New Growth

1. The Arborist Speaks

None have seen this plain when it first grew but we have always lived under this tree Spores rewrote the minds of all we knew Took to air by winds from distant seas I am one but I can speak as we Linked by sporesight, all those in its shade Rings inscribe the verdant history At the core for centuries I've stayed

2. The Vizier Arrives/Spores of Resistance

3. A Display of Force

Hail sovereign Mystal Tree Tidings born from distant kings Brought by knights, allegiance free And Covenants marked by Golden Rings Hail sovereign city fair Hail Tree and all contained beneath A well of power, feel it there A will to wear it, like a wreath.

4. Secrets of the Tree

It's the tug in your chest at noon, when you breathe you feel better, and The memory of glowing lights, Ever green, flood your vision The flash when you miss that step and The place where the roots have flowers And the place where you once spent hours Those are the secrets of the tree It's that place somewhere off the ground, Can't be found without flying Where the air feels a shade too warm Like the nest of some creature Where the spores flow without resistance And a mask's not enough to fix this And a chant, strong upon my lips, Talking about the secrets of this tree Where sap should flow Synapses be Roots to dwarf The height of tree

5. Roots Reach to the Mountain

6. We Fight Though Our Homes are Razed

7. Through the Spore Clouds on the Backs of Mountain Widows

8. A Shudder As The Tree Begins to Fall

We never thought we'd see this day come Never thought that anyone outside would find the road Never thought they'd test it with batteries loaded Never thought I'd see with my own eye, trust eroded A cruel assault on the quarters we lived Fire from the ground shot to the branches of the tree All to take a power of planet with machinery From the heart, the place where all the branches meet What will happen when the tree falls? Who shall remain to hear the call?

9. In An Instant the Fresh Plain Bursts with Green

We were all knocked sideways All feeling a tug in our chests An hour or two had gone by The great Tree had fallen Spores launched as legion Screams of 'What have they done?" As the elders began to cry We'll fight for what's left As long as there's something (we will continue, we will carry on) But Oh, Feel the rumbling beneath our feet A sign of life unique All the spores that escaped From the steel and the flame We know our city will never be the same We Hope That our memories of sights and of streets Will serve us when the heat Dissipates in the rain And the monarchs refrain There's no hope for our homes but our lives will remain We will rebuild The tree will live on

10. New Growth

I am one but I can speak as we Linked by sporesight, all those in its shade Rings inscribe the verdant history At the core for centuries I've stayed Kings have come before None have seen it through With violence, deceitful words None could claim their due Why this weapons could have felled the tree When cannons failed, and blades from decades past Their tools surpass their lust for blood, but heed The Tree alone on this plain will last To live beneath this tree A mask to breath the air When spores fall, some will die No different anywhere But it's our home Let all who enter know [Spores and All] When the next fool runs to rule our plain [Madness Falls] Faster his defeat shall be revealed [None shall crawl] Humans, fauna, clouds of snow and rain [The tree makes equal] Round this glorious trunk all form a shield Lift your masks and know we shall remain With a power none can choose to wield I entreat you, mourn not for the slain Think of them as sprouts burst in the field

Total Time

42:45

Released

April 20, 2019

From the artist's bandcamp:

"Word of the Mystal Tree spread, and the legend grew faster than the spores took hold...

Around the coastal towns, the people called it “the haunted tree-town”, though neither haunted nor town were quite accurate.

Along the trade roads leading in, stories passed, person to person. Intrepid merchants took their old masks, and refitted them with cotton and charcoal, swearing their impermeability.

And in the center kingdoms, where they mostly concerned with themselves, and with each other, it was the guards who first began talking. Guard to guard, then to captain, then to regent, and finally to the ears of the monarchs themselves.

So one night, drunk heavily on rich wines, the room spinning, a thought appeared in the mind of someone powerful enough to do something about it. A king, a vizier, an emperor. The title didn’t matter. All the ambitious fools thought about that tree from time to time. What power made it grow? And to whom did it belong?

So this kingdom - and the name is unimportant, for it is not the first, and it will not be the last - sent a procession across the land. They were ready to make an offer. They were ready to show force.

How do they think this will end?

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Mystal Tree returns with another tale of high adventure. Adding vocals and lyrics to provide a complete narrative, the composition adds to the existing core of dungeon synth, progressive rock, and video game music to convey the next chapter in the saga of the Mystal Tree.

All Music, Vocals, and composition by Adam Matlock
Additional voices on "The Arborist Speaks" by Anne Rhodes, Sam Moth, Jeff Hutchins.

Vocals engineered by Brian Slattery.
Mixed by Adam Matlock
Mastered by A. Crispin of Dungeon Mastering
Artwork by Sieskja
Logo by Bard Algol
Cassette Layout by Russell Shaddox."

Digital

April 20, 2019

Independent

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