If

If sunlight was floating like streams of honey
it still could not match your smile

If seaweed was made of gossamer lace
it still could not amount to your sweet caress

If clouds were as gentle as a butterfly's kiss
they could not compete with your tender lips

And even if I would lay in a bed of flowers
in the cottonwood's shade
this could not keep up
with that single moment
when I hold you in my arms

Together we walk through this garden of love
We dance on its funeral pyre
And I swear by the stars up above
that you are my only desire

Safe From Harm

Love was like a pastel
in those days of yore
So delicate and flimsy
Feathery colours
like summer clouds in a Devon sky

But the first rain of autumn
made its colours run
and the tempests tore
our slender sketches apart

Thereafter I travelled
so far and long
in search of what was lost
until I realised
that pastels cannot withstand
the storms of life

These days
we are carving our love
into a statue of wood
More strenuous
than working just with brush and easel
Addlepated by its timberish tenaciousness
and irritated by splinters
few and far between

Though unfinished yet
this solid sculpture of ours
is rooted deep in fertile soil
thus we won't have
to shield it timidly
from gale and hail
because we can rely
on its artistry and firmness instead

Brand New Start

Winter's last stand
adamantly defending his claim
but nevertheless
preparing to abdicate
as the first rays of sunlight
herald spring's advent

What a long dark winter it was:
Its petrifying coldness
stalling my heart

Germinating like early snowdrops
breaking the glacial deadlock
and memories fade like morning dew
leaving tracery on a frosted window

But with the light of a new day
only runlets remain
and the reminiscence of an afterglow
is all that is left
as I set out for higher grounds


Never Get Out Of This World Alive

Of course I've made mistakes
insignificant ones
as well as fatal ones

but then
I'm only human:

I believed when I should have doubted
I dared when I should have been cautious
I've been chasing dreams when I should have come down to earth
I got weak when I should have shown strength
I did surrender when I should have fought on

But there were also
a few things I did right:

I believed though I had my doubts
I dared where no one else had the heart
I tried to live up to my dreams even if it meant to overcome sanity and reason
I could be weak where everybody else expected me to wear a disguise
I did let go when hanging on would have caused nothing but pain and devastation

and even if I should fail again
it'll be with dignity

but then
who gives a damn?

Sleepless Nights

Staying awake all night
telling jokes and anecdotes
talking about
faith and music
love and death

I wish I could deal with all this
the way you do:
Waiting for a new day dawning
while relying on your friends
to help you make it through the night

And as much as I
enjoy your company
and our hopes and dreams and visions
I'm afraid it won't suffice
to accompany me through this darkness
and dry these cold and bitter tears

Milton was right
there is such thing as paradise lost
and once you've lost it
there is no going back
no more!



Winterlong

Snow-padded meadows
lie cold, clear and untouched;
An ultimate emptiness
like a world created anew

Out of this scantiness
arises new life
once springtime has come again

But how can I think of spring
when I don't even know
how to survive another winter?

You Can't Put Your Arms Around A Memory

What remains
of a heart
that has been torn and shattered for too long?

What remains
and what for shall we endure
when pain is everything we've gained?

What remains
when everything we ever wanted
turns out to be just an illusion of love?

What remains
of hope and confidence
when our last resort has been carried?

What remains
and who will stand
when there's nothing left to fight for?

What remains
when we have to realize
that some wounds never heal?

What remains
when the memory of you withers
and my last song fades away?

What remains
when the last ray of sunlight disappears
and we're left in the darkness?

All that remains
like a whisper in the wind
is the legacy

Backstage Pass

Back on the stage again
Mister Tough Guy,
Mister Sid,
all dressed in black

With a body language saying
"Don't mess with me
or it'll be
five knuckle shuffle time!"

With a gaze
like a warning sign:
"Keep out!"
in capital letters!

Roaring like a beast
a red hot pumping power-pack
pale with fright inside
that someone out there
might detect
how fragile I am

But I have to protect
this heart of mine
so painstakingly
because you almost killed it!

Late For The Sky

Getting divorced today
almost 3 years after we parted
was a piece of cake

Getting you banned
from my mind and dreams
was the hardest part
and took so much longer
than it took the judge
to declare our marriage
as being dissolved

Quite a few things in my life
have turned out fine
since you were gone;
Some went even better
than I would have wanted them
without you

But I still haven't found
the peace of heart
and bliss that I felt
when you lay in my arms

Loose Ends

All of a sudden
my life has turned
into one of Bruce's sad songs:

"I had a job, I had a girl
I had something going, mister, in this world"

"Our love has fallen around us like we said it never could
We saw it happen to all the others but to us it never would
Well how could something so bad, darling,
come from something that was so good?"

