Unravelling (song)
| Muse song | |
|---|---|
| Name | Unravelling |
| Album/single |
|
| Length | 3:57 |
| Alternative titles | - |
| First live performance | 12th June 2025 |
| Latest live performance | 27th September 2025 |
| Recorded | 2025 |
| Writer/composer | Matthew Bellamy, Dan Lancaster |
| Producer | Muse, Dan Lancaster |
| Chart position | TBA |
| Song Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Sickness In You & I | < | Unravelling | > | Hush |
| Album Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will of the People (2022) | < | The Wow! Signal (2026) | > | |
Description
Unravelling is heavy song which mixes elements of prog metal, metalcore and electronica, with vibes similar to those of Won't Stand Down. It also bears musical similarity to the band Sleep Token, a metal band that blends numerous genres like EDM, pop, and ambient, with heavy, djent-style guitar riffs. In an interview with Jack Saunders on BBC Radio 1 upon the song's radio premiere, Bellamy said that the song was made with that year's festival run in mind, specifically all the metal festivals on which the band replaced Foo Fighters as the headliner. The synth intro, that was featured in the first ever teaser on Instagram and throughout the rest of the teasers, and is also used as an intro to the song live, is absent from the studio version.
Released as a single on June 20th, 2025, Unravelling was produced and co-written by Dan Lancaster and the band, co-produced and engineered by Aleks Von Korff, and recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Instrumentation
The verses of the song feature an 80s synthwave-inspired arpeggiated synth, combined with a synth bass and electronic drum samples. The verses slowly build up to a low tuned metal riff, featuring Matt on an 8-string guitar (being the first song written on it) tuned down to drop E, and Chris on a 5-string bass.
Ghost Town Version
An alternative, mellower, acoustic, "Ghost Town Version" of the song was released on August 7th, 2025. It features an acoustic guitar and bass, cajon and a string orchestra. The contrast between the original an the Ghost Town version can be compared to that of Hyper Music and Hyper Chondriac Music.
Live
The song made its live debut at an intimate show in Helsinki in June of 2025 as an opener to the set, imediately becoming a favourite amongst the fans. Like Won't Stand Down, which opened sets for a while after its release, the same happened with Unravelling, which remained the set opener for all of 2025's gigs. As mentioned above, Unravelling's extended synth intro is exclusively used live.
More here.
Lyrics
(Un-un-unravelling, un-un-unravelling)
An insect trapped in amber I’m a fading pulse The ecstasy was false Our love is an unlit script no one can memorise Redacted and revised I’ll lie beside you and I’ll try to play along An insect trapped in amber I’m a static hum No longer happy dumb
Un-un-unravelling, un-un-unravelling Un-un-unravelling, un-un-unravelling
Feeling the glow die inside of our bones This is a hymn for our love with no God and no throne (Un-un-unravelling)
Your eyes go cold at sunrise as we disembark You left me in the dark An insect trapped in amber I’m a fading high Our heaven is a lie
Un-un-unravelling, un-un-unravelling Un-un-unravelling, un-un-unravelling
Feeling the glow die inside of our bones This is a hymn for our love with no God and no throne
[Breakdown and guitar solo]
Feeling the glow die inside of our bones This is a hymn for our love with no God and no throne And no throne