The heavy metal music by
Miracle Of Sound, is actually produced by one man,
Gavin Dunne who also works with other musicians on occasions. I know, you're probably saying to yourself, "Heavy Metal! Yech!" But there is a song from the
Level Seven album, in which he collaborated with
Peyton Parrish, that is an absolute knock-out!
Valhalla Calling is VERY slow and ponderous and moves with the speed of a massive glacier on steroids. To me it has the feeling of what it might have been like to have been a seafaring
viking that loved the life of a wandering, pillaging warrior at the height of the age of the
Vikings which had a profound impact on the
early medieval history of
Northern and
Eastern Europe.
In Norse mythology
Valhalla (Hall of the slain) is described as a majestic hall located in
Asgard as a beautiful hall for the dead but it can also be seen as a lofty stylization of a battlefield after a fight and was not only their desired afterlife but a way to cope with the horrors of battle. It was presided over by the god
Odin.
Valhalla was originally understood as the "rock of the Slain" as opposed to a hall. Odin is seen to have pet ravens which he sends out and the warriors of his hall are dead men and ghosts who fight battles and die.
The most common image of the
Vikings is the longship of which there were various forms used for various purposes.
The feeling of absolute freedom and power the
Viking must have felt as the wind and rain blew his hair to and fro is beautifully reflected in this song. It is like nothing I've ever heard before!
Valhalla Calling
(Verse 1)
Ships on vigor of the waves are skimming
Barren summits to the verdant plains
Each horizon is a new beginning
Rise and reign
Far from the fjords and the ice cold currents
Ravens soar over new frontiers
Songs and sagas of a fate determined
Shields and spears
Vows of favor or the thrill of plunder
Pull together for the clan and kin
Clank of hammers and the crash of thunder
Pound within
(Chorus)
Oh-ho-oh
The echoes of eternity
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Oh-ho-oh
To pluck the strings of destiny
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Valhalla calling me
(Verse 2)
Sails a' swaying on the crimson rivers
Blood and glory in the fighting fields
Shields a' shattered into splintered timbers
Iron and steel
Fires are rising and the bells are ringing
Glory take us into Odin's halls
Golden glimmer and the sound of singing
Asgard's call
(Chorus)
Oh-ho-oh
The echoes of eternity
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Oh-ho-oh
To pluck the strings of destiny
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Valhalla calling me
(Bridge)
Wind and the waves will carry me
Wind and the waves will set me free
Wind and the waves will carry me
Wind and the waves will set me free
(Chorus)
Oh-ho-oh
The echoes of eternity
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Oh-ho-oh
To pluck the strings of destiny
Oh-ho-oh
Valhalla calling me
Valhalla calling me
There are two versions of the song; the original with Gavin Dunne singing solo and the "official" with Peyton Parrish and him as a duet (links below).
Viewfinder links:
YouTube::
