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The Nephilim

Happy Spring! Now during the lighter portion of the year, when we are beginning to awaken from the long winter's slumber, it's particularly nice to have good strong music, with uplifting lyrics to help us through our hibernation. Who better to help us in that matter than Fields Of The Nephilim? Although none of these songs are new, and as most who listen to this group already know, the band has broken up and gone their own ways. This DVD full of video footage is just the ticket to get the blood moving around the body again. The DVD is called "Revelations" and has a selection from past albums with something to suit everyone, including a track from The Nefilim, headed up by Carl McCoy, and 2 tracks from Rubicon, which is the Wright brothers post Nephilim musical venture.

Before I go on, it might be interesting to some for me to point out the relevance of this review. With Easter being around the corner, it's worth mentioning the origins of this particular holiday. It has been said that Eostre or Ostara is the equivalent of the Sumerian goddess Ishtar who was the wife of the Sumerian god, Tammuz. Both are spoken of in the Bible - Tammuz in Ezekiel 8:14 and Ishtar, called Ashtoreth and Queen of Heaven, in Judges 2:13, Judges 10:6, Jeremiah 44:17, and elsewhere.

"When Tammuz died, Ishtar followed him to the underworld, leaving the earth deprived of its fertility. She and Tammuz were rescued from death when the Queen of the Dead allowed a heavenly messenger to sprinkle them with the water of life. This allowed them to return to the light of the sun for six months of each year. For the other six they had to return to the land of death.

The worship of Ishtar as a nature goddess had spread throughout the ancient world. In Phoenicia and Syria her name had become Astarte. Her husband earlier called Baal, and known as Tammuz farther east, became Adon in Phoenicia and Syria. In Greece, Ishtar and Tammuz became Aphrodite and Adonis; in Asia Minor they became Cybele and Attis. These are also the very same as Inanna, Queen of Heaven, and her husband Dumuzi. The mentioning of these deities are sprinkled throughout the various songs as written by Fields Of The Nephilim, therefore, my choosing of this group to be reviewed now, fits the holiday.

Allow yourself to go back to a time in which golden temples lined with lapis lazuli walls were erected to the Elder Gods, and set up purposely for their worship. This review will be very visual to some, and may well cause a trance - like state especially when accompanied by the music. Allow that to happen if you're willing. Let your mind take you on a fantastic journey back in time to a world that only lives on in memory. Really allow the lyrics to speak to your soul in a way that only music is able to do. Sit back and enjoy the ride - it's gonna be a good one :o)

There are 4 sections to this DVD, including bonus tracks from The Nefilim (Carl and his new band - the name changed to the phonetic spelling due to legalities), and Rubicon, plus an electronic press kit, and commentary throughout by Carl McCoy. The visuals are stunning, with the band dressed in typical Nephilim regalia, belting out all the favorite Nephilim anthems just the way you like them. The commentary is especially interesting, as Carl goes into some detail about the band's personal beliefs into Sumerian lore. It bears mentioning that they have made use of some quotes directly from the old favorite, the Necronomicon - "zi dingir anna kanpa, zi dingir kia kanpa" (Psychonaut).

Because I have added a line from Psychonaut, that seems as good a place as any to introduce you to the music. It's worth pointing out here that the Tiamat/Leviathan/Cthulu corollary has always been important to Carl - he's been summoning Cthulu (and calling this traditionally male character "she" from the outside) from early Nephilim recordings. Leviathan is mentioned in "Psychonaut" but Tiamat is the original. She was seen by the Babylonians as the Divine Mother, the Creator, Mother Earth. Some say she is the "salt waters of creation," thus uniting her with the sea; others say she is the earth itself. The song starts off slowly, with keyboard sounds that send chills up the spine and works its way up to a faster tempo, and goes back and forth like this throughout the whole of the song. There comes with it a certain expectation that something fearsome is about to take place. Throughout is a note of desperation within his voice, as he pleads with you to keep praying for hours on end.

"Pray now
For how long?
We're falling from ecstasy
Like changelings
Freedom returned for new souls
Hereafter
Well enrapture me
And I'll change..

This temple I'll hold inside you
This temple I'll hold beside you
Let it spill
From my mouth
Sweet nectar
For a thousand young

Are you ready for this?
Here I come

Pray now
For hours
Pray for me
Could you love?
We're falling from ecstasy

You did suffer
Leviathan
You did suffer
Leviathan

We are children now
But our curses come
And glory days
Our kingdom come
You look older
Turned to stone
Freedom sold us

Pray now
For how long?
Pray for me
Could you love?
We're falling from ecstasy

You did suffer
Leviathan
You deserve us
Leviathan

Pray for me..

Let us gather hallucinations from our private minds
Let us witness the reincarnation of the sun
May the mountains shake you to the core
Xi dingir anna kanpa, xi dingir kia kanpa"..

