[Intro: Haunted Elvish folk, hypnotic 6/8 drums, thudding bass, bowed drone, autumn wind] [Verse 1: Haunting clean vocals, sparse harp, distant percussion] Buried beneath the waking world A forest sleeps without a name A thousand branches folded inward Their copper leaves surround the flame Above, the swollen sky is turning The harvest moon wears thorns of cloud We light the lanterns at the threshold And speak the names we lost aloud Neither root nor rain is sovereign Neither one can make the storm Beneath the ash of autumn bonfires A seed lies waiting to be born [Pre-Chorus: Rising frame drums, whispered choir] What sleeps cannot awaken itself What falls needs somewhere to remain Between the offering and the answer Something enters, something changes [Chorus: Hypnotic Elvish chant, deep bass, ritual drums, soaring ghostly vocal] Nan fend, Mâs i dâd olar i nelui, Mâs i dîn lúga os, I 'irith vinui pheth. Law i eredh, Law i ross, Ach i fennas im. Man olatha aen, Man ola, A i bîr im [Verse 2: Dark bass groove, trembling harp, restrained melodic vocal] A question hollows out a chamber We leave a chair beside the hearth An apple split upon the table Reveals a star within its heart The candle leans toward the doorway Although the air is cold and still Beyond the glass, the orchard trembles Small lanterns wander on the hill The eye can never see its seeing Until the dark looks back within Each fallen leaf becomes an entrance The turning year reveals a hinge [Pre-Chorus: Gathering voices, circling harp] The empty shape invites the motion The motion searches for a form We weave our wishes into willow And feel it stirring in the storm [Chorus: Layered Elvish chant, mournful lead, low answering choir] Nan fend, Mâs i dâd olar i nelui, Mâs i dîn lúga os, I 'irith vinui pheth. Law i eredh, Law i ross, Ach i fennas im. Man olatha aen, Man ola, A i bîr im [Bridge: Tribal drum build, driving bass, vocal crescendo] The tree was never in the seed Not yet The forest never in the rain Not yet The possible sleeps without a body The body waits without a name We gather where the old paths cross And cup our hands around the flame Root enters earth Earth enters root Ash feeds the seed And seed bears fruit The question enters thought Thought enters question The world enters me I enter the world Around the fire, our shadows gather One more than those who stand in light We turn to find the branches empty The extra shadow holds on tight Neither remains what it was [Breakdown: Drums drop out, bowed drone, deep spoken Elvish, whispered responses, 4/4 pacing] Law gam cara erui, Law bernas gaba i bân, I gaun cana i dhuinen, I dhuinen tana i gaun. Er ola polui, I edwen cara i polui na olad. A nan naith e-govad, Nad i ú-garant, Tôl na chened. [Whispered chant: Slowly gathering] By root and thorn By leaf and rain The old year falls We turn again The bowl stands full The latch is drawn Who shares our fire When we are gone? [Final Chorus: Haunted folk ensemble, immense choir, rolling 6/8 drums] At the threshold Where the two become the third Where the silence opens wide enough To carry the unheard Not the seed Not the rain Not the candle Not the flame But the crossing But the turning But the thing without a name What could be What becomes Fold together, then divide On this Halloween, the living Leave a place beside the fire [Outro: Fading percussion, deep bass drone, autumn wind] And the forest keeps unfolding From the meeting of the sides By the hearth, the chair stands empty But the cushion bears a hollow And the candle bends beside it Though the wind has died outside [Echo to fade] the— sides the— sides [End]
