Track By Tracks: HUNTED - Deliver Us (2021)

1. Velvet Worm:

The lyrics of this track speak to the distortion of reality and personal anger evoked by politicians and alleged leaders of society as they openly manipulate and mislead us for selfish purposes.

2. Salvation on a String:

The lyrics of this track speak to the figurative line we walk from birth to death with the illusory hope of salvation at the end guiding us; a line over which we have little control over but continuously and openly defy.

3. For the Blind:

The main verse riff came first, and then fed back into the progression used in the clean verses. I think the vocal melody for the chorus appeared just after that and put me in mind of a hymn or chant for some reason; the adoption (and repurposing) of the ‘Deliver us’ religious motif followed on from that. In this case, though, this isn’t a plea for God or some supernatural force to deliver us from the slow downfall we seem to have been storing up for human society, it’s about how we’ve all sought out means and ways of thinking to shield ourselves from the pain of admitting all the damage we’ve done, and to avoid even looking for another path despite the price those who come after us will pay. If memory serves, the basic concept for the album artwork was based around the lyrical themes here.

4. Burning Ones:

“Burning Ones” is a term with religious connotations interchangeable with ‘angels’, and describes their supposed fiery energy. The track sings about a paused moment in time – the exact moment before death when faith is lost – a moment where, if beliefs and superstitions held true, you may be saved by a ‘Burning One’. Christopher Barberini, brother and friend, fell to his death from a bridge and drowned – nothing and no one saved him. Suspending time midway through that fall and exploring the thoughts of that single moment gave rise to this track.

5. The Black Shore:

I honestly can’t remember why the music conjured this up but, once I’d heard it, the lyrics – which were inspired in a roundabout way by a book I’d just read, Ghostwritten by David Mitchell – came together pretty quickly. This one’s a bit more of a straight narrative than is typical for me (Jon); it’s about someone waking up in a kind of purgatory and trying to understand where he is and what he was, all as the guardians of this space between life and death call him into the oblivion of the black waters beyond.

6. The Lie:

On a broad level, this song is about the fear of dying, and how a life spent looking away from death can drain the meaning from living, as each is integral to the understanding of the other. More personally, the music and lyrics came about in the time just after the sad and unexpected death of a young family friend. I’d been trying to understand what it could possibly all mean, if it meant anything at all, and writing this was part of that attempt to make some sense of it. RIP Daniel.

7. One More Time:

This track is a tribute to all soldiers, true heroes of this age, who time after time have to deal with the relentless nightmares of war. It sings specifically about that moment in the trenches (figurative or not) when the need to fight resurfaces and bravery, beyond what us mere civilians can fathom, is needed just to survive one more time.

8. Misled:

This track was written with the corruption, humanitarian crisis and authoritarianism in Venezuela in mind. The system failed its people and the powers at the helm are to blame. Some leaders are simply beyond forgiveness.

9. Time will Tell:

Perhaps slightly strangely for a shortish song, there are three perspectives here: a narrator of sorts, a group of religious extremists, and a group of people trying to resist them. The lyrics tell a brief tale of the dangers and costs of absolutism, particularly when taken to its logical extreme of domination of others and their way of life, the innate human-ness of resistance even in the face of total subjugation or annihilation, and the fact that history – such as it is – has a way of telling all this as a different story depending on who’s listening (and where or when that is).

10. Our Final Embrace:

A track that attempts to evoke the thoughts and emotions felt during the final moments you spend with a loved one before their death. The track was written shortly after and inspired by the passing of Graham Fry, father-in-law to me (Steve) and a fan of the band and is therefore dedicated to his memory.

11. Maldito sea tu Nombre (bonus track):

A tribute to an iconic track and band I (Steve) grew up listening to during my teenage years in Colombia. The song had an evil allure to it, which resonated with me and served to cement my love for Spanish rock and metal.