Track by Track: Hematite – Speak of the Devil EP

Hematite, the new project started by David Muise (ex-Vanna) and Andrew Gaultier (ex-He Is Legend) have released their debut western rock EP “Speak of the Devil.” Today David is joining us to share the stories behind every track.

Track by Track by David Muise, vocalist of Hematite.

SwitchBlade Serenade:

Switchblade is a fun track. Almost a spaghetti western feel that makes you want to move your hips with a dance partner so it was only natural to write about a type of dancing, fighting. This song pokes at toxic masculinity oh this day in age with the lyric comparison of an old western duel. I like to imagine keyboard warriors of today stepping back in time to a saloon and disrespecting another man without his streaming camera or wifi. Mano A Mano. It’s an interesting take on what even being “a man” looks like and it’s fun to dance too.

Big Bad Wolf

This one is pretty easy to identify with if you’ve ever been a scapegoat for someone or something. For all the bad guys and girls in other people’s storylines. How easy it is to villainize a human from your little piggy bedroom and cast your judgment on the feral outdoor animal because it never knew anything about living inside. A lesson in learning to be gentle with creatures that have a tainted name. A wolf can be fiercely loyal and protective if treated correctly if let into a pack. Watch out for the lone wolves, they’re made, not nurtured.

Run Devil Run

This song was written in a time of my life I felt like I couldn’t slow down or hell would catch up with me. That maybe if I keep pushing through the flames I won’t get burnt. It’s kind of a take on how we don’t check in on ourselves until it’s too late. Until there’s hell to pay. The reality is once you put yourself into so many fires, you either burn out or become the flame yourself, burning everything around you. In this song, I felt like I was doing both.

Go West

Yeah man, the toughest song on the record personally. I hit a wall in New England where I grew up and was living. I never felt at home there even as a kid, so naturally playing music and getting the hell out was a blessing but when it came time for me to start putting down some roots as an adult, I knew it couldn’t be in that soil. After much trauma to
myself but mostly things my partner felt, it was time to go. We packed up our lives and headed west and we’ve metaphorically never looked back. Sometimes to make your life better you have to get out of where you are and that oftentimes means physically. It’s an anthem for the nomads of happiness, the seekers of fulfillment, the riders of truth. Let your heart guide your life to safety. No one else’s opinions matter. Just go.

Adios

Maybe my favorite track on the record honestly. For me, I think it’s about the realness of how much time we have and also, don’t have in this life. The crazy span of years you have to turn your life around if you mess it up. That every day you wake up is a chance to do better for yourself, that time is on your side. But in the same breath, time is running out, there’s a sense of urgency in your heart for a reason. So live to the fullest and let go of everything you don’t need because time also ISN’T on your side, you could be gone tomorrow, so what then. Here’s to living hard and dying well.

AltCorner Staff

March 31, 2023

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