Olive Fracture from Fateswept by Mythikon

The ancient scar of a broken olive tree became our unexpected muse for this album finale. While our equipment was packed to leave the mountain, Yannis found this split tree still living despite a lightning strike – two halves somehow thriving separately yet drawing from the same roots. We scrapped our planned closing track that night.

"Olive Fracture" emerges like a gentle exhale after the storm-wracked journey of the previous tracks. Those who've weathered "Pyrrhic Flood" and survived the battle cries of "Salt Against Bronze" find themselves gathered under fractured branches, seeking reconciliation. The wounded olive – Greece's enduring symbol of peace and perseverance – becomes both shelter and metaphor for what remains after chaos.

The track opens with field recordings we captured at dusk – wind through leaves, distant conversation fragments, the subtle sounds of healing. When the bouzouki enters with that delicate minor progression, it carries the weariness of survivors taking stock of what's left.

What makes this piece special is how the tension finally uncoils at the 4-minute mark. The dueling Greek and English vocals that battled throughout the album find harmony here, neither voice dominating but supporting each other like the intertwined lyra and bouzouki lines. Listen for how the melody subtly recalls motifs from "Ash and Laurel," now transformed from uncertainty to resolution.

We wanted the percussion to feel like heartbeats steadying after panic – measured, grounding, the calm after storm. The chorus builds not with aggression but solidarity, voices gathering strength in numbers rather than volume. When everyone sings "Μην σπάσεις – hold as one," it's the album's thesis finally revealed: strength found not in conquest but in unified resilience.

The splintered tree stands as testament that fracture need not mean destruction – sometimes it creates space for new growth, unexpected strength. This isn't just mythology; it's the wisdom we discovered living on that mountain, watching broken things endure.

Tracklist

8.	Olive Fracture	3:40

Lyrics

Stone roots tangled where olives split
Cracked fruit drying on hammered dirt
Hands brush the scar—old vows admit
Grief rings gentle, quiet, and alert

We gather beneath the splayed old limb
Amber resin clings to our skin
Salt on our lips, mouths drawn slim
Branches fractured—memory worn thin
Past quarrels settle in olive shade
Murmurs threading all we’ve remade

Olive fracture, bend don’t break
(Μην σπάσεις – hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture, roots awake
We find strength in what’s undone
(Hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture—new bonds begun

Ash and laurel sift in each palm
Grit set firm against gathering ache
Rain-worn bark, the silence calm
Threads of green where the healed hearts quake
We speak promise where olives bleed
Hewn by struggle, whole in need

Olive fracture, bend don’t break
(Μην σπάσεις – hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture, roots awake
We find strength in what’s undone
(Hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture—new bonds begun

Scars in the fruit, sap in our veins
Each mark holds promise—none remains in vain

Olive fracture, bend don’t break
(Μην σπάσεις – hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture, roots awake
We find strength in what’s undone
(Hold as one, hold as one)
Olive fracture—new bonds begun
From the split, we stand as one
From fracture—stand as one

Branches mended, dusk settles slow
We rise together, what is sown we grow

Credits

from Fateswept, released June 10, 2025

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