Line #62 Music/AncientBards


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/35923533_10156439036449805_4972147118748729344_n.jpg]] [[caption-width-right:350:L-R: Federico, Claudio, Daniele, Sara, Simone, Martino]]
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3	-->''The Black Crystal Sword Saga...BEGINS!!!''
4
5	Founded in 2006, '''Ancient Bards''' is a [[SymphonicMetal Symphonic]] PowerMetal band hailing from Emilia-Romagna. They are well-known for two things: their high-energy EpicRocking and an all-original HighFantasy narrative their entire discography so far was founded upon. The band gained further recognition when vocalist Sara Squadrani collaborated with Dutch prog project Music/{{Ayreon}} as [[SatelliteLoveInterest the Girl]] in ''The Theory of Everything'', released 2013.
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7	The first three albums of the ''Black Crystal Sword'' mythos revolves around an alliance of the monarchs of Lastworld, together with their messenger, on a quest to return the eponymous weapon after it was stolen by the [[EvilSorcerer dark wizard]] [[BigBad Sendor]]. After a long hiatus the band came back together to continue the saga, kicking off the second part with ''[[{{Prequel}} Origine]]'' in 2019.
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9	[[folder:Members]]
10	!! Current lineup
11	* Martino Garattoni - bass (2006-present)
12	* Daniele Mazza - keyboards (2006-present)
13	* Claudio Pietronik - guitars (2007-present)
14	* Sara Squadrani - vocals (2007-present)
15	* Federico Gatti - drums (2011-present)
16	* Simone Bertozzi - guitars, vocals (2018-present)
17
18	!!Former members
19	* Alessandro Carichini - drums (2007-2011)
20	* Fabio Balducci - guitars (2007-2014)
21	[[/folder]]
22
23	[[folder:Discography]]
24	!The Black Crystal Sword Saga
25	!! Part One
26	* ''The Alliance of the Kings'' (2010)
27	* ''Soulless Child'' (2011)
28	* ''A New Dawn Ending'' (2014)
29	!! Part Two
30	* ''Origine'' (2019)
31	[[/folder]]
32
33	[[hardline]]
34	!The Black Crystal Trope Saga
35	!!Tropes concerning Ancient Bards in general
36	* BlackCloak: Sara used to wear a pimped-out cloak in her ''Alliance'' days. Come ''Soulless Child'' she's opted for a purplish-blue BadassCape, then by ''A New Dawn Ending'' she's averted either trope completely.
37	* {{Determinator}}: Shooting the dark PerformanceVideo parts for "Impious Dystopia" entailed the band endure temperatures as low as ''five degrees Celsius'' in the middle of the night as the pyrotechnics all around couldn't warm them enough. Sara in particular took this up in [[AwesomeButImpractical nothing but a lace gown]] over a {{Shorttank}} [[SerialEscalation while enduring bilial colics]]. [[https://twitter.com/SaraSquadrani/status/1115194842563346433 And she's proud of it!]]
38	* EpicRocking: Lots.
39	** LongestSongGoesLast: The closer type to boot!
40	*** "Faithful to Destiny" (08:45, ''Alliance'')
41	*** "Hope Dies Last" (14:31, ''Soulless Child'')
42	*** [[TitleTrack "A New Dawn Ending"]] (16:37)
43	*** "The Great Divide" (14:48, ''Origine'')
44	* ForeignLanguageTitle: "Oscurità" and the bilingual "Spiriti Liberi". ''Origine'' also counts.
45	* GreekChorus: Provided by an actual choir.
46	* GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe: How the cover of ''Origine'' as well as the "Impious Dystopia" video depict Eirene. Lork is a bit more of a Green-Skinned Space Dude in the former and a shadowy figure playing with fire in the latter.
47	* HeavyMithril: ''The Black Crystal Sword Saga''. Need I say more?
48	* LargeHam: Heck, the instrumentation ''itself'' loves this trope!
49	* LyricalColdOpen: "Soulless Child".
50	* LyricalDissonance: Their music seems to stay fairly consistent no matter ''what'' the mood of the lyrics is.
51	* MaleBandFemaleSinger
52	* MultilingualSong: Mostly English, but makes room for passages in Latin and even entire songs in their native Italian.
53	* PowerMetal: '''OH HELL YES.'''
54	* SopranoAndGravel: SixthRanger axeman Simone provides a beastly gravel to Sara's mighty soprano.
55	* SpokenWordInMusic: Quite a few.
56	* SymphonicMetal: Mostly with synths a la Music/{{Nightwish\|Band}} but they love a good orchestra, too.
57	* WordSaladLyrics: Their English lyrics would suffer this at any point in an album.
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59
60	!!Tropes concerning the Black Crystal Sword Saga
61	!!!Recurring tropes
62	* GriefSong[=/=]HeroicBSOD:
63	** Shena recalling [[DeathOfAChild her son's death]] as she watches Daltor and Sendor fight during "In My Arms".
64	** Eirene finding her father's dead body in "The Great Divide".
65	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice:
66	** [[spoiler:Sendor]], by Daltor in "Showdown".
67	** [[spoiler:The Supreme]], by Lork in "Titanism".
68	* PowerCrystal: All LifeEnergy in this universe flows through the White Crystal. You can also use it to forge a CoolSword that can trap demons, [[AwesomeButImpractical although it's kinda easy to shatter]].
69	* SelfEmpowermentAnthem: "Light" is this for Eirene.
70	** Some of Daltor's passages in "To the Master of Darkness" as well.
71	* WellDoneSonGuy: Lork, and to some extent, Daltor.
