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  1. Eurydice

From the recording Heartwood

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"He stretched out to her his despairing arms, eager to rescue her, or feel her form, but could hold nothing save the yielding air. Dying the second time, she could not say a word of censure of her husband`s fault; what had she to complain of -- his great love?"
~Taken from Metamorphosis by Ovid Trans. By Brookes More

I am fascinated by mythology, particularly Greek mythology. The story of Orpheus and Eurydice can bring tears to my eyes, every single time. The futility of his quest to retrieve his dead wife and the overwhelming love that just would not let him accept that she must die has always touched me. Beyond, I think the story of Orpheus and Eurydice is a poignant reminder of the frailty of our humanness and what is beautiful within that. My favourite line from the story is this `While he sang all his heart said to the sound of his sweet lyre, the bloodless ghosts themselves were weeping`. That love, that grief, could evoke such empathy is what calls to me when I read this myth. When writing about myths, I do not like to simply retell the story, for there are far better storytellers than I. What is more interesting to me, is to find what about that particular myth has allowed it to stand the test of time. What is still meaningful about the story, what does it teach about the human condition, that transcends the time of it`s conception? The story of Orpheus and Eurydice has lasted over 2000 years, and it can still touch us. Societies rise and fall, cultures change, stories pass through the sieves of religion, but for a story to remain for so long, through the crumbling towers of power and thought, means it strikes to the very core of what it means to be human. And after all, love and grief is something I think we can all understand, regardless of it`s lyrical and poetic vestments.

The original lyrics were longer and were pared down by Doug and I as we first started preproduction on the song. The following are the lyrics that didn`t make it into the song. This stanza originally appeared after `How can they know pain?'
'Strands seep the music weeps
Searching for your ears
It's always been you love, my muse,
You're my sanity
Crazy"

This stanza originally appeared after `I can`t resist looking`.
"Wake now in silence
To pain so exquisite
Her voice fades,
Her perfume is all that remains to me
Now"

Truly it is that he looked back, that made Orpheus such a real figure in my mind. Of course, he couldn't resist looking.
Written in February of 2007

Lyrics

I died a thousand deaths
Tears flood the banks of my eyes
One moment and everything changes
Forever

Chasms of darkness
Where shadow and fear grip my soul
A vast realm of silence so vast, so cold
Inside

Love has led to this place
In love I will die, or live once again

Don’t look back now
She’s one breath away
I won’t let go, can’t accept the fate that’s told

I scream my pain to the
Gods, Queens and Weavers
Who carelessly give, take and cut, how can they know?
Pain

Love has led to this place
In love I will die, or live once again

Don’t look back now
She’s one breath away
Where is my strength, where’s the will to carry on

Warm breath upon my neck
Sweetly her lips sing my name
A heartbeat, at last love, I can’t resist
Looking

Love I thought I would die
But live on without, I’m broken inside