Singled Out: The Last King's Ancient Master

Keavin Wiggins | 12-22-2023

Massachusetts technical deathcore band The Last King just premiered their first new video in two and half years for their song "Ancient Master", and to celebrate we asked them to tell us about the track. Here is the story:

The lyrics to Ancient Master were actually crafted during our vocalist Andrew's most recent horror movie binge. While each member in The Last King are already avid horror fans, Andrew is certainly a clear enthusiast who likes to incorporate various themes from the genre into his lyrics. While the music to Ancient Master was already fully written before any lyrics hit the page, it only took several listens for the visualization to quickly come together. The song's storyline matches the plot for our music video intentionally as the inspiration came entirely from the popular modern horror film "The Collector."

If you've seen the film before then you already have an idea of the type of horror movie this is. The first verse lyrics "you see the light of day" directly reference one of the victim's becoming a survivor after a night of torture in the movie referencing the light as a gateway for hope. As we dig further into the track the lyrics discuss these instances of murder in how the main protagonist will "crave the smell of death" in his sick, twisted depictions. We also learn of this character's internal suffering which has led them to commit such sinful crimes in this film via lyrics like "the world has shut you out, you've known only darker days."

We as a band have always placed meaning in every lyric while advocating strongly for the subject of mental illness which is another reason this film acted as such useful inspiration. "Feed my mind to dismember this world I thought I left behind" references the mental struggle within the main villain while taking their frustrations out on innocent victims in a remorseless way of self-centered thinking. The bigger overall message for outlining these themes is that we truly don't know the internal struggle everyday individuals go through and should always treat one another with extensive kindness as positive reinforcement for one another can make an exponential difference in their long-term social hierarchy and achievements.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more about their forthcoming album "Culling From Gods" here