Behind the Scenes, or Why I wrote "Aarhus Bay"

I came across an article about a remarkable discovery in Denmark's Bay of Aarhus: divers had uncovered traces of a Stone Age settlement that had been drowned by the sea about 8,500 years ago. Whole forests, tools, and fragments of daily life were preserved beneath the waves, sealed away like a time capsule. What struck me wasn't just the archaeology-it was the human story. These weren't just artifacts; they were the remains of lives lived, families gathered, hunters setting out, people adapting to a world where the seas were rising and reshaping their homeland. I couldn't help but feel the echo between then and now. Just as those Stone Age people faced a changing world, we too are living through a time of shifting coastlines and climate uncertainty. Music has always been my way of connecting past and present, so I set about writing a ballad that could carry both the history and the emotion. Aarhus Bay emerged as a folk ballad haunted by loss, resilience, and memory. I chose acoustic guitar and violin drones to create a soundscape that feels both intimate and timeless, with layered harmonies that drift like voices carried on the tide. The lyrics trace the rise of the seas, the drowning of forests, and the whispers of lives now hidden beneath the bay. I wanted listeners to feel the stillness of that underwater world, and to hear the quiet reminder it gives us: that humanity has always adapted, endured, and found ways to carry on. Aarhus Bay isn't just about the past-it's also about us, listening for ancient echoes as we navigate our own uncertain future.

A haunting folk ballad inspired by the submerged Stone Age settlements of Denmark’s Bay of Aarhus, Beneath the Waves of Aarhus weaves a sonic tapestry of ancient echoes and timeless loss. This single captures the mystery of a world drowned 8,500 years ago, where hunter-gatherers’ lives were reshaped by rising seas. With delicate acoustic guitar, soft violin drones, and ethereal vocal harmonies, the song evokes the stillness of a time capsule preserved beneath the waves. Subtle water sound effects and a reflective, melancholic tone draw listeners into a story of adaptation and resilience, connecting the past to our present struggles with changing coastlines. Perfect for fans of introspective folk and historical storytelling.

Listen/Download: https://adamsweet.bandcamp.com/track/aarhus-bay

Verse 1: Beneath the waves of Aarhus Bay,

Where shadows dance and secrets stay,

Eight thousand years, the tides did rise,

And drowned the homes beneath the skies.

Chorus: Oh, the sea keeps time, in a capsule still,

Wood and bone on the ocean's will,

Stone Age whispers, soft and deep,

In the Bay of Aarhus, where the ancients sleep.

Verse 2: Divers tread where hunters roamed,

Through sunken lands they called their home,

Arrowheads and tools of stone,

In the deep, their tale is shown.

Chorus: Oh, the sea keeps time, in a capsule still,

Wood and bone on the ocean's will,

Stone Age whispers, soft and deep,

In the Bay of Aarhus, where the ancients sleep.

Bridge: Tree rings tell of tides that grew,

Two meters rose, the world they knew,

Forests drowned, yet preserved in mud,

A story sealed in salt and flood.

Verse 3: Harpoons and hooks, they hope to find,

Traces of a life left far behind,

In the calm of Aarhus, time stands still,

The past speaks soft, with a quiet thrill.

Chorus: Oh, the sea keeps time, in a capsule still,

Wood and bone on the ocean's will,

Stone Age whispers, soft and deep,

In the Bay of Aarhus, where the ancients sleep.

Outro: As seas rise now, we look to then,

How they adapted, those ancient men,

In the waves, their echoes call,

The Stone Age lives, beneath it all.