THROUGH DARKNESS INTO LIGHT -- completed mix (prog rock content)

[TwilightOdyssey]

Mixing in a new room/setup really threw me for a loop on this one! Fortunately "many hands make the load light" as the saying goes, and I was able to get a few sets of ears I trust on this one to help me rein it in. This song was an absolute BLAST to work on, both the drummer and singer did a fantastic job bringing this one to life.

I hope you enjoy! As ever, any feedback is appreciated!

NOTE 1: The song is unmastered as yet; looking into mastering houses now as I work on the other songs

NOTE 2: SoundCloud does a fair mangling to the original audio, so if you want to hear the uncompressed version of the mix, you can download or stream it from here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wbzWSxTuB-4kmyMtmw3l1qtXilPwFbr5/view?usp=sharing



LINEUP:
vocals :: kurt borst
drums and percussion :: alex marchisone
guitars, bass, and synthesizers :: ben asaro


LYRICS:
THROUGH DARKNESS INTO LIGHT

a. DAWN BATTLE
Mist on the field
In the coming dawn
Our enemy revealed
Guide my hand this day
Rising up with hearts of steel

Forest deep
Lay down and sleep
Into deep slumbers I’m falling
Wake thee from thy dream

Hear her sing, sweet Tinuviel
Casting a spell over my heart
Elf-King daughter’s song

b. REALMS OF TWILIGHT
Realm of Sauron/Evil power/Torturing the Elves
Twisted treason/Evil reason/Prey upon his fear

Dark illusion/Dark conclusion/Wife back from the dead
Son of Morgoth/Sets in motion/Tragedy for all the Elves
Evil plans are sown in the darkness

In his leisure/Take the treasure/From the Iron Crown
Stone upon his brow is falling/Rolling on the ground
Iron tower/In his power/Shadow on the land

Hunt Carcharoth/With my brothers/Battle ended, take my hand
Evil plans are sown in the darkness

c. INTO THE LIGHT
Stone within his hand
Part from mortal land
See his spirit leaving
From his final stand

He enters a Realm of Light
Crying aloud for him
She lives on!

Hound of Valinor
Faithful to the end
Speaking out a third time
Listen now, my friends

He enters the Realm of Light
Valinor calls to him
She lives on!

Simaril restored
Beren gains her hand
Magic song returned
Sounds out across the land

They enter a Realm of Light
Crying aloud for him
She lives on!

With the passing years
Slowly does he age
Then one day he breathes his last upon this stage

He enters the Realm of Light
Crying aloud for him
She lives on!

 

[JOLLY]

That's impressive as hell. I listened to the whole thing. There's all kinds of styles and influences in there.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Thanks, Jolly!

 

[DankStar]

Sounds difficult to have recorded and gotten down. Love all the layers. I agree that Soundcloud destroys mixes. Going to give it some more spins...

 

[Phantasmagoria]

Fantastic song and mix..I think it's your best one yet! .You keep getting better haha. And It's really heavy too..very epic vibe with a whole bunch of killer twists and turns that stay interesting right to the end. I loved the guitar and synth work and the way all the stuff weaves around constantly, twin/layered melodies etc.. must be a bitch to write lol...

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Thanks, DankStar and Phantsamagoria!

I would say yes/no on the difficulty level. On the one hand, the style comes pretty natural to me, the challenges are to keep true to my influences without getting derivative, and playing the sections all the way through, as I don't do punch-ins. It takes a while to come up with sections that compliment each other, and then months to get the drums and vocal tracks back, but it's well worth the wait for the final product!

Writing the vocal melodies and lyrics are by far the most challenging to me; I'm not a singer, nor a writer.