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Les Fleurs du Mal: Le Vampire (feat. Koron Korak et Valerio Magli)

by ILLUMNATION

/

about

This song has a long and dramatic history and for me it's a closure to a story that happened more than 15 years ago. Just this year I finally found back an old draft and changed almost everything to make it what it has become now.

The song is featured on Ponies at Dawn: Pandemonium, which I consider a nice coincidence because we started to work on it even before the album was announced. You can get it here: poniesatdawn.bandcamp.com/album/pandemonium

lyrics

Toi qui, comme un coup de couteau,

Dans mon coeur plaintif es entrée;

Toi qui, forte comme un troupeau

De démons, vins, folle et parée,

De mon esprit humilié

Faire ton lit et ton domaine;
—
Infâme à qui je suis lié

Comme le forçat à la chaîne,

Comme au jeu le joueur têtu,

Comme à la bouteille l'ivrogne,

Comme aux vermines la charogne
—
Maudite, maudite sois-tu!

J'ai prié le glaive rapide

De conquérir ma liberté,

Et j'ai dit au poison perfide

De secourir ma lâcheté.

Hélas! le poison et le glaive

M'ont pris en dédain et m'ont dit:

«Tu n'es pas digne qu'on t'enlève

À ton esclavage maudit,

Imbécile! — de son empire

Si nos efforts te délivraient,

Tes baisers ressusciteraient

Le cadavre de ton vampire!»



English version:
You, who like a dagger ploughed

Into my heart with deadly thrill: 

You who, stronger than a crowd 

Of demons, mad, and dressed to kill,

Of my dejected soul have made

Your bed, your lodging, and domain:

To whom I'm linked (Unseemly jade!)

As is a convict to his chain,

Or as the gamester to his dice,

Or as the drunkard to his dram, 

Or as the carrion to its lice —

I curse you. Would my curse could damn!

I have besought the sudden blade 

To win for me my freedom back.

Perfidious poison I have prayed

To help my cowardice. Alack!

Both poison and the sword disdained

My cowardice, and seemed to say

"You are not fit to be unchained

From your damned servitude. Away,

You imbecile! since if from her empire 

We were to liberate the slave, 

You'd raise the carrion of your vampire, 

By your own kisses, from the grave."

credits

released September 1, 2023
Velvet R. Wings — song itself, vocals, half of the choir, video, artwork, tears and screams
Mane In Green — music, orchestration, guitar, second half of the choir, mixing and mastering
Koron Korak — violin
Valerio Magli — bass, synth bass
Charles Baudelaire — the original poem
Andy Feelin and Soul Strings — emotional support

As an English version we used Roy Campbell's translation (Poems of Baudelaire, New York: Pantheon Books, 1952).
The pictured flowers are: Christmas rose, red Chrysanthemum and Jonquil

license

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Velvet R. Wings & ILLUMNATION Lausanne, Switzerland

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