Mental illness coils and knots itself into something monstrous: the proverbial ‘rat king’ of tangled thoughts, gnawing anxieties, and reflexive ruin. Each impulse, each wound, each need, bound so tight that pulling one thread only strangles the rest. There is no clean break, no simple unraveling. One moment, the mind lunges forward, desperate for connection; the next, it recoils, teeth bared, convinced of abandonment. A body in motion, a mind at war, a heart that pulses with love and loathing in the same breath. The weight is unbearable, yet cutting free feels like death. The tangle tightens.
Seattle’s Hot Hail! dives right into this maelstrom of the mind with the powerful ballad, RAT KING.
“RAT KING evokes the haunting essence of Depeche Mode’s Songs of Faith and Devotion era, intertwined with the brooding artistry of Marc Almond at his most introspective. Its dark themes and passionate delivery are underscored by plodding, sinister synths that resonate with a captivating intensity. The track features the enchanting guest vocals of Christiana Crabbe from Seattle’s Sprig, adding an extra layer of depth. Meanwhile, the spectral influences of Visage, Gary Numan, and Ultravox flicker like static in a neon haze, conjuring a synth-soaked salute from the shadows.
“BPD can cause a great deal of chaos and pain in one’s life, and the lives of the people you love,” says songwriter Billy Sigil. “The Rat King is the metaphor I came to use to explain what BPD can feel like from the inside – every emotion inside you is huge and deafening, and all of them are tied together at the tail like a rat king, screeching and clawing at one another in a panic, but just pulling the knot tighter as you alienate the people closest to you. I’ve been lucky enough to get to a manageable place with proper treatment, and I’ve come to where I treat my rats with more kindness than fear, but this song is an attempt to communicate what it feels like at the worst parts of it, and maybe help other people with the condition feel not so alone.”
Like its relentless rodent namesake, RAT KING surges forward, restless and relentless, charged with the fever of obsession, the fire of defiance, and a raw, unfiltered urgency. Synths shimmer, basslines prowl, and every beat lands like a whispered dare—part longing, part fury, all motion. A night drive at full tilt, a heart beating too fast, a thrill humming through the wires.
Listen to RAT KING below and order the track here. Hot Hail!’s upcoming full-length, All The Blood You Wanted, releases on 25 March.
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