Red Balloon from the Deep

[Intro - Distant sewer dripping, eerie music-box melody, low ominous synth drone. A single red balloon creaks against the darkness. Intimate, chilling female whisper] They say fear makes you run… They never said that it could become you… [Soft, unsettling feminine giggle] [Verse 1 - Low, seductive female alto, playful but menacing. Deep pulsing bass, sparse industrial percussion] Every twenty-seven years I wake below Where the blackened waters twist and flow Beneath the streets where the lost ones hide I hear their hearts on the other side A paper boat goes drifting by A little voice, a frightened cry I wear the face that makes you shake I know the shape your fears will take [Pre-Chorus - Creeping strings, distorted guitars building. Vocals become colder and more commanding] You thought you knew what lived beneath The painted smile, the sharpened teeth But something darker learned to feed Upon the fear you thought you’d freed [Chorus - Explosive melodic gothic metal, soaring powerful clean female vocals, heavy guitars, haunting layered harmonies] Red balloon rising from the deep I steal the dreams that haunt your sleep I know the secrets in your heart I pull the strings that tear apart You fed me terror, fed me pain Now hear me laughing in the rain I’m not the monster that you knew I’m what your monsters fear now too [Post-Chorus - Eerie melodic female humming, music-box motif beneath heavy guitars] Mmmm… mmmm… Come closer… come and see… What your fear has made of me… [Verse 2 - Dark, rhythmic, sinister playfulness. Industrial bass groove, unsettling whispered doubles] A paper crown, a painted grin A thousand nightmares trapped within I know the names you never speak The hidden wounds, the things you seek I’ve walked through flames that should have claimed my name Now every shadow trembles when I whisper theirs again I learned to smile where others screamed Became the thing they feared and dreamed [Pre-Chorus - Rising tension, eerie choir and accelerating drums] You thought the darkness had a king But hear the bells of something sing A painted queen beneath the street And even nightmares know defeat [Chorus - Massive, theatrical, commanding, soaring clean female harmonies] Red balloon rising from the deep I steal the dreams that haunt your sleep I know the secrets in your heart I pull the strings that tear apart You fed me terror, fed me pain Now hear me laughing in the rain I’m not the monster that you knew I’m what your monsters fear now too [Bridge - Music drops to a warped music box, sewer echoes, intimate whispered female vocals gradually rising into a powerful melodic declaration] They called me evil, said I’d swallow you whole But they never knew the darkness in my soul They made a nightmare, gave it teeth and a name Now even monsters tremble when I enter their game [Brief silence] You hear that laughter? You know that sound? The thing you feared… Is frightened now. [Instrumental Solo - Haunting music-box melody transforms into a soaring, sinister electric guitar solo. Deep cathedral-like synths, pounding industrial drums, ethereal female humming. Builds to a dramatic climax] [Final Chorus - Epic, explosive, triumphant yet terrifying. Powerful clean female alto, layered harmonies, crushing guitars] Red balloon rising from the deep I steal the dreams that haunt your sleep I know the secrets in your heart I pull the strings that tear apart You fed me terror, fed me lies Now look into my painted eyes I’m not the monster that you knew I’m what your monsters fear now too [Outro - Instruments abruptly stop. Distant dripping water. The music-box melody returns, slowing and detuning. Soft, playful female whisper] Float down here… We all float down here… [Pause. A faint balloon-string creak] And this time… I’m the one holding the string. [Soft feminine giggle, fading into darkness]