Retaliate
VNV Nation Lyrics


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I can almost hear
Your heart in the darkness
How fast it is beating
How close you are to me

I can almost hear
How tensely you are breathing
Out there in the darkness
Listening for me

I can almost sense
Your skin on my fingers
Tension and the fear
Anticipating me

I can almost see you
Somewhere in the darkness
Praying for advantage
Clinging to a chance

Justice never wavers
It is my single purpose
Relentless the pursuit
I will find you where you hide
Counting on your indecision
Deciding when to strike
Calculating movement
The senses of the chase

The game of chess begins
The pieces moved in place
Your advantage growing slimmer
Your options running thin
The hunt is what defines us
Imminent defeat
The back of your shirt soaking
Fear all you can feel

One of us the hunter
One of us the prey
One of us the victor
One to walk away
One who's left remaining
One of us who stands
One who lies defeated
Beneath the other's hands
When the dust is settled
Only one of us will see
Which of us was worthy
Which of us was weak
And when this fight is over
Only one of us will say
Which of us the victor
And which of us the prey

One of us the hunter
One of us the prey
One of us the victor
One to walk away
One who's left remaining
One of us who stands
One who lies defeated
Beneath the other's hands
When the dust is settled
Only one of us will see
Which of us was worthy
Which of us was weak
And when this fight is over
Only one of us will say




Which of us the victor
And which of us the prey

Overall Meaning

The lyrics in VNV Nation's song Retaliate seem to describe a chase, a game of hunter and prey. The singer is the hunter and is describing how they feel, what they sense, and sense about their prey. The chase is almost palpable as the singer can "almost hear" the fast beating of the prey's heart in the darkness and "almost sense" their skin on their fingers. The singer seems confident about their abilities and their single purpose in pursuing and hunting their prey relentlessly. They describe how the prey is clinging to a chance or praying for an advantage, while justice never wavers. The hunt continues, and the chess game of the chase has begun. The prey's advantage is slipping, options running thin, as the singer calculates each move, senses the chase, and decides the right moment to strike. The prey's fear is all they can feel, and the back of their shirt is soaking as they run. The chorus repeats the game of hunter and prey, and the fight will end with only one standing, either the hunter or the prey.


The lyrics of Retaliate have an underlying message of determination, courage, and the desire to fight against what is unjust. The song can be interpreted not just as a chase or a game of hunter and prey, but also as a metaphor for standing up and fighting against something that is perceived to be wrong or unjust. The song encourages the listener to retaliate, to be determined, and to fight back relentlessly against one's fears and insecurities.


Line by Line Meaning

I can almost hear
I sense your existence, though you are currently out of sight


Your heart in the darkness
I feel your heart palpitate as your fear increases


How fast it is beating
I sense how anxious and scared you are


How close you are to me
I can tell you’re within my vicinity


How tensely you are breathing
I feel the anxiety with which you are breathing


Out there in the darkness
Somewhere in the darkness, you're out of my sight


Listening for me
You're trying to detect my presence


Your skin on my fingers
I can visualize touching you


Tension and the fear
You're nervous and scared


Anticipating me
You're waiting for me


Somewhere in the darkness
You're situated within the shadowy places


Praying for advantage
You're trying to gain an upper hand over me


Clinging to a chance
You're hopeful of having a slim possibility of succeeding


Justice never wavers
My sense of righteousness is unshakable


It is my single purpose
My only mission is to bring justice


Relentless the pursuit
I'm determined and persistent in finding you


I will find you where you hide
I'll track you down to wherever you're hiding


Counting on your indecision
I'm banking on you being unsure of what to do


Deciding when to strike
I'm calculating when the opportune moment is to attack


Calculating movement
I'm assessing every motion you make


The senses of the chase
This pursuit is all about instinct and feeling


The game of chess begins
This scenario is comparable to a game of chess


The pieces moved in place
Our tactics and plans are falling into position


Your advantage growing slimmer
Your chances of winning are becoming less likely


Your options running thin
You have limited choices available to you


The hunt is what defines us
This hunt is what separates us from one another


Imminent defeat
You're about to be defeated.


The back of your shirt soaking
You're sweating profusely due to the tension of the chase


Fear all you can feel
All you're capable of feeling is dread


One of us the hunter
One of us is doing the hunting


One of us the prey
One of us is being hunted


One of us the victor
One of us will win


One to walk away
The victorious one will leave unscathed


One who's left remaining
One of us will remain after the fight's over


One of us who stands
One of us will remain standing after the combat's done


One who lies defeated
One of us will be beaten and defeated


Beneath the other's hands
The victor will have triumphed over the loser


When the dust is settled
Once the fight is done and dust has cleared


Only one of us will see
Only one of us will remain alive to see the end result


Which of us was worthy
Whichever one of us was truly deserving


Which of us was weak
Whichever one of us was not strong enough to win


And when this fight is over
The end of the combat will result in...


Only one of us will say
The victorious one will be the only one to speak...


Which of us the victor
Indicating who the winner of the duel was...


And which of us the prey
Signifying which of us was overpowered and defeated




Contributed by Aubrey K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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