''Sirius B'' is the twelfth full-length musical album by the symphonic metal band Therion. The album title refers to the star

Sirius B Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. Its name is derived from the Greek word , or , meaning 'glowing' or 'scorching'. The star is designated α Canis Majoris, Latinized to Alpha Canis Majoris, and abbreviated Alpha CMa ...

. It was released simultaneously with '' Lemuria''. The cover artwork was by Thomas Ewerhard.

Track listing

Development

In an interview with ''Global Domination'', Johnsson said that the album title is a reference to the twin star to the ordinary Sirius A. The album makes references to ancient culture and mythology: *

Kingu Kingu, also spelled Qingu (, ), was a god in Babylonian mythology, and the son of the gods Abzu and Tiamat. After the murder of his father, Abzu, he served as the consort of his mother, Tiamat, who wanted to establish him as ruler and leader of ...

was a monster in Sumerian mythology. According to Enûma Elish, all human beings were created from his blood after he was killed by Marduk. *Son of the Sun was the title of

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until the ...

Akhenaten Akhenaten (pronounced ), also spelled Echnaton, Akhenaton, ( egy, ꜣḫ-n-jtn ''ʾŪḫə-nə-yātəy'', , meaning "Effective for the Aten"), was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh reigning or 1351–1334 BC, the tenth ruler of the Eighteenth D ...

, who preferred to worship

Aton Aton, ATON or variants thereof may refer to: People * Aton Ben-Horin (born 1979), American music executive and record producer * Aton Edwards (born c. 1962), American expert in the fields of emergency preparedness, self-reliance and sustainable ...

, god of the Sun, over all other gods. His reign was unsuccessful, and people believed that other gods had cursed him. * Khlysti was a controversial Christian sect in Russia.

Grigory Rasputin Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (; rus, links=no, Григорий Ефимович Распутин ; – ) was a Russian mystic and self-proclaimed holy man who befriended the family of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia, thus ga ...

, the major character of the song, is believed to have been a member. *

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

is the wife of Hades, the god of the dead in

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

. * Kali Yuga in

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

is a dark age of suffering, the final era before the end of the world. *

Land of Punt The Land of Punt ( Egyptian: '' pwnt''; alternate Egyptological readings ''Pwene''(''t'') /pu:nt/) was an ancient kingdom known from Ancient Egyptian trade records. It produced and exported gold, aromatic resins, blackwood, ebony, ivory an ...

was a mysterious lost kingdom in ancient east Africa. *

Melek Taus Melek ( hu, Mellek) is a municipality and village in the Nitra District of the south-west of Slovakia, in the Nitra Region The Nitra Region ( sk, Nitriansky kraj, ; hu, Nyitrai kerület) is one of the administrative regions of Slovakia. It wa ...

is the supreme deity of

yazidi Yazidis or Yezidis (; ku, ئێزیدی, translit=Êzidî) are a Kurmanji-speaking endogamous minority group who are indigenous to Kurdistan, a geographical region in Western Asia that includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. The ma ...

, his common shape is a

peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

's. *

Dagon Dagon ( he, דָּגוֹן, ''Dāgōn'') or Dagan ( sux, 2= dda-gan, ; phn, 𐤃𐤂𐤍, Dāgān) was a god worshipped in ancient Syria across the middle of the Euphrates, with primary temples located in Tuttul and Terqa, though many attes ...

is an ancient Semitic god of the sea. He appears in many H. P. Lovecraft books of Cthulhu mythos. * Georgy Gurdzhiev was an Armenian mystic philosopher and traveller, an expert in yazidi culture.

Personnel

Christofer Johnsson Christofer Johnsson (born 10 August 1972) is a Swedish musician and producer. He is a founding member and the guitarist for symphonic metal band Therion and was previously a member of Carbonized, Liers in Wait, Messiah, and Demonoid. In 200 ...

- rhythm guitar, mandolin ("The Wondrous World of Punt"), classical and choir arrangements *

Kristian Niemann Kristian Niemann (born 26 October 1971) is a Swedish guitarist who has performed for bands such as Therion, Lithium, and Demonoid. He is the brother of Johan Niemann Johan Wilhelm Niemann (born 26 June 1977) is a Swedish musician best kn ...

- rhythm and lead guitar, acoustic guitar, mandolin ("The Wondrous World of Punt") * Johan Niemann -

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

, mandolin ("The Wondrous World of Punt") ; Guest musicians *

Richard Evensand Richard "Ricky" Evensand is a Swedish drummer and contributed for several music bands: Therion (2001-2004), Chimaira (2003-2004), Ebony Tears, Sorcerer, Dog Faced Gods, Soilwork, Demonoid, Southpaw, Stardown. He currently resides in Australi ...

- drums,

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

("Kali Yuga part 2") *Steen Rasmussen - Hammond organ *Lars Sømod Jensen -

church organ Carol Williams performing at the United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel.">West_Point_Cadet_Chapel.html" ;"title="United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel">United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel. ...

Mats Levén Mats Leven is a Swedish singer. Some of his most notable collaborations have been with guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, symphonic metallers Therion and doom metallers Candlemass. In 2011, due to family issues on the part of Firewind's lead singer ...

- lead vocals ("The Blood of Kingu", "The Khlysti Evangelist", "Kali Yuga part 2") * Piotr Wawrzeniuk - lead vocals ("Dark Venus Persephone", "Kali Yuga part 1", "Melek Taus") *Orchestra:

City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra The City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra (Czech: ''Filharmonici města Prahy'') is a classical orchestra, predominantly composed of Czech classical, jazz and guest musicians. The history of the orchestra goes back to the Film Symphony Orchestr ...

(conducted by Adam Klemens and Mario Klemens) *Choir: Kūhn Mixed Choir (conducted by Mario Klemens) *Anna-Maria Krawe - lead and backing vocals

Charts

References

External links

* *
Information about album at the official website
{{Authority control 2004 albums Therion (band) albums Nuclear Blast albums