond the creator's reasoning to understand? or by taking something out of your head and giving it a type of physical permanence it is suddenly open to interpretation and a scale of opinions where assertions are relative?

i had never really considered the chain of thoughts that inspire words, saw writing as more of a way to try to freeze thoughts to theoretically revisit them. but even what gets written is probably a gross abstraction of everything that goes on in your head. the other problem is trying to piece together the ideas in a somewhat logical fasion, or make a conclusion when necessary, otherwise it's just nonsense to other people. if you try to mentally re-relate, are you crossing previous paths from a different direction, or do you have to approach them completely anew? sometimes my brain goes in circles, sometimes in zigzaged line segments, and sometimes just scribbles...

 

[smea]

I'm wondering about something concerning the lyrics for my favourite songs.. The Genuine Pulse, and Inherit The Earth..

The Genuine Pulse - The Link of a thousand senses

Am I right if I say that this.. genuine pulse is life itself?


And Inherit The Earth.. I get a picture from the lyrics, but I find it difficult to put words on it.. Weird

 

[Innipunn]

Quote Asgeir:
"The colossus-lyric is my theory about the universe as an infinite process of birth and death. At some point everyting (universe) explodes (the "big bang" theory) and at some point it all implodes - then it starts again, and again... So, "the pendulum" means this process and "the carnal deceit" is when everything implodes and 'stops to exist' (yes, I like metaphors). When I say "deceit" I also think of the humans who doesn't accept science. Religious people believe in fantasies and can't cope with the fact."

Actually that's about the what i found out when i analysed Collossus a while ago! You really made your point clear in a way wich makes the reader/listener having to use his brain! Excellent!

 

[Evil-shiva]

My apologies for bringing this topic up again, but I really must thank you guys at Borknagar for the lyrics you create.
Ofcourse the music inspires me alot with numerous things, but the lyrics are what have really helped me to live my life.
I listen to the music then ofcourse read the lyrics. The words have greatly inspired alot of my art, hell I'm making a stupid amount of money thanks to you all.

I never really knew the meaning behind the lyrics, but I would get a feeling of what you were saying and I would place it onto paper.
I have a piece of art that was inspired by "Colossus" I've been working on this piece for years, but still only as a sketch I'm getting alot of responses from fans, they believe this piece will be my best work and It's all thanks to you guys.

I'm truelly glad to find out the meanings of the lyrics, It's nice to see a band use it's brain in writing, rather then throwing angst teenage lyrics into it.

Again thank you.

 

[Eindride]

Interesting debate guy's! Well, I have more or less always rejected to decode my lyrics. The lyrics I write, is to me, art of the moment. It's almost like typing down what my mind dictate, at the current time. Ofcourse, I have a starting point-an idea- when writing, but in the end of the day it's all about compressing a long chain of thoughts down on a piece of paper. So when a journalist asks me what certain lyrics/lines means or something like that, I basically just return the question to them.
It's easy to talk in general terms about the basis for each of my lyrics, but it is close to impossible to "re-relate" to a certain chain of thought's that I had ages ago....
So as you may understand, I am not too fond of lyrics that has a very clear storyline. Boring! He, he....

But i wonder one thing: why do you hold back on the lyrics for your first album? I know you said somewhere that thought they were "embarassing" (did i spell that correctly?) or something like that, but don't you think the audience will be fair and put their interpretations in relation to the fact that this was Borknagars very first outing, immature or not in lyrical content?

I tend to like lyrics of The Archaic Course the best - in general i like that album the best - maybe because i think word and note are so intertwined on this one. I see it as the soundtrack to an truly remarkable spiritual journey across the dark northern wintery lands in a sort of microcosmos-macrocosmos perspective. I tend to like the spiritual themed lyrics more then the scientific oriented. The driving force of the music - the razorsharp guitar assault that cuts its way through the ether accompanied by Grims fantastic drumming and (of course) mighty Simens soaring vocals - is best desribed with the two latin words fascinosum and tremendum. This will always be the masterpiece number one in the Borknagar catalouge.

Sure, Quintessence is very good to, but i've always considered that album as a "black sheep" or a transition album between the "old" and the "new" progressive Vintersorg-fronted Borknagar. The only album i believe can rival TAC is in fact Empiricism.

 

[KRaEzTaIuRmED]

Alive from the dead!

I remember reading an interview before, and Øystein said that only himself and Garm if he still remembers will ever know the lyrics.

 

[Asgeir Mickelson]

My apologies for bringing this topic up again, but I really must thank you guys at Borknagar for the lyrics you create.
Ofcourse the music inspires me alot with numerous things, but the lyrics are what have really helped me to live my life.
I listen to the music then ofcourse read the lyrics. The words have greatly inspired alot of my art, hell I'm making a stupid amount of money thanks to you all.

I never really knew the meaning behind the lyrics, but I would get a feeling of what you were saying and I would place it onto paper.
I have a piece of art that was inspired by "Colossus" I've been working on this piece for years, but still only as a sketch I'm getting alot of responses from fans, they believe this piece will be my best work and It's all thanks to you guys.

I'm truelly glad to find out the meanings of the lyrics, It's nice to see a band use it's brain in writing, rather then throwing angst teenage lyrics into it.

Again thank you.

Icy? Can I see that piece of art?

 

[Det Som Engang Var]

Asgeir how can I write those big science lyrics?

 

[Asgeir Mickelson]

Asgeir how can I write those big science lyrics?

Interest, meaning and time.