“§4” reinforces the central themes of The Last Will and Testament: the fragility of legacy, the weight of secrets, and the devastating impact of betrayal. The patriarch’s confession shatters the illusion of a unified family, exposing the toxic relationships and hidden sacrifices that sustained it.
...
And now in tranquil fortitude
The shifting sands of time
I was sick with fever
Hand on the hymns
Expiring
Ashen eyes in delirium
Soliloquay in suspirium
No! No! No!
A lock on the sanctum
One of the cursed, forever in debt
Daughter, my unfortunate son
I bequeath you verity
Twins, usurping strands of flesh
You are not mine
Poison loins of mother
Cursed my vigorous seed
Longing for a child
My love for her
Birthed a controversial plan
Her eye on him
One so ordinary, soon in nameless grave
The bane of my existence
Sordid flesh communion
Gold in mouth, he impregnates
Swallowed my shame
Like a man of affairs
Lineage and name
Still fast in my prayers
§4 was written by Mikael Åkerfeldt.
§4 was produced by Mikael Åkerfeldt.