chewmeupspitmeout - Never Die

from SpinTunes 20 Round 1 by Spintunes

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about

I went through a few different versions of this song, as I couldn’t really nail a style that seemed right. It started out as a spooky fingerpicked track, then I tried an electronica version and finally a surf influenced one. In the end, I kind of combined all three.

I’ve become a bit obsessed with witch trials recently and consequently have been reading quite a bit about Civil War-era England (where deals with the devil abound!).

I would’ve liked to do a bit more work on it but I’ve had a throbbing toothache all weekend which has been fun.

lyrics

Since I was a child
Death always scared me
Twelve summers had passed
When my father left me
A cavalier’s blade
Plunged straight through his chest
And I knew right from then
Trade anything for my death

I beseeched the Lord
When consumption took my mother
My entreaty ignored
My prayers turned to another

That sulphuric smell
Pervaded the room
The candles snuffed out
When he appeared from the gloom
His feline features
His serpentine tongue
I recoiled with fear
Nowhere to run

He offered me life
Of the never-ending kind
Pricked my finger with a knife
Produced a contract to sign
He proffered a goblet
A drink to seal the deal
As soon as my lips were wet
My head began to reel

I slumped to the floor
In a catatonic state
No muscle could I move
Though fully awake
Days passed by and I was missed from town
My neighbours came and broke the door down
They found me alone for the devil had fled
When they saw my eyes open they took me for dead
They buried me deep below the ground
I tried to scream but could produce no sound
Now I'm trapped in this box but the devil didn't lie
Down here in the dark I will never die

credits

from SpinTunes 20 Round 1, released March 21, 2023

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Spintunes Union, South Carolina

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