Meredead
Cover art by Stefan Heilemann
Studio album by
Leaves' Eyes
Released22 April 2011
RecordedMastersound Studios, Steinheim, Germany, 2010-2011
GenreSymphonic metal
Length55:16
LanguageEnglish, Nynorsk
LabelNapalm
ProducerAlexander Krull
Leaves' Eyes chronology
Njord
(2009)		 Meredead
(2011)		 Symphonies of the Night
(2013)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Metal Storm(very favorable)[1]
About.com[2]
Metal Underground[3]
Femme Metal(95/100)[4]
Metal Temple[5]
Rockfreaks.net(7/10)[6]

Meredead is the fourth studio album by the German/Norwegian symphonic metal band Leaves' Eyes. It was released on 22 April 2011 on Napalm Records. The Deluxe Edition of the album contains a bonus DVD with five songs from a live performance recorded at the Metal Female Voices Fest, in Wieze, Belgium, on 24 October 2010.

Title

The title is inspired[7] by the Old English compound noun meredēað, literally "sea-death", which is attested (in the genitive plural meredēaða) in the passage rodor swipode meredēaða mǣst, literally: "the greatest quantity of sea-deaths scourged the skies", in Exodus, the second poem of the Junius manuscript, in the section telling the story of the Crossing of the Red Sea.[8] Alternatively, meredēað could be translated as "sea of death" or "deadly sea" in view of a later passage in the same text: meredēað geswealh, literally "sea-death swallowed".[9] On her website, Liv Kristine explicitly recommends Marsden 2004, and quotes the explanation for meredēað given in the book, saying that Meredead could be translated as "dead by the sea".[7]

Track lists

All lyrics are written by Liv Kristine Espenæs; all music is composed by Alexander Krull and Thorsten Bauer, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Spirits' Masquerade" 6:31
2."Étaín" 3:58
3."Velvet Heart" 3:42
4."Kråkevisa" ("Crow's Ballad")traditional4:34
5."To France" (Mike Oldfield cover)Mike Oldfield4:37
6."Meredead" ("The Deadly Sea") 5:19
7."Sigrlinn" 8:47
8."Mine tåror er ei grimme" ("My Tears Are Not Hideous") 2:54
9."Empty Horizon" 4:58
10."Veritas" ("Truth") 0:48
11."Nystev" ("New Stave")traditional4:39
12."Tell-Tale Eyes" 3:58
Bonus track
No.TitleLength
13."Sorhleod" ("Song of Sorrow")5:04
Japanese edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
14."Melusine" 3:34
15."Legend Land" (acoustic)Espenæs, Krull, Bauer, Chris Lukhaup, Mathias Röderer.3:46
Deluxe edition bonus DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Njord" 
2."My Destiny" 
3."Ragnarok" 
4."Elegy" 
5."Frøya's Theme" 

Personnel

Leaves' Eyes

  • Liv Kristine Espenæs – lead and backing vocals
  • Alexander Krull – harsh vocals, keyboards, programming, samples
  • Thorsten Bauer – guitars, bass, mandolin on tracks 1, 5 and 12
  • Sander van der Meer - guitars
  • Roland Navratil - drums, percussions

Additional musicians

  • Lingua Mortis Orchestra from Minsk, Belarus, directed by Victor Smolski
  • Al dente Choir from Kleinbottwar, Germany, directed by Veronika Messmer
  • Anette Guldbrandsen - backing vocals, lead vocals on tracks 4, 8, 10, 11
  • Carmen Elise Espenæs - lead and backing vocals on track 7
  • Maite Itoiz - lead and backing vocals on tracks 2 and 6, baroque guitar on track 12
  • John Kelly - lead vocals on track 12
  • Christian Roch - Uilleann pipes and whistles
  • Janna Kirchhof - fiddle on tracks 2, 3 and 11, nyckelharpa on track 4

Production

  • Alexander Krull - producer, engineer, mixing and mastering at Mastersound Studios
  • Thorsten Bauer, Liv Kristine Espenæs - assistant engineers
  • Victor Smolski - orchestra recording engineer
  • Orchestral arrangements by Leaves' Eyes

Charts

Chart (2011) Peak
position
German Albums Chart[10] 32
Ultratop Belgian Chart (Flanders)[11] 97
UK Indie Chart[12] 37
US Top Heatseekers[13] 37
US Independent Albums[12] 134

References

  1. ↑ "Leaves' Eyes - Meredead". Metal Storm. 18 September 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  2. ↑ Simms, Kelley. "Leaves' Eyes - 'Meredead'". Heavy Metal. About.com. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  3. ↑ "Leaves' Eyes - "Meredead" (CD)". Metal Underground.com. 25 August 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  4. ↑ Cannella, Tony (15 May 2012). "Leaves' Eyes - "Meredead" (2011)". Femme Metal Webzine. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  5. ↑ Mitsakos, Yiannis (9 May 2011). "Leaves' Eyes - Meredead". Metal Temple.com. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  6. ↑ Larsen, Tim (13 June 2011). "Leaves' Eyes - Meredead". Rockfreaks.net. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Leaves' Eyes - "Meredead" sample and own words by Liv Kristine". Leaves' Eyes Official Website. Leaves' Eyes. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
  8. ↑ Marsden, Richard (2004). The Cambridge Old English reader. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 140. ISBN 0521-45612-6. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
  9. ↑ Marsden, Richard (2004). The Cambridge Old English reader. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 143. ISBN 0521-45612-6. Retrieved 14 July 2011.
  10. ↑ "Album – Leaves' Eyes, Meredead". Charts.de (in German). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  11. ↑ "Leaves' Eyes - Meredead". Ultratop (in Dutch). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  12. 1 2 "Napalm Records Chart Results". Napalm Records. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  13. ↑ "Meredead Billboard Alnums". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
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