The Taiwanese title of 'Endless Aeons' is '百萬遍 Pah-bān-piàn', a Buddhist term describing the gathering of many people to chant Buddhist sutras. Ground-breaking as always, 'Endless Aeons' also features bassist Doris singing in the traditional Taiwanese enka style.
Lead vocalist Freddy Lim states: "CHTHONIC’s music is always about reincarnation and catastrophe – it’s very religious."
He continues: "in the past, our works told Taiwan’s ever-reincarnating catastrophes. When I discovered that actually someone close in my family is a victim of one of these catastrophes, it became personal, and started writing 'Endless Aeons' and other songs. When will these catastrophes be over? If we could start our lives all over again, would it be possible for us to be without remorse? This song is a question, and the answer."
Guitarist Jesse, the song's co-writer, comments: "this is a song that sounds complicated, but actually simplistic. Answering a complicated question with simple words, this is how the song is supposed to be."
The video for 'Endless Aeons' is a continuation of CHTHONIC's previous videos - including 'Defenders of Bu Tik Palace', 'KAORU', 'Millenia's Faith Undone', and 'Pattonkan'. Characters in the new song are victims of the 228 Uprising and Massacre in 1947 who fell into infernal reincarnation. Through the song 'Endless Aeons', they are reborn again, but fall through the tunnel of time into a CHTHONIC concert, a development that signifies interruption of the reincarnation.
CHTHONIC have released several albums including Mirror of Retribution (2009), Takasago Army (2011), and Butik (2013) on Spinefarm/Universal Music. In their time they've performed at such fêted events as Ozzfest, Download Festival, Wacken Open Air and have toured Europe and North America multiple times.
However, the band's activity halted in 2016 when lead vocalist Freddy Lim was elected to Taiwanese Parliament.
For almost a decade, Freddy has been occupied with parliamentary work, and other members have been working on their own projects - resulting in only occasional large Taiwan performances for the CHTHONIC. Occasional musical output followed (2018's Battlefields of Asura album and 2023's 'Pattonkan' single, which was selected to GRAMMY's Global Spin) but almost all overseas performances were halted.
Although CHTHONIC have stayed low-profiled in recent years, in 2019 they performed with an orchestra in front of Taiwan's Presidential Palace to an audience of 50,000.
People say rock can change the world, and Freddy Lim made that a reality during his two terms in parliament, advocating for reform. Freddy pushed for legislation to make Taiwan’s first Asian country to have marriage equality, and for greater protection of indigenous rights. Additionally, he pushed for increased budgetary aid for humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, and advocated for “transitional justice”, demanding that government declassify files from Taiwan's past authoritarian era.
This hit home unexpectedly in 2023. Declassified files revealed the sorrowful and previously unknown past of Freddy’s family. Combining history and mythology, it is perhaps not coincidental that CHTHONIC’s music told the sorrowful yet brave stories of Freddy’s grandparents. Shocked at the news and overwhelmed by emotion, Freddy called time on his eight year service in parliament, and announced that he would not seek re-election.
Now, CHTHONIC return. The band are working on new songs, and could possibly return to global stages once more again soon.
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