Murder by Death released its first studio album (Like the Exorcist, but More Breakdancing) in 2002, and has since released seven more studio albums. The band's current lineup consists of two founding members, Adam Turla and Sarah Balliet. Balliet plays cello for the band, an instrument that has been present consistently throughout the band's evolution. Murder by Death's 2012 album Bitter Drink, Bitter Moon reached #76 on the Billboard 200, making it the band's most successful release.
Murder by Death was formed in 2000 in Bloomington, Indiana, by guitarist Adam Turla, cellist Sarah Balliet, percussionist Alexander Schrodt, keyboardist Vincent Edwards, and bassist Matt Armstrong. One of the group's first shows was at the Channing-Murray Foundation's cafe The Red Herring in Urbana, Illinois, with former American Football drummer Steve Lamos' solo project DMS. After the show, the head of the TEAM AV record label with which Lamos was working offered to help Turla and his bandmates secure additional shows. Around the same time the band met Thursday vocalist, Geoff Rickly, when the two bands played on the same bill at a gig in their hometown of Bloomington. Rickly introduced the band, known at the time as Little Joe Gould, to his friend Alex Saavedra (owner of Eyeball Records), who also took an interest in the band. In 2001 the band self-released the eponymous Little Joe Gould EP and early the next year contributed the song "I'm Afraid of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" to the TEAM AV compilation Foreign Nationals. A short time later the group changed their name to Murder By Death, which they felt better represented their sound.
Murder by Death plays a range of music including instrumentals, rock and alt.country. The band uses cello (with an electric cello for live shows) to create a gothic sound with occasional Western references.
The band often arranges themes such as whiskey and the Devil into concept albums. For example, the band's second album, Who Will Survive, and What Will Be Left of Them?, describes a story in which the Devil wages war against a small village in Mexico.
Hunted
Murder By Death Lyrics
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I passed her home
Her room was filled with a warm light glow
I was singin' into the darkness
Moonlight thick as mud
There was no way she could understand
It was a roaring in the blood
It felt like she was watching me
I was consumed
I told her there was nothing that I wouldn't do
And then she came and burned it all away
We don't know what it's like to be hunted
We don't know what it's like to be wanted too much
They're not like us
The opening verse of this melancholic track by Murder By Death paints a vivid picture of a lonely traveler driving through the country landscape. He passes by the home of a girl he may have feelings for, and her warmly lit room catches his eye. However, he is haunted by a restlessness that brings him no comfort in the stillness of the night, and he sings into the darkness. He is consumed by a feeling of longing, and it seems that he believes that his love for her is something that she couldn't possibly fathom, for it is a deep, primal sensation that courses through his blood like a roaring surge.
In the second verse, we learn that the singer watches her on the television screen, and it feels like she is watching him back. He is consumed by his obsessions, and he tells her he'll do anything for her. However, it all comes to naught when she comes into the picture and burns everything to the ground. The chorus seems to speak of the inability of most people to understand the driving force behind such obsessions, as they don't know what it is like to be hunted or wanted too much. It is a poignant single sentiment that encapsulates the essence of the singer's predicament.
Line by Line Meaning
Driving in the country
Narrator is driving in the countryside
I passed her home
Narrator passes the home of the girl he is obsessed with
Her room was filled with a warm light glow
Narrator sees that the girl's room is lit up
I was singin' into the darkness
Narrator sings alone in the darkness
Moonlight thick as mud
The moonlight is heavy and oppressive
There was no way she could understand
Narrator feels that the girl can never understand his obsession
It was a roaring in the blood
Narrator's obsession is consuming and intense
I watched her on the screen
Narrator watches the girl on a screen (perhaps a monitor or TV)
It felt like she was watching me
Narrator feels like the girl is watching him back
I was consumed
Narrator is consumed by his obsession
I told her there was nothing that I wouldn't do
Narrator says he would do anything for her
And then she came and burned it all away
The girl eventually rejects the artist and ends his obsession
We don't know what it's like to be hunted
Narrator acknowledges that most people do not understand what it's like to be the target of someone's obsession
We don't know what it's like to be wanted too much
Narrator also acknowledges that most people do not understand what it's like to be consumed by an obsession for someone else
They're not like us
Narrator acknowledges that some people are different from others and can be the victims of someone's obsession
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ADAM MICHAEL TURLA, DAGAN THOGERSON, MATTHEW TAYLOR ARMSTRONG, SARAH JACKSON BALLIET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind