Musical Inspiration Challenge 2! Part 13: The Gonzo

We’ve encountered Blind Guardian before. They’re a lyrical metal band. I’m a fan, that’s why they’re on my iPod. They weren’t free, incidentally, I had to buy the album for this one.

Well, our lyrics..

High in the sky where eagles fly
Morgray, the dark enters the throne
Open wide the gate, friend
The King will come

Blow the horn and praise the highest Lord who'll bring the dawn
He's the new God in the palace of steel
Persuade the fate of everyone
The chaos can begin, let it in

So many centuries, so many Gods
We were the prisoners of our own fantasy
But now we are marching against these Gods
I'm the wizard, I will change it all

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Oh, Valhalla

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Oh, Valhalla

Magic is in me, I'm the lost magic man
Never found what I was looking for
Now I found but it's lost, the fortress burns
Broken my heart, I leave this world
All Gods are gone

So many centuries, so many Gods
We were the prisoners of our own fantasy
But then we had nothing to lead our life
No, no, we can't live without Gods

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Valhalla

Oh, Valhalla

Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me
Valhalla, deliverance
Why've you ever forgotten me

I looked into the song a bit, and haven’t been able to find out who the hell Morgray is. I’m not sure if he’s some ancient Scandinavian guy, or from one of Blind Guardian’s own cryptic canon.

The song itself however is also up for interpretation. Is it about an ancient norseman seeing his religion supplanted by Christianity? Is it about rebelling against the gods? Is it a mournful paean to be welcomed into the halls of endless mead and pork?

That’s semi-irrelevant to us. I say semi-irrelevant, because the purpose of the Musical Inspiration Challenge is to be inspired by our songs. And from listening to this one, and reviewing the lyrics, I’ve decided that this song ties in with our bad guy.

Now, we keep revisiting him. I’ve revised him twice now. But, we’ve always kept to the core (the core we developed back with “Dread and the Fugitive Mind”) that he’s torn between the desire to be free to act as he wants, but tormented by the fact that a final arbiter may or may not exist.

Being rejected by your after life is practically the definition of religious or existential horror. Perhaps, our villain was an accomplished wizard who followed the paths of necromancy but did so with the desire to resurrect the dead to fight forever, in what he perversely thought was an homage to the halls of his undying godly master where the brave fought forever.

He then died himself, and found himself rejected as a poisoner and coward, and sent back, with no explanation. And so he arranged for the old refuge for old heroes to be built, so he could demolish their hopes and dreams, and see if the gods who rejected him would come down and take him, either to destroy him, or at last welcome him into their heaven for contesting against them.

In that way, our villain is both monstrous and tragic. He wants to enter into a world he’s dreamed of, and which has been justly denied him, and so he tries to deny others, while simultaneously trying to find a way to sneak in himself.

Also, I’d add on an actual Valkyrie. Some similar outer planar being trapped somewhere within his euthanizing house of horrors, which he holds in the hopes that one day she will carry his soul to his ‘just reward’ and who is tormented by seeing him grind heroes and warriors into despair and dust.

A ready ally, and also something to add to the ‘gonzo’ nature. I mean, taking on a fear focused lich-viking-doctor running an evil old folks home with a beautiful buxom blonde warrior goddess by your side exhorting you to not give up hope, seems fun to me.