Dutch progressive metallers Ex Libris present a lyric video for “The Motherland”, taken from the second act of their progressive metal trilogy Ann, “Chapter 2: Anastasia Romanova”. Watch the video below.
“Chapter 2: Anastasia Romanova” is dedicated to the youngest daughter of the last emperor of Russia – Tsar Nicholas II – and her short tragic life. Anastasia was placed under house arrest with her family during the Russian revolution and executed at the age of 17 in 1918 by the Bolshevik secret police. “The Motherland” portrays Anastasia’s duty to the nation as tsar’s daughter and the family curse as her younger brother Alexei was born with haemophilia. The track features the powerful voices of the Ural Cossacks Choir.
In summer 2018, Ex Libris announced that their third full-length album “Ann” will be divided into three releases. “ANN is not only the title of our third album, it is also the name that binds the three women from the different chapters together. Each from a different time, a different place and a different background, but all three of the women have a story that needs to be told,” explains the band. The first chapter introduced Anne Boleyn, Queen of England from 1533 to 1536, meanwhile the second chapter took the listeners to Russia. The third act is scheduled to be released later on in 2019.
The band has already revealed the name of the character for Chapter 3 in the latest vlog following the research process and writing and rehearsing session. The chosen “Ann” for the third and final chapter of the trilogy is Anne Frank, one of the Jewish victims of the Holocaust. From 1942 to 1944, Anne kept a diary where she documented her life in hiding during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. “The Diary of a Young Girl” (in Dutch – Het Achterhuis. Dagboekbrieven 14 Juni 1942 – 1 Augustus 1944) was first published in Amsterdam in 1947 and has been translated in over 60 languages ever since. Anne’s diary and her tragic story have become an inspiration for many plays and movies.
Watch the following vlog for more details and behind the scenes footage from the research process, writing session and first rehearsal for Chapter 3:
Metal Goddesses 