That moves us to the next song I have chosen, which is "Penetration". This particular song is actually from The Nefilim, which I feel better represents Carl's ideals of how his music should be, much better than FOTN. I know.. I'm hearing some of you saying "BLASPHEMY"! Delving somewhat into the Book Of Enoch, The Nephilim are born, and they are destruction personified. They are "shining like gods," the "new body, new blood" of the love between the angels and human women. Their violence seems uncontainable, uncontrollable, like a fire in the soul which cannot be quenched. The magickal sons first turn against the humans, including their own mothers, leaving a path of destruction and chaos in their wake. You might find it interesting to note that the ziarahs Carl mentions are defined by Anton LaVey in his book "The Satanic Rituals".

"From Mount Lalesh near the ancient city of Nineveh, the Yezidi empire stretched in an invisible band approximately 300 miles wide to the Mediterranean junction of Turkey and Syria on one end, and the mountains of the Caucasus in Russia on the other. At intervals along this strip were 7 towers - the Towers of Satan (Ziarahs) - 6 of them trapezoidal in form and the 7th, on Mount Lalesh, shaped like a sharp, fluted point. Each tower was topped by a brilliant heliographic reflector, and was intended to serve as a 'power house' from which a magician could beam his will to the 'descendants of Adam' and influence human events in the outside world".

The Yezidis claim to be the descendants of Azazel, who was bound up hand and foot and put away in a dark place with sharp and jagged rocks all around, keeping out the light. Another thing worth noting is that the Yezidis do not worship Satan - they worship Malak Tawus, the Peacock Angel, a spiritual brother to the Watchers. That is another story! I have my own theory of who and where The Nephilim may have really come from, but I won't include it here - If any are interested though, you can feel free to ask me :o) Here are the lyrics to this - I find myself including whole songs because I feel that it's pointless when telling people a story, to only tell a small part of it.

"Seeing things in my whole life, images exploding. You have been chosen."

"We are free."

Endymion - magical son
Nothing here is real
Lasts forever

Shining like gods
New body, new blood
The fire that I feel
Armageddon
Vision

Penetrating me
Penetrating you
Penetrating deep
Look out

"What's happening is real. You can't stop them. What do you think, we just go on forever?"

Ziarahs are all burning ahead
Illuminating ways I've not dreamed before
Eternals are inviting me in
I see images of you burn forever
Can't contain

Penetrating deep - generating me
Penetrating you - let go

We must go back now
Make my entrance one way
And I can't look in
And I can't look back
We cannot stop, no
Black out
Listen

"Repeat: we have confirmed angel touchdown. The place is completely ablaze of fire. It's like hell down here. I think we're going straight for the fucking light."

Penetrating deep
Penetrating me
Penetrating you
Again"..

And finally, I had originally wanted to review several of the songs from this DVD, but due to the nature and vast history that they have drawn upon, it's just not feasible to do so unfortunately :o/ So I'll finish up with an old favorite of mine called "Last Exit For The Lost". You'll find that this song is like one long ritual. I see this as being narrated by one of The Watchers after everything he has gone through with regards to becoming involved with a woman of Earth. All his cares, hopes, and regrets over the destruction he and his brother Watchers have caused so many to needlessly suffer through as a direct result of their actions. The pain in his voice is evident throughout, echoing until the very last remnants of the song finally conclude. It starts out slow and deliberate, but then the tempo changes with wave after wave of terror breaking over you until you are swept away within its currents.

"Would you pay life's pleasures to see me?
Does it hurt for I want you to remain
I run your hair through in another decade
Summerland holds me in Sumerian haze.

Pain in places where the lovers mourn
Arranging the play things up and down the hall.

Forever remain for every day
My honor remains
Forever remain.

Between the spaces along the wall
Appearing faces that disappear at dawn
We're getting closer I can see the door
Closer and closer Cthulhu calls

Forever remain.
Forever remain.

You'll seek it it'll take a while
You'll seek this if it's a thousand miles
Take what fate brings eternal and desire
I'll change those faces then I take their smile
We're getting close to you I can see the door
Closer and closer or is it there at all

Forever remain
Forever remain

This could be my last regress
Last exit for the lost
This could be my last regress
Last exit for the lost
This could be my last regress
Precious for the lost"..

Ok, no doubt you'll want to really check deeper into this band, and what they're all about, so I'll provide some really good links here for your clicking pleasures. I have said it before (and made use of it before in a previous review), but this site made by a fan is really one of the better ones I've found out there and is worth visiting - often!

http://www.nefilim.de/

Then there is the official site - I recommend this one highly. It has been written out by Carl, and is watched ands maintained by the same. Want to talk about lore? This has all you need in one very fine site.

http://www.fields-of-the-nephilim.com

And of course you'll want to sample the sounds, though I recommend buying the DVD today. It's worth every penny to have this all on one disc, and will bring thorough enjoyment time after time. Amazon.com has been gracious enough to provide a clip of 12 of the best ones on the DVD, just go here -

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000018AS/qid=1111468849/sr=2-4/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_4/102-2512541-3905742

Alrighty then! I certainly hope you've enjoyed the review! It was, as always, my great pleasure to bring you music that I personally feel will uplift you and energize you, and music has its own way of doing just that :o) Enjoy the holiday in whatever way you choose to do so :o) I'll see you all next month with a very different twist in things! Until then.

Best regards,

Silver


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