In the opening lines of the song "Carrion Flowers", Chelsea Wolfe is asserting her independence - "we learned how on our own, never needing help from you" - and describes a journey of self-discovery that defies traditional notions of guidance or instruction. She suggests that the way forward is to "reach out with eyes closed" and allow oneself to be guided by an inner light, a force that "taught us to grow". This light and this growth are accompanied by a sense of determination, embodied in the repeated refrain "hold on, hold on, hold on".

However, the metaphor that Wolfe chooses to describe this process is a dark one - that of "creatures of habit" who are like "carrion flowers, growing from repeated crimes". The suggestion is that perhaps the growth and the light that she is describing are not entirely wholesome or healthy, but derive from a place of suffering and pain. The "afterglow in full bloom" and the relentlessness of the pursuit of the subject of the song suggest that this is not a love song, but rather a song about obsession and the desire for revenge or retribution.