Cynosure, by Viathyn

Cynosure

by Viathyn

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Soluspharus Had it on repeat for longer than I care to admit. Great stuff! Favorite track: Ageless Stranger.

_tarrvis One of the best power metal albums I have heard. Although their music is on Spotify, I had to buy this album to support this artist to encourage them to create more music. Keep up the fantastic music, I hope to hear more in the future.

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Cover art by Augusto Peixoto, Photos by Alexis Greene, Booklet Design by Paul Keely

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1.	Ageless Stranger 07:13	lyrics	buy track
Already in your dreams my legacy’s been told You see my floating grin and soulless eyes, the world goes cold You: one two three four five, I have spared your lives – for now Hold your breath and cheat death (Solo: J. Wright) My shadow stalks in places light has never known My boot-heels know the grit and bitter taste of every road Those I’ve kept alive, I condemn to die – now! You can’t change a spoon-fed fate High above I’ll watch when birds of prey will feast and I’m Laughing as your hearts choke on their last beats Dance, my court of jester slaves, warm the dirt that fills your graves I am and have been (and I have been) The dark man of your dreams (man from your dreams) Brace now, while you’re free (while you are free) To take your stand and face me (and face me) Never a humble man, I spread discord with my palms Tipping the cradle of life, I harvest the horror To see the world in flames, I’ll walk to the end of the earth But miles and miles of highway lie in between my target and I (Solo: J. Wright) One last breath of airborne death High above I’ll watch when birds of prey will feast and I’m Laughing as your hearts choke on their last beats Dance, my court of jester slaves, warm the dirt that fills your graves I am and have been (and I have been) The dark man of your dreams (man from your dreams) Brace now, while you’re free (while you are free) To take your stand and face me (and face me) Never will I lay down and die; End has come for man!
2.	The Coachman 05:41	lyrics	buy track
Back when I was young in the storm lands, he came to take my brothers With no strength or voice, I crumbled in fear, and he harvested my grief Painted black as dread, caked in maiden’s blood Burl and bone and rot; a sanitarium Illumination – tempted by the charms of night Indoctrination of the feeble mind Tainter of mind foundation, painter of shattered shores And in the shades of nightfall, riding swift, he steers to your call Step into the coach and find your broken oaths are inside By sleight of hand and wake of fate, speak his name, he’ll be your guide Wading in the mire, cloak soaked through your skin Breathe in petrichor, you leprous harlequin Stellar floodlight conquers cosmic space, satiate their gaze with just a taste And in the shades of nightfall, riding swift, he steers to your call Step into the coach and find, your broken oaths are inside By sleight of hand and wake of fate, speak his name, he’ll be your guide Reaving fields of hollow bones, He sows the seeds of thought contagion (Solo: J. Wright) (Solo: T. Crnkovic) (Solo: A. Kot) (Solo: J. Wright) Tainter of mind foundation, painter of shattered shores And in the shades of nightfall, riding swift, he steers to your call Step into the coach and find, your broken oaths are inside By sleight of hand and wake of fate, speak his name, he’ll be your guide Step into the coach and find, your wasted life is inside
3.	Edward Mordrake 06:24	lyrics	buy track
You’ll meet me and meet me again, my misery My body’s a cage and I’m never alone ‘cause my cellmate is me My phantom face tells me lies, he whispers and jeers in the night Without a sound, he bathes in my grief Raise your glass and drink to our collective health Save the cask so that I can try to find the bottom You see the charm, the charm in my face (graceful, poignant) But you look twice when I walk away (twisted, malignant) Oh, I may die… but I still hear the voices inside You’ll meet me and meet me again, my misery My body’s a cage and I’m never alone ‘cause my cellmate is me My phantom face tells me lies, he whispers and jeers in the night Without a sound, he bathes in my grief Gaze upon us one last time, tonight I end this tale You see the charm, the charm in my face (graceful, poignant) But you look twice when I walk away (twisted, malignant) Oh, I may die… but I still hear the voices inside One locked tower room, noose in hand, wait for the dusk to appear Scrawl one last request: ‘Destroy the face so that I’ll rest in peace’ (Solo: J. Wright) I will abide to no further torment Pray death comes quick in this final moment ‘Oh, not so fast dear Edward – I’ll never let you go!’ (Solo: J. Wright) You’ll meet me and meet me again, my misery My body’s a cage and I’m never alone ‘cause my cellmate is me!
4.	Shadows in Our Wake 07:02	lyrics	buy track
