For this year's upcoming album I did loose concept album titled "Encyclopedia Draconica". This is one of the two songs forming the main storyline. (The cover picture is a screenshot from Skyrim.)

By coincidence I recently bought a busted-up Alpha Juno for a song cover, and it has proved really useful for the main bassline.
Besides the story of the dragon running amok I also managed to find a home for a piece I wrote around 30 years ago, the chorused bass part starting around 3:40 was indeed imagined in the early 90s but it has taken this long for me to do anything with it. This also contains my first ever guitar solo, such as it is and the Juno also rounds things out nicely.

The accompanying lyrics about "a burnt fish in the sea" are actually an oblique reference to the time, also in the 90s, when my brother and I got a tiny rubber fish in a packet of cereal, which we promptly set alight using methylated spirits. So the original lyric fragment that was burned into my brain along with the bass riff was actually "like a burnt fish the meths"... which I have changed now that tends to refer to a certain type of drug. I may still have that burnt fish somewhere.

This song was tracked on 2" tape as usual, with the vocals and guitar parts originally recorded on 8-track and dubbed across for the final mixdown. The narration was done with the 1/2" machine running fast so as to slow it down, as I try to hone my impersonation of Bal-Sagoth. Mixing was done onto 1/4" tape on the 21st of December, with the mixing done in sections and edited together with razorblades and splicing tape. There is a bit more distortion on the narration than I would like, but that appears to have occurred doing tracking and I don't really want to have to rerecord the vocals and then remix the entire song all over again.

Instruments used include: Roland JV1010, Roland Alpha Juno 1, Roland M-VS1, Hammond XM-1, Vako Orchestron samples, Behringer Solina, Manikin Memotron, Moog Voyager, Yamaha Reface CP, Ahlborn Archive pipe organ, Alesis DM10 drum brain, Steinberger Spirit GT and XTd, with various cheap pedals, compressors and Lexicon effects.

"As the priests invoked the forbidden rite from the Dark Bible, a terrifying shape rose forth from the Void. Dragons are not uncommon in Arcaia, but this was no ordinary dragon."

He wants to see all die
How can I put it less subtly?
With fire from the sky
He turned our tale into a tragedy
...Beware the Evil Dragon

"Swooping low across the villages in ways no civilised creature would dare, the grey shape disgorged vast gouts of flame, setting afire the thatched roofs of the ancient settlement.
Panic ensued as the rogue lizard returned again and again, taking pleasure from the chaos and death. Ice-dragons attempted to douse the flames and stop the carnage but in vain, as they were driven back
by their more powerful foe."

He wants to see all die
How can I put it less subtly?
He opened up the sky
And turned the Word into a blasphemy
...Beware the Evil Dragon

---

We were drifting along like they said in that song
Living life how it should be
Now he'll scorch us to death
With his firey breath
Like a burnt fish in the sea

---

"Heroes of man and dragon alike flew to the province's aid, but the grey dragon was more than a match for them. Taking counsel from the wise, their lord decreed that a band of heroes must march forth to the realm of Taria, there to seek an audience with the overking, a mighty warrior of legend, one never yet defeated in battle, and to plea for his aid."

He wants to see all die
How can I put it less subtly?
With fire from the sky
He turned our tale into a tragedy
...Who'll stop the Evil Dragon?