Long Nights, by Winterblade

Long Nights

by Winterblade

supported by

	/

Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

$1 USD or more

1.	Sacrifice 05:15	lyrics	buy track
Quiet stands the seer now The blood of friends upon his brow We gather here amongst the trees and call out to the gods Hear, oh hear us, mighty ones, and bless us as your sons Now the shadows start to fall and bathe us in the dark The drums cry out, the knives are drawn, a ritual begun Quiet stands the seer now The blood of friends upon his brow When sunrise comes through morning mist We’ll hope the gods are pleased with this
2.	Long Nights 03:13	lyrics	buy track
I told my king that I lived north-most of all Braving the snowfall and ice Close to the top of the world, I called home Sailed off to leave it tonight Long were the nights that I traveled Long were the nights, lost at sea Long were my chances to make it alive But none would have shed a tear for me! I joined with the whalers on ships in the fog Noble and solemn, they died Wait for the wind gales to favor my path Can’t let the land out of sight
3.	Valhöll 03:25	lyrics	buy track
High in Asgard Gold and silver Count the night stars Heathen hunters Viking brothers Amongst our fathers Fell'd in battle Strength and mettle Laid in barrows Sharpened daggers Great war hammers Funeral pyres In the hall of mighty Odin I wait my turn to fight That fateful final battle And laughing shall I die None above us Hel below Met my end to Save my soul! Men around me Bare their scars I walk amongst them With lifted hearts! Join our ranks! If you’re prepared to die again Join our ranks! Companions with the bravest men Join our ranks! If you’re prepared to die again Join our ranks! Valhalla lets the worthy in! Weep for nothing, mother You taught me not to kneel What I might lack in wisdom I’ll make up with my steel I’ve nothing left to lose now I won’t be grey and old By the Ravens, will my memory Live longer than my soul!
4.	Sonatorrek 04:35	lyrics	buy track
The misty mountains old and grey Sulfur water warms my face In misery, alone I bathe The eagle screams for life reborn As he lay bleeding on the shore My brother, pale and lifeless, lay An ancient volume sits by me And someday it may bring me peace I read aloud to nobody Even as I walk this earth, My end is coming High on the headland Hel awaits me Life fades and I must fall To face my last breath But not in mourning, With the heart of a man! The hopeful dawn gives way to dusk The sky is red, the sea is rough I gave my all, it’s not enough Now I lay down my iron sword As I stand underneath the fjord And I find comfort in those words Sorrow unavoidable you see I will find a way back home to love you one last time
5.	Ironside 03:41	lyrics	buy track
Born in winter His blood as pure as snow The Great Heathen Commander Lands upon the shore Bound beside his brothers He seeks a Viking’s fate To cast his father’s killer To the pit of snakes Oh! Fist up for the Ironside Sword blessed by the Raven’s sign Bred true as a warrior Ruled all of the frozen land Fooled death as a younger man All knelt at his iron hands! From islands to the rivers They paid his soldiers off And yet his thirst for glory Never stopped Look upon this barrow Where Kings of Sweden lay He claimed the realm completely In bygone days Laid him down at last
6.	All-Father 03:50	lyrics	buy track
All great men answer to a prayer If it keeps the vultures in other skies Noble men, from places far and wide Heed his call! All my friends wear leather on their hands But they still bear scars that refuse to mend Stoic soldiers showing no remorse Heed his call! All-Father will you give us guidance? Strike fast while our enemies wait All-Father give us sight in warfare Once and for all All-Father in the hall of riches In your eye is the wisdom we seek All-Father, our power is yours Once and for all All the kings, and all whom they command May their sons carry on what their fathers can’t Everyone who’s ever led a home Heeds his call! Odin, our protector God of warships Ruling over Midgard Odin, one with vision, Giant-slayer Resolute in Ragnarök
7.	The Walker 03:47	lyrics	buy track
Son of Ketill, son of Björn, a giant of a man Took his ships to Normandy with a sturdy hand Felled the kingdom, sacked the church His luck could not run out Until they caught him on the hill and had his men pinned down In the time it takes the horsemen To ride across the plains He’ll have piled up the corpses Sinew, hearts, and brains! The Walker wise, well-versed in the warfare But on this night, he could not escape And when the cavalry arrived his men were by the shore And now they had him stopped at last by blessings of their Lord The men laid down their swords and shields and spoke again instead The son of Ketill crowned a king among the Northern men! The Walker wise, well-versed in the warfare But on this night, he could not escape The turning tides made him a protector He joined the side of his old enemies! The Walker wise, well-versed in the warfare But on this night, he could not escape His men would die, but their sons would inherit A large empire, and history to make!
8.	Power Struggle 02:55	lyrics	buy track
Too long, our leader has failed us Took lovers and favors before us All those who would dare represent us Were exiled in shame Now I made a plan to protect us After dark I commanded the best of us No regard for the traitors who noticed us We'll clear our great name Now that the moment's upon us Swords clashed in the hall all around us I sought out the scoundrel, he hid from us Cowering in shame Soon combat will engulf the two of us Whoever survives will be king of us I pray now for Odin to favor us And give us this day Kill me in the courtyard Or hang me by the fjord The only way I know to live Is dying by the sword Speak my name in falsehood We all whisper the truth The treachery upon your tongue Has turned you to a fool
9.	The Last Fight 04:10	lyrics	buy track
When morning comes I’ll be at war With my old enemies It’s a been a year, I feel so sore But soon I’ll be at ease In front of the wall I face down the storm Scream out in fury so my brothers will know I’ll never give up Never go home If I’m meant to meet the gods, I’ll do it alone One last time to bed tonight The sun comes up on my last fight The tales of my final stand will be set in stone
10.	Shieldmaiden 03:51	lyrics	buy track
Shadows lurk in evil words, They drive the weak insane Cast your worries off the edge Into the shallow bay Water falls and so I watch Another restless night I stand devoted by your side Until the afterlife Any battlefield or any challenge, we can meet as one And I will follow you, my shield maiden, into the break of dawn The moon reflecting off your face The old can become new Leather keeps your body safe When I can’t be there too

credits

released January 6, 2020

license

about

Winterblade Washington, D.C.

Winterblade is one man with a passion for the Old Norse Æsir and heavy metal. Those passions are combined on the album "Long Nights," a project rooted in Viking history and often drawn from historical texts. Just released: GREATEST SAGA, the 11-part story of how Norway's first king rose to power in the most unusual way... ... more