When we were trees, our fingers brushed the evening skies When we were roots, we rent the soil and drank our fill Now I am stone, and roots grow from my granite back Once I was free, and the hills they trembled in harmony When we fell, the seasons would change for me When we grew, the fires would dance a tale for me Shadows in our wake and tales of a time yet to come Anchored in stasis; a wick in a wax prison Once we were giants, our footsteps sang the crashing tide Once we were waves, our whispers killed the stars at dawn When we cried, the duchess of winter sculpted chapters of ice And when we died, the cascades of autumn leaves formed blankets of life When we were stars, the world thrived in time with us And when we dined, our place was set with gold and pearls Shadows in our wake and tales of a time yet to come Anchored in stasis; a wolf in a wool prison When we fell, the seasons would change for me And when we grew, the fires would dance a tale for me Gaia guide us, nurse and drive us We cracked the marrow of the Earth Writhe in silence, we drank the nectar of her youth (Solo: J. Wright) Break my prison door Unplug my heart machine and fly, fly, unfettered Daybreak dream-state Rest assured that you will fly when mountains blow like leaves in wind
5.	Countess of Discordia 07:12	lyrics	buy track
With all your battles lost and all your giants slain No walls of stone give shelter from the agony within Nightfall comes quick as the ghosts of today fade White scars upon the tapestry New skin is woven tight, but the ancient wounds still bleed The icy blade is twisting deep Black fire on the sea, the waters boil and swallow men not like to see another day She sees encumbrance, she breathes insurgence When you decide our lives are soiled we shuffle off this mortal coil (Solo: J. Wright) See her spectre rise from hollow ground Dragging chains of pallor grey, bloodshed bound (Solo: T. Crnkovic) She says ‘come in from the rain into this drier skin’ Her mouth smiles but eyes are slate; dead as stone, words are wind (Solo: J. Wright) With all your battles lost and all your giants slain No walls of stone give shelter from the agony within Spawned of Nyx of the night and darkest seed A present rare to Kallisti, burden to bear the fairest three She sees encumbrance, she breathes insurgence When you decide our lives are soiled we shuffle off this mortal coil Rain discord and rivalry, perfect massacre recipe Raking fingers of the wind across barren back of Earth All the hardships of the day will show her what I’m worth In my soul, in my bones, I’m waiting here for her Taste to grace my lips, to bathe my tongue, where ashes only lay Eris, the Countess of Discordia Behold her kingdom of strife and chaos at your door Mother to false oaths and daughter to the void Her fortress stretches high up to the weeping moon (Solo: J. Wright)
6.	Time will Take Us All 07:01	lyrics	buy track
I never belonged here with all of you Time will take you all A world that was never mine to see Cast aside like a crippling black disease Forgotten like a dream that’s never seen I paid my dues, always thought I was the one Time will take you all Never knew the day was done My memories fade with every breath I take A wandering man’s name is never said No war-cry from me, the civilized arise No siren songs for me, the fortune teller lied No sunset to see, the silence covers all No fruits of my labour, the trees have all died No heroes named after me, the monuments will fall Fall to your knees! Feel freezing rain wash away the pain Scorched earth feeds all the parched and the weak Those who care to remember my selfless ways Will feel within themselves the power of change The journey’s end caught up to my wretched life Wrap their comforting claws in this lullaby We watch as the colours change As time takes us all away But we will not go quietly! We leave our mark which forever fears Echoes turned to a thunderous rage Our name alone is all that stays (Solo: J. Wright) Our salvation was always within us ‘till the end Down deep under scars, hidden from the stars Finally, time has come to take this all away The songs we sing, the games you play The wars we fight, and battles lost The fallen tears, it’s all for naught Even if the melody is fading, we will not go quietly Even if the fear is paralyzing, we will not go quietly Even if the end is satisfying, we will not go quietly Even after history is written, we did not go quietly Even after names are long forgotten, we did not go quietly
7.	Three Sheets to the Wind 07:21	lyrics	buy track
