An exclamation expressive of sorrow, pity, or apprehension of evil; -- in old writers, sometimes followed by day or white; alas the day, like alack a day, or alas the white.
Synonym for "unfortunately" that carries the additional messages: (1) the writer personally feels the pain being described; (2) the writer is as old as a Cretaceous fossil.
ALAS was a mid 1970s, mostly instrumental progressive rock group in argentine rock. They were also one of the major players in the tango-rock movevement in Argentina during that period, alongside Rodolfo Mederos's group and Invisible. In spite of their short existence, many prog-rock fans view ALAS as one of the most original sounding in their genre.