"Now those memories come back to haunt me
they haunt me like a curse
Is a dream a lie if it don't come true
Or is it something worse?"

He also wrote some wonderful love songs like:

"Should we lose each other in the shadow of the evening trees
I'll wait for you
And should I fall behind
Wait for me"

But I suppose he didn't write these lines about the both of us

New Year's Day

Fireworks paint the sky
with sparkling flowers of light
while I stand alone
amongst the cheering crowd

Someone's tapping on my shoulder
"Happy new year, mate!" he bawls
Another one shakes my hand,
and there's bear hugs and kisses

Of course they wish me well
"May all your wishes come true!"

Funny - but how could they know
that there's just one wish left
in the fathomless abyss
of my heart?

Concept?

Question: Is there a concept behind the lyrics of “Perfume”?

Sid: No — both "Cantara Anachoreta" and "A Legacy of Love" had been concept albums, so this time I wanted to try something different, hence each song of "Perfume" is meant to be some kind of snapshot of my life: There are moments of joy and love (for example "Gates of Paradise", "Dragonflies" or "Like the Stars") as well as moments of being pissed off by human stupidity & cruelty ("Hole in my Head" and "Goodbye to Jane") and also some spiritual songs just like "We are the Witches" and "Carry me Down"; all in all a pretty extensive collection of my world of emotions.

"Goodbye to Jane" - Fiction or Reality?

Question: The lyrics on "Goodbye to Jane" deal with a girl being abused by her father. Is this just fiction or a true story of someone you know? And what's your opinion about child abuse?

Sid: Unfortunately "Goodbye to Jane" is based on that kind of real events that one can read about every day in the papers. It makes me sick to see all that male violence against women and I think that men committing crimes like rape are definitely emotionally deranged yet nevertheless menacing madmen who should get locked away forever!

I do think that the story behind "Goodbye to Jane" displays the typical outgrowth of a patriarchal system that denies female values and oppresses women thoroughly. As Marilyn French once put it: There's an unnoticed war going on, a war against women! Our western culture has lost respect for womanhood: pornography, prostitution, sexual harassment etc. seem to be quite common today, although all these occurences do indicate that society's out of balance, that we continually disavow our roots (i. e. respect for women, as each and everyone of us got birth by one!), and Jane is just another victim of a development where even children aren't save any more.

Maybe I had to write a song like "Goodbye to Jane" to do at least some kind of justice to the victims, although my words surely fail to describe the terror, the pain, the fear and the hate that a girl like Jane must have experienced and suffered from.

The song ends with Jane's suicide although I'd wish that it'd be the other way round, victims of male violence don't often have a chance to survive: either they get killed or they are suffering for the rest of their life.

About Musicians

Question: When listening to your vocal performances, I can detect a certain passion and also an ability of acting in different characters. It seems that you're identifying yourself with each song. What do you think is the quality of a good singer? And don't you think that many young bands of today's scene do not feel real passion for what they're doing?

Sid: Being a good singer requires the ability to re-live the situation of the song you're singing: song and singer have to melt into one, the song's story has to become part of the vocalist's emotional world. This is only possible if the lyrics do reflect your feelings and experiences — then singing a song can become something similar to playing the leading role in a drama: like every good actor you have to become another character, reveal other facets of the human soul. A good singer is always able to immerse into a world of its own when singing a song.

A musician (just like every proper artist) has to be a visionaire; if not, his art would be nothing more than mere craftsmanship. Many young bands seem to care more about meeting an audience's expectation or copying their idols instead of developing their own musical language — that's not vision, but a frame without a picture. All that matters is musical inspiration, the artist's vision, and not a certain image or crazy outfits.

Our Last Show

Question: Your reference to classic characters like Romeo and Juliet in "Our Last Show" gives a theatrical aspect to the story: Would you consider yourself as a modern Romeo?

Sid : No, I don't think that I'm a modern Romeo: I may be a very romantic person and though I sometimes felt like one of those star-crossed lovers that William Shakespeare mentioned, I'm not a victim of misunderstandings and intrigues like Romeo was. I just think that we're nothing more but actors on life's badly illuminated stage, forced to take part in comedies or dramas without any chance of getting to know the script or to rehearse.

Planet Kyrah

Question: Where can I find Planet Kyrah that you sing about so beautifully? Does it have something in common with the novel "Little Prince" by Saint-Exupery?