One thousand leagues I’ve sailed adhered to wayward course (Or as the drunken crow flies) If all the world’s a stage, my curtain call is nigh Under a firmament of sky I ride the bounding main, but tarnished glamour is Terra Nova’s claim Boxing compass over bow Holding fast on every swell I cast off without a course Nor a semblance of farewell How I’ll miss your warm embrace Nights spent yearning of your gaze Now I lift this lonesome whiskey cask and kiss its liquid praise I am drifting onwards three sheets to the wind Reeling on the gunwale, grasping if this turmoil’s from the sea or just the drink Maelstrom in my brain of trepidation if Poseidon’s wrath I did incite Lie ahull! Lashing, twisted cables, suddenly the tables turn against my humbled state Strap me to the mast with siren’s lullaby to ease my passing from this place Drink up my courage straight to brace the coming storm (I’ll batten down my hatches) If all mankind’s an island, then I’m its figurehead A shepherd for the graceless dead Alone in my domain, but tarnished glamour is Terra Nova’s claim Boxing compass over bow, holding fast on every swell I cast off without a course, nor a semblance of farewell How I’ll miss your warm embrace, nights spent yearning of your gaze Now I lift this lonesome whiskey cask and kiss its liquid praise I am drifting onwards three sheets to the wind (Solo: J. Wright) (Solo: T. Crnkovic) Swaying with the cadence of my breath and ticking heart The albatross brings tidings of my death (death is just another start!) I’ve bottled up this message safe for you; forgive me please My final thoughts: I fear I am run through (through the mist, the reaper caws) Vengeance of the waves, battalions of slaves Beating caverns in my hull, drilling fissures through my skull (Solo: J. Wright) Is that a glimpse of land? A lifeboat spawned of sand? NO! Madness’ final grasp; it’s just the bottom of my cask I cast my oars away! I curse the bounding main, as tarnished glamour is Terra Nova’s claim Boxing compass over bow, holding fast on every swell I cast off without a course, nor a semblance of farewell How I’ll miss your warm embrace, nights spent yearning of your gaze Now I lift this lonesome whiskey cask and kiss its liquid praise Boxing compass over bow, holding fast on every swell I cast off without a course, nor a semblance of farewell How I’ll miss your warm embrace, nights spent yearning of your gaze Now I lift this lonesome whiskey cask and kiss its liquid praise I am lost on glassy desert ocean, broken spirit as my token Drifting onwards three sheets to the wind Three sheets to the wind!
8.	Albedo 06:48	lyrics	buy track
Panacea, cure all that ails me and fill my veins with life Aqua Vitae, draw clarity to my eyes and post colour through my mind The sheen of glass, glistening with the beads of sweat That flow like sand through the hourglass While burning coals from the fire unkempt dance A waltz in the throat, dry river flow, all facets of life feel the glow Ten long years of folly, trials, and tears… and now my opus has arrived One mere step into this orphaned land and you become its child When the shadows fold their hands and drag impurities away Then the unity of opposites reveals I am presented with the torch and lunar consciousness prevails Fusing spirit with the matter of the Earth The desert moans and my legend’s writ in sand But every grain weaves tales and histories of man The Earth speaks and its voice is of one tongue And the falcon’s marriage with wind is one of love Lure of gold, when the aether melts away Triumph of gold, as the sun hides in shame Lure of gold, when the aether melts away Triumph of gold, as the stars blush with pride (Solo: J. Wright) Triumph of gold
9.	Cynosure 09:35	lyrics	buy track
I’ve called this gathering of our chaos legion You’ve crawled from the ends of the Earth, hungry and with haste Your peregrine journey now draws to a close; the stars have lit the way Tear out these empty pages millions take for true Accept that time and ages have forgotten you We, the nine, ascend (ascend!), abandon the fields of the dead ‘Cause stardust is all we really are, their bodies will feed the universe Yellow skies, black foamy seas, give birth to leprous tragedies Scoured Earth and infertile soil, your mother blackened to the core With milky film that shrouds our eyes, we are humanity disguised Kaleidoscopic dreams wake screaming babes from parasitic sleep Life expectancy of none Tear out those worthless pages and invoke chaotic views of truth Choose your hand and watch the embers dance A simple sport with high stakes: The future of the race of humans, gathered ‘neath the cynosure up high No man-made gods, circuits, or cogs can match up to the natural awe of our universe These ancient stones, gardens of bone, are silent tombs of planetary building blocks Let’s celebrate our cosmic roots: the tapestry of stars in the night sky Open all third eyes and give birth to inspiration Hold all new thoughts and derive their resignation (Solo: J. Wright) Transcend the internal plains; the limit of progress can rot in your wake Potential is freed from the chains, the apex of enlightenment in your grasp No corporal walls stand to hold the relics of past (Solo: A. Kot) We, the nine, contend (contend!), to re-sow, repair, and mend ‘Cause stardust is all we’ve ever been, our vessels grow from where they began The creeping hands of time reset and balance rears its trusted head Now the sands they come to life Ensure no doctrine pages ever taint the virgin minds of youth Choose your hand and watch the embers dance A simple sport with high stakes: The future of the race of humans, gathered ‘neath the cynosure up high No man-made gods, circuits, or cogs can match up to the natural awe of our universe These ancient stones, gardens of bone, are silent tombs of planetary building blocks Let’s celebrate our cosmic roots: the tapestry of stars in the night sky

