Song of the Week: I've Got the Devil in Me

Well, we’re a couple of days late for Halloween, but I've Got the Devil in Me is still a solid song choice for Spooky Season. Wait, did you guys do that on purpose?! I have a semi-related theory about this song, but it’s not opening-paragraph material, so put a pin in that for a second and we’ll circle back in a few minutes. In the meantime, watch the damned video so you stay in the loop!

If you’re anything like me, you’ll know that Halloween never ends. I just take some of the decorations off the lawn so the neighbors don’t realize they stay up year-round inside the house. And speaking of Spooky Season, did you know that if you try to decipher the lyrics to this song by holding a Bluetooth speaker close to your ear, a man will appear behind you vigorously shaking a 12ft roofing ladder? It’s like Bloody Mary, if Mary was a middle-aged construction worker that likes to overshare her medical history outside my office door. I suppose it serves me right for trying to write this at work, but if at any point you were wondering how my day is going—there you have it. At least the real Bloody Mary would have had the decency to put me out of my misery before lunchtime, but I digress…

I've Got the Devil in Me is a fun little track from the 27 to Life album. If you’re a new fan and you haven’t checked that out yet, you don’t know what you’re missing—it’s one of the Skinner Brother’s earlier albums, and it is full of lesser-known gems like L.O.V.E and Flirt that you will immediately add to your playlist. These are the songs that will get you incredulous looks from your friends and family when you try to explain to them that it’s the same band they just heard playing Gold Teef a moment ago, and they’ll think you’re lying to them. It would almost be frustrating if it weren't such an undeniable testament to the band's versatility and trademark genre-flipping prowess.

The song starts off strong with a hammering guitar riff that persists throughout the entire track, and the lyrics waste no time getting straight to the point. Within the first 30 seconds of the story, you’ll discover that the devil has been pursuing our poor protagonist for 10 long years—ever since he sold his soul to play rock music, to be precise. Now, I don’t mean to nitpick, but Zac sounds very young on this track. Ten years prior to that, I would be surprised if he was old enough to cross the street without holding someone’s hand. I’m just saying, devil or not I feel like there should be an age restriction on these types of contracts, otherwise hell would be overrun with children any time a new character skin dropped in Roblox. Come to think of it, a waiting room full of screaming children is exactly what I would imagine hell to be like, so maybe we're on to something here.

He’s taken the place of all my friends, my family and my girlfriend

Regardless of the legality of any contract leveraging the mortal souls of children, we learn as the song progresses that the devil is now all up in his business—figuratively speaking, of course. The devil has now “taken the place” of all his friends, family and girlfriend, although it is unclear if that is meant to be taken literally (as in suggesting that these people have also been possessed), or metaphorically, implying that he no longer has time for those people due to the amount of time and energy the devil has taken from him. Which brings me to my next point…

You remember earlier when I mentioned having a theory about this song? You can tell me I’m wrong if you’d like, but you won’t because my logic is (silver) bulletproof. So, I’m just going to throw this out there now that you’ve had a chance to listen to it—This song is about werewolves, isn’t it?

Seriously! Hear me out.

"He’s even driving round in my car, I’m just hoping that he don’t get too far"

This line implies that he and the devil are one and the same.

"So don’t ask me why I do what I do, cuz I've got the Devil in me"

This comes across as a warning to others of a somewhat unpredictable loss of control.

"When you see me coming, run the other way, cuz I've got the devil in me"

Mostly to avoid dismemberment, I assume, but lycanthropy is also fairly contagious!

“Every night when the clock hits twelve, I’ll sing this song”

Why twelve? That's oddly specific. Why not sing in the daytime when the moon isn’t out, you monster? Or is that the point? To let the world know you're okay each night through song, and the one night of the month they don't hear it they will know that the moon is full and at its highest point in the sky...

"If you can love another more than you love yourself, then you'll see what I see..."

Okay, admittedly, this one is a bit of a stretch, but wasn’t that basically the plot of Beauty and the Beast? The only way to break the curse was for the Beast to love someone else more than he loved himself? And wasn’t the Beast… You know, basically a werewolf?

“Every time a thing goes right, two things go wrong.”

I’m telling you, man… Werewolf problems.

Alright, alright. Maybe Zac isn't a werewolf, but until I see some definitive proof otherwise, I am going to remain skeptical. Either way, happy belated Halloween. Since I've already tricked you into reading this whole article, please enjoy this spooky Skinner Brother's logo Grok cooked up for me as a treat. And remember not to eat any apples you got while trick or treating! There's probably nothing wrong with them, they're just gross.

☘️🖤