Sid: Kyrah is a fictional planet of unconditional love that can only be stepped on by lovers. It's a symbol for true love's purity, chastity and innocence, hence I do like the comparison with the little prince's planet, as it shares the same bittersweet aura of transitoriness. Blissfulness and sadness are sometimes almost the same, and the older we get, the more we become aware that nothing, not even the most wonderful moments, do last forever!

Forever I Ride

Question: What is the hidden message of the raven's cry on "Forever I Ride"?

Sid : In Northern-European mythology the raven is the bird of death and rebirth (just like the vulture in Egyptian or African myths) that calls forth the end — and so the raven in "Forever I Ride" is the harbinger of love's decline, forcing the fool to saddle up again.

Religion in general

Question: I do sense some anti-Christian undertones in some of your lyrics. Do you have an opinion on religion in general?

Sid : As I am a very religious person myself I can't see anything wrong in believing in higher powers, but organized religion like Christianity is always a dangerous thing: I mean, who needs to have his or her personal beliefs organised by an institution? It's utterly senseless! Go and think for your own (as Granny Weatherwax would say), believe whatever you want to believe, but never try to force your religious point of view on others!

The Goddesses and Gods are among us, they are in the wind, the trees, the fire, the earth and the sea and they'd also talk to us if we listened closely — but they most definitely don't write books and are not interested in anybody's sexual preferences (at least proper deities aren't!).

The Farewell

Question: "The Farewell" can be considered as a summary of all the songs on "A Legacy of Love" with a ray of hope at the end, right? Anyway, I cannot understand the last line (due to my ignorance of German language): Would you mind to translate "Ich liebe Dich fuer immer"?

Sid: "Ich liebe Dich fuer immer" simply means "I love you forever": The most beautiful thing someone can say to you, but eventually also the greatest lie of all! There is no ray of hope at the end of "The Farewell", but a yearning for everlasting sleep and tranquility.

The Sea

Question: You've used a couple of french expressions in "The Sea". Have you chosen them to create a special feeling? Why?

Sid: I've chosen these french expressions just because they sound more poetic to me than the english or german ones: I'm always choosing words for the lyrics with great care, because words are not just a chain of vowels and consonants, moreover they possess sounds and images of their own that have to fit perfectly to the corresponding song.

Language

Question: I find your lyrics to be great pieces of poetry. You must have put down a lot of time and effort into them. Do you think it's easy to write lyrics with substance? Isn't it hard for you as a German to express your feelings in English?

Sid: As I am more of a musician than a poet, it takes me more time to write the lyrics than the music itself: While I don't have to think at all to create music, it's definitely some kind of intellectual effort to find the right words.

Nevertheless it's not too difficult to me: My lyrics are based on my own emotional experiences or on my philosophy of life. I'm free to write about everything that is important to me, as I'm not limited by attitude, image or genre-affiliation.

I think I'm getting along with English quite well: I love the musical quality of this language and its multitude of expressional subtlety (something that's hard to find in my mother tongue), therefore I consider English as being the most suitable linguistic medium for my purposes.

The Concept behind "Cantara Anachoreta"

Question: Is "Cantara Anachoreta" a concept-album? And could you explain the title?

Sid: "Cantara Anachoreta" is a latin-portugiese term meaning "The Chants of the Hermit".

I've chosen that title because "Cantara Anachoreta" chronicles the last hours in the life of Ariman, the anchorite, who is aware that his time has finally come: Darkness embraces him ("Prologue"), and while he's on the threshold of twilight, he recollects occurrences of his present life and past incarnations.

Thus he relives the dark age of witch hunt ("The Endless Dance") as well as the tremendous distress of losing the one he once loved ("Requiem ex Sidhe").

He also remembers a little girl he once knew who committed suicide after being abused by her father, and Ariman's still able to sense the rage, anger and fury her ghost emanates ("Goodbye to Jane").

Images of long gone days do arise, and the anchorite recalls the moments when he had to withstand to remain true to his principles and beliefs ("Baleias"). It wasn't always easy to follow the path of the Goddess and to obey her advice, but whenever he thought that she might have left him in the lurch, she was in fact with him for guidance ("Her Orphaned Throne").

So he dreams of her return: a return that'll bring an end to injustice, intolerance and the lies of the false prophets — the dawning of a new golden era ("Descending Messiah"). Thereupon Ariman floats downstream to Cerridwen's realm, the garden of eternal dreams, where his seeking soul will find peace and tranquility at last ("Epilogue").