And here are Stefan's comments on the debut album songs:
"Upon The Grave Of Guilt" is dealing with the feelings of guilt, a feeling that can be pretty hard to escape. I think most people have felt this in some degree.
"Heresy In Disguise" came to me after watching the excellent movie ("In the name of the rose") with Sean Connery. A monk going heretic in the monastery, no deeper meaning behind it just a lyric.
"Wings Of Serenity" is dealing with mankind's constant chase of the time, always trying to chase the precious day while the free eagle just soars the sky looking down at the foolish man, wasting his day in strife for money and success.
"A Quest For The Crown" is a little story of a lost crown causing damnation to its country until it's found again. It's just a medieval saga I am very proud of, I think it is a bit in the vein of theatre-plays, although not in the same league as them but it has the same feeling.
"Mindtraveller" is about a search throughout the mind for a higher conscience. Why were we put here on earth, what is the meaning of life, have we forgotten how to live in harmony with the rest of the planet?
"Entering Eternity" is a story of the last journey we will do sooner or later (die), I know it's not that original to do a lyric about this topic since many have done it before but anyway I think it turned out pretty well. Me myself don't believe in any afterlife. I'm pretty realistic and think that one will just rot away when one is dead since I think the "soul" is just an imaginary thing our minds have made up.
"Royal Galley" is based upon a true event happening outside of Stockholm in 1628. The new built ship "Wasa" was to do its maidenvoyage but since it was built too high compared to its keel it tipped over pretty soon. In reality the king was luckily not on board at this moment as he were in my version.
"Substitutional World" is also one of the lyrics on the album I'm most satisfied with. It deals with the never-ending fact that man is ready to sell out his future as long as he can make a profit today, thereby ending up as a bubbleboy surrounded by the polluted world, just laughing him back in his face. As we all know it isn't economically prosperous to think about the side-effects on our environment, it never has and never will thereby we'll gladly destroy it.
"Lord Of The Blacksmiths" is inspired of fantasy and mythology. I often say that my lyrics are not fantasy, but this is and I think it's the worst lyric on the album, This one would have fitted better in Mithotyn I think but at least it's a lyric.
"The Past Still Lives On" is a little song about the past you shortly could say. I often think a bit deeper into the past as I behold something of great age. One can almost hear the sounds and see the life of the past if you really dream yourself away.
The bonustrack is called "The Ballad Of Per Tyrssons Daughters In Vänga" in English and it's said to be true story, a bit spiced up through the years I suppose. Three sisters went to church but on the road they met three "bad guys". They had to choose between becoming their wives or being killed, they chose the latter. At the place they were killed there were three wells. As the three crooks came to a nearby farm and they tried to sell the sisters' silkclothing, but the wife at the farm recognised the clothes and called her man. The man slained the two eldest of the crooks and then he asked the third who their parents were and the third one answered the name of the man and his wife, it turned out they are the three long gone sons of theirs they didn't recognise. As he had slained two of his sons he felt like he had to get penance for his soul so he decided to build a church for his soul, therefor we now have a church called Karna church about 20 miles from where we live. It was thought to be just a bonus for the Japanese but Metal blade liked it too much so they put it on the 5000 first in the rest of the world too. We will probably do traditional songs as bonustracks in the future too since I think they are not that different from our regular songs. A translation can be seen on our homepage.