Acherad, "To Fear Helios, To Be Helios" and The Perpetual Katabasis!
The funny thing about me as a writer is that, while I have a huge amount of faith in my work, I still get hit by shock whenever I see its impact or how far it travels. When Rex approached me about using some of my poetry for his new band, Acherad, I was very excited. Seeing someone bring life to and interpret my poetry was a fascinating experience. It was almost witnessing metamorphosis - I saw the most difficult winter of my life evolve.
Horrible experiences which ate at me, and still do, became stanzas and poems. Those poems and works, in the hands of Acherad, became music and song. And now, while those experiences still feel like a dagger in the gut, I feel we reached into that wound together and pulled out something profound.
It was awe inspiring for me to hear it. From there on, we collaborated on the rest of the tracks. Our work together explored a bunch of topics from a variety of places. I am perhaps most proud of our expeditions into Hittite mythology, it was a trip and a half to delve into it and the lyrics we pulled out ( "Illuyanka" and "On Spears Engraved") are some of my favorites on the whole album.
So, to summarize, I'm extremely proud to have been (and still be!) part of The Eternal Katabasis and I hope you all enjoy.
https://youtu.be/rZQkaJ3em-I?si=KzqfaBji5j_ZubO0
The poem "To Fear Helios, To Be Helios":
To Fear Helios, To Be Helios
We float in coffins
Dead but awake
All the burdens of pseudo life
For us to shoulder and take
-----
There came a time that never left
There was a beauty shown in jest
There came killers to wrest
And Solon said it best
-------
The journey is long,
The sun burns the brittle coffin wood
Cruel cosmos draws in
Our ashes become so much refuse
--------
There came a time that never left
The few, the proud were left bereft
There's no climbing back from these depths
And Wilde said it best
--------
If time won't leave then I must
To where you, the others, couldn't
And if it were in my power to save you all
Rest assured, my fellows, I wouldn't
---------
Despair, sadness, heartbreak, lies
(Rest assured, my fellows, I wouldn't )
Pain, blood, spit, gauged eyes
(Rest assured, my fellows, I wouldn't )
Beg, plead, barter, bargain
Rest assured, I won't