about

Produced by Viathyn's Tomislav Crnkovic and mixed and mastered by Sacha Laskow (Divinity, Every Hour Kills), Cynosure features nine epic assaulting tracks with intense guitar shredding and infectious chants that blend prog thrash, melo-death and power metal influences.

With Viathyn's 2010 The Peregrine Way debut album praised for its innovative song-writing and fresh comparison to today's power metal, it was only a matter of time for guitarist Jacob Wright to launch into song-writing mode and compose a majority of the material that would be recorded for this second full-length.

Even through hindrances such as studio closings, computer crashes, losing a jam space, and a flood, Viathyn was able to record their second album between August 2012 and February 2014. With the addition of 7-string guitars, some growl vocals, and an evolving influence, Cynosure's songs are faster, more technical, and heavier, while maintaining a constant melodic and progressive presence.

Viathyn was formed in 2006 in Calgary, Alberta when brothers Tomislav and Dave Crnkovic (on guitar and drums respectively) joined forces with lead guitarist Jacob Wright. Having come from various influences such as thrash, melo-death, and power metal, they wrote a handful of early demo tracks to settle on an overall sound for the group. In 2008, they recorded the Demagogue EP in order to attract a permanent vocalist and bassist. Alex Kot joined on bass in 2009, and brought with him a unique playing style by using an 8-string NS stick. Tomislav took up vocal duties, and the line-up was complete. Viathyn started playing live shows and has supported bands such as Stratovarius, Manegarm, Incantation, Rotten Sound, Into Eternity, and Skeletonwitch.

Quick fact on the band name: Playing off the word 'Leviathan', the guys settled on ‘Viathyn’, which has no actual definition in the English language, but when referring to the band can be taken to mean ‘progressive, melodic, grandiose, innovative and emotional’.

A chance encounter at a local record store in Calgary, Alberta between guitarist Jacob Wright, who was just looking for work, and vocalist Tomislav Crnkovic, who happened to be an employee of said shop, resulted in a friendship that gradually led to the creation of progressive metal outfit Viathyn in 2009.

Playing off the word 'Leviathan', the guys settled on ‘Viathyn’, which has no actual definition in the English language, but when referring to the band can be taken to mean ‘progressive, melodic, grandiose, innovative and emotional’.

Forgoing the strict rules and structure common to the genre, the four-piece is known for its ability to write songs that grow and progress naturally and shift tone unapologetically without falling victim to common tropes. Building on their first full-length album, 2010’s The Peregrine Way, Viathyn is now gearing up to unveil its second record, Cynosure.

“The literal definition of ‘cynosure’ is a focal point or an object that serves to guide,” explains Wright. “Each track focuses upon a character that is either affected by or acts as an agent of chaos and the message we wanted to express is how small and insignificant our actions and petty squabbles are within the grand scale of the universe. It's kind of a backwards way of trying to show that we as humans should be humble and respectful to each other!”

Cynosure promises to be faster, more technical and heavier than its predecessor while maintaining a constant melodic and progressive presence - can you handle it?

credits

released October 7, 2014

Recorded from August 2012 – February 2014 at Perfect Fifth Studio and Bard’s Tavern Studio
Produced by Tomislav Crnkovic
Edited by Tomislav Crnkovic and Jacob Wright
Mixed and Mastered by Sacha Laskow
Cover art by Augusto Peixoto – IrondoomDesign @ www.irondoomdesign.deviantart.com
Photos by Alexis Greene – Alliekat Photography
Guest growl vocals on tracks 2, 5, 6, 8, and 9 by Sean Jenkins
All composition and arrangement of Music and Lyrics copyright Viathyn 2014
Viathyn is:
Tomislav Crnkovic – Vocals, Guitars
Jacob Wright – Guitars
Alex Kot – Bass
Dave Crnkovic – Drums
All keys and various sound effects haphazardly thrown together by Dave, Tomislav, and Jacob

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about

Viathyn Calgary, Alberta

Viathyn was formed in 2006 in Calgary, Alberta when brothers Tomislav and Dave Crnkovic joined forces with lead guitarist Jacob Wright. Having come from various influences such as thrash, melo-death, and power metal, they wrote a handful of early demo tracks to settle on an overall sound for the group. Alex Kot joined on bass in 2009. ... more

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