Singled Out: The Curse of K.K. Hammond's Walk With Me Through the Fire

The Curse of K.K. Hammond just released her new single "Walk With Me Through the Fire" featuring Ian Davidson and Kaspar 'Berry' Rapkin, and to celebrate we asked her to tell us about the track. Here is the story:

I've always loved Spaghetti Westerns and the drama of the beautiful film scores of Ennio Morricone. I had been ruminating for some time over how I could invoke the vibe of a classic Western film score into my signature blend of dark Delta Blues and Southern gothic horror. I had been messing around with a guitar hook that captured the mood I had in mind when a somewhat unconventional idea came to me: What if I wrote a song and a highly cinematic, Western music video script in tandem?!

The lyrics and composition had to stand on their own, telling a story that resonated even without visuals. However, I structured the song to allow for cinematic moments and dynamic shifts which would unfold in harmony with the visual events in the video for a truly punchy and symbiotic delivery. The end result being an exhilaration marriage between audio and visual that would plunge the viewer into a deeply immersive experience.

I approached this musically via the darker, more sombre and mysterious foot stomping rhythm of the verses followed by the shifts into the more upbeat, catchy and melodic choruses. The song's dramatic and moody bridge, which shifts into a powerful slide guitar solo, was written to coincide with the big twist that occurs in the story of the video.

I invited several good friends to lend their talents to the song (and also appear as characters in the music video) which also massively bolstered the Wild West mystique I was aiming for. This included Ian Davidson's incredibly soulful and faithfully cinematic cello track, Kaspar 'Berry' Rapkin's aggressive and raw slide guitar licks and Lewis Taylor's quintessentially Western mariachi style licks on the trumpet.

The audial journey begins a considerable period before the actual start of the music as the video opens with a minute and a half of story line prior to the song kicking in. This section of sound design was also created by myself to create a thick and tense atmosphere and deliver the viewer right into the epicenter of a gritty wild west town.

The lyrics are, of course, also in support of the visual story. The first line being: "You know today's a perfect day to die" which coincides with a scene of the bloody aftermath of a gun battle. The choruses depict myself and my band of rogues riding into town and raising hell with: "Oh Ho! Yeah tonight we ride, into the fire and bloodshed."

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more here

Singled Out: The Curse Of K.K. Hammond's The Ballad of Lampshade Ed

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