Kill or Be Killed (song)
| Muse song | |
|---|---|
| Name | Kill or Be Killed[1] |
| Album/single | Will of the People (7) |
| Length | 4:59[2] |
| Alternative titles | |
| First live performance | 4th June 2022 |
| Latest live performance | 10th July 2022 |
| Recorded | 2021 |
| Writer/composer | Matthew Bellamy |
| Producer | Muse, Aleks Von Korff |
| Chart position | |
| Song Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You Make Me Feel Like It's Halloween | < | Kill or Be Killed | > | Verona |
| Album Nav | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simulation Theory (2018) | < | Will of the People (2022) | > | |
Description
A heavy prog-metal song. The style of it has been compared to Muse's output from the Showbiz, Origin of Symmetry, Absolution and Black Holes & Revelations eras, mixed with Drones. The song's title has been "officially" leaked on March 14th, 2022 via the JSON output from wontstanddown.muse.mu.
In a 2022 interview with Zane Lowe, Bellamy said that this track is "the best metal/prog track we've ever done, the best track that could've been on Drones.".[3] The metal-like song was further described in Warner Music's short album recap as having "industrial-tinged" and "granite heavy" guitar riffs.[4]
This is the only song on Will of the People to be both co-produced and mixed by Aleks Von Korff.
Additional Information
Kill or Be Killed features a distinct guitar riff during the intro and the verse, similar in style to bands like Limp Bizkit, Slipknot and Korn, while the guitar tone, including the Whammy, also bears resemblance to the likes of Rage Against the Machine. The intro blasts with Dom's thunderous tom fill and heavy guitar riffs, in which the riff was a pure reminiscent of Cave and The Handler with harsher and more aggressive sounds, while the drum beat is similar to that of New Born, with the snare hitting every beat. The tom-driven pre-chorus parts are similar in style to songs like Stockholm Syndrome, and Assassin's demo version, Debase Mason's Grog, while chorus parts feature a fast double kick drum beat. The song is also, at times, reminiscent of Blockades and also a bit harks back to The Small Print from the chorus part. The tapping solo is similar to other tapping solos in songs like Invincible and Reapers.
The lyrics might indicate a message to listener to adapt with the current hardships that is endured without knowing when it's going to stop and rather, face the problems to shape and matured the strong individual. Seemingly inspired by the pandemic situation where everyone should wear a masks and forced to quarantine themselves, and also revived the basic health protocol by washing hands or take a shower often before and after performing tasks for an unknown period in order to, ironically, "not to be killed".
In other aspects, it also can be interpreted as an uprising theme to fight back the oppressive rules, similar to that of Won't Stand Down, ignites the revolution fire to stand up on the ground to "kill" the abusive power instead of being torn by it. The song is probably influenced by amount of revolts that have happened and still ongoing almost entirely throughout the world, like Black Lives Matter riots, climate change awareness, and some of the revolutionary incident to bring down the corrupted & tyrannical government, which took a perspective from a rioters in the midst of chaos.
On July 13th, 2022, after the end of the summer festivals tour, it was announced by Muse that Kill or Be Killed's studio version would be released on July 21st. It is unknown whether the song will be released as a single or just as a promotional song for the album. The preview of the studio version can be heard on TikTok or Reddit. The song leaked one day earlier.
Instrumentation
Apparently, the second, or perhaps even the heaviest and harshest track that Muse has produced over the past 27 years of their career. One of the most progressive tracks on the Will of the People, that took from tertiary form (A B A B C B A). As such, the song's BPM changes ever so slightly with each section. Additionally, this is the third song that incorporates double pedal kicks, after Dead Inside and Won't Stand Down.
The song's also known for its heavy use of the Whammy pedal. It is most obvious during the main riff, the solo and the post-solo chorus. In the tapping solo, the Whammy is going up and down, mimicking Matt playing sweeping arpeggios. The chord progression during the solo is similar to that of The Globalist's middle section, while the melody of the guitar during the break of the song, written in phrygian scale and B-minor, is reminiscent to that of Break It to Me's verses. Like Reapers Kill or Be Killed features a siren sound effects, which appears during the intro and bridge parts. It also includes screaming whispers, similar to the final "Won't Stand Down" scream in the song of the same name.
Live
The song was first performed live on June 4th, 2022. It is played by Matt on the same specially-tuned guitar as Won't Stand Down.
More here
Lyrics
Kill or be killed
Cornered, I'm exhausted with fear Our love and compassion dissolved And Demons have materialised in me Can't fight them, they're taking control
And we've tried, oh, we've tried, so hard to be good But the world, rewards us when we're bad
Fate It’s driving me insane It’s forcing me to face I must kill or be killed
Kill or be Killed
They've driven a stake right through my heart I'm growing so cold and detached
And I've tried, oh, I've tried, so hard to spread love But she prefers it when I assert control
Fate Has brought us here to face Our hopes and dreams erased Either kill or be killed
Killed or killed (x2)
Either kill or be killed
Fate It’s driving me insane It’s forcing me to face I must kill or be killed
Kill or be killed (x3)
Kill or be
Live
The lyrics during the live version differ slightly from the studio version
Kill or be killed
Cornered, I'm exhausted with fear Our love and compassion dissolved Demons have materialised in me Can't fight them, they're taking control
Tried, oh, I've tried, so hard to be good But the world, rewards us when we're bad
Fate It’s driving me insane It’s forcing me to face I must kill or be killed
Driven a stake right through my heart I'm growing so cold and detached
Tried, oh, I've tried, so hard to spread love But she prefers it when I assert control
Fate Has brought us here to face Our hopes and dreams erased Either kill or be killed
Either kill or be killed
Fate It’s driving me insane It’s forcing me to face I must kill or be killed
Kill or be killed
Kill or be killed