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73	!!!Part One
74	* AllForNothing: Sendor uses the Black Crystal Sword to bring back Dorus' soul in "Hope Dies Last" but to no avail.
75	* ArcNumber: In ''The Alliance of the Kings'', 4. The Alliance is composed of Lastworld's four monarchs (Daltor the King of Westland, Alron the Prince of the North, Rahed the King of Elves, and Shena the Queen of the Icy Forest). Also, "Four Magic Elements".
76	* BlackMagic
77	* BlackSwordsAreBetter: There's even a White Crystal Sword mentioned in this first part of the saga, but the [[EvilWeapon Black]] one has a ''[[SealedEvilInACan demon]]'' trapped inside.
78	* CameBackWrong: [[TheReveal "Soulless]] [[TitleTrack Child"]] narrates how [[BigBad Sendor]] [[LoveMakesYouEvil went to extreme lengths]] [[{{Necromantic}} to revive his and Shena's dead son]] who came back a SoullessShell.
79	* CollapsingLair: "In the End".
80	* DeathByOriginStory[=/=]TroubledBackstoryFlashback: [[DeathOfAChild "All That Is True"]] and [[BreakTheCutie "Flaming Heart"]].
81	* DeathWorld: Noland is almost devoid of civilization and even the seas no longer hold life.
82	* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:Daltor's father.]] And then you find out [[KickTheDog Sendor made him do it.]]
83	* FireIceLightning: Fire, ice, water, and thunder make the "Four Magic Elements" mentioned in ''Alliance''.
84	* FromBadToWorse: During "Showdown" Daltor manages to shatter the Black Crystal Sword and by "A New Dawn Ending" he and his gang pick up the pieces just as [[CollapsingLair Sendor's castle begins to fall]]. And then it's revealed, [[TheVoice by his father]], that by shattering the sword, Daltor actually [[NiceJobBreakingItHero freed the Dark Demon trapped inside it]].
85	* HeroicSecondWind: "The Last Resort".
86	* IdiotBall:
87	** Sendor and Daltor in ''A New Dawn Ending''. Sendor's former lover Shena already told him ''souls can't simply be brought back with magic'', not even theirs combined, and not even of the Black Crystal Sword. But Sendor, mad with desire to bring back their son Surod, uses the Sword for that purpose anyway, AllForNothing.
88	** And now Daltor's case: sure, he meant well to fight [[BigBad Sendor]] and shattering the Black Crystal Sword seemed to be the only way to overpower him, but how much did he know about [[SealedEvilInACan that eldritch demon that blackened the crystal that trapped it in the first place?!]]
89	* MacGuffinTitle: The [[BlackSwordsAreBetter Black]] [[ArtifactofDoom Crystal]] [[EvilWeapon Sword]] gives its wielder immense strength and magical powers and even ''immortality''.
90	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Taken literally when Daltor shatters the Black Crystal Sword.
91	* NotTooDeadToSaveTheDay: At the last minute (or more precisely the last track of ''Soulless Child''), Daltor, with dragon, crashes into the sight of his fellow kings as well as Dorus lying on the ground, and picks up his silver sword, ending the album with [[ToBeContinued an oncoming battle royale between Daltor and Sendor]].
92	-->'''Daltor''': Raise the sword! For the glory and peace, ''let the fight begin!''
93	* QuarrelingSong: "Soulless Child" between Sendor and Shena. The former berates the latter for refusing to use her magic to save their child, while Shena claims not even the Black Crystal Sword can bring his soul back.
94	* SdrawkcabName: Dorus? [[spoiler:Surod.]]
95	* UnwittingPawn: Dorus. [[SoullessShell Not that he knows.]]
96	* WellIntentionedExtremist: Sendor just wants his son back.
97	* TheWorfEffect: "Through My Veins" oversees the Alliance battling Sendor, [[EvilWeapon whose grip on the Black Crystal Sword imbues him with power]], but getting defeated [[ConservationOfNinjutsu one by one]] in the process, forcing them to retreat.
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100	!!!Part Two
101	* DoubleEntendre: "Oscurità" can either refer to the [[ThePowerOfHate darkness]] Lork is sowing and growing in his own heart, or, the [[TheUnfavorite obscurity]] that [[FreudianExcuse his father]] seems to have relegated him to despite dedicating his life to him and the White Crystal.
102	* FantasyCounterpartReligion: The one described in "Origine" oozes particularly with Buddhist influence.
103	* FemalesAreMoreInnocent: In "Aureum Legacy", the father gives Eirene, [[StartOfDarkness much to Lork's dismay]], the White Crystal, as he senses his son still had some issues to sort out.
104	* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Lork says this verbatim in "Oscurità", trying to justify why he should've been the one to inherit the White Crystal.
105	* InMediasRes: "Impious Dystopia".
106	* MadnessMantra: ''There's not a hint of dark in me, no hint of dark in me, no hint of dark, no darkness in me...''
107	* MeaningfulName: "Eirene" is a variation on Irene, the name of the [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Greek]] goddess of peace.
108	* AMinorKidroduction: "Fantasy's Wings" introduces siblings Lork and Eirene running around as a festival for the Supreme is being set up around town.
109	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Almost verbatim in "The Hollow".
110	* PlaceOfPower: The White Crystal World.
111	* SingleTear: "The Great Divide" part two.
112	* StartOfDarkness[=/=]FaceHeelTurn: The entire ''Origine'' album for Lork.
113	* YouAreInCommandNow: The Chief of the Rejects passes the torch to an exiled Lork, knowing he ran from home after [[SelfMadeOrphan murdering his father]].

Context Music / AncientBards