Song
The Snake
From Ghost Towns · Track 2 · 2026
A known “Ghost Towns” song title associated with the self-facing portion of the project.
Lyrics · artist-supplied
Well a snake slithered in and he curled up next me
Then I watched everybody empty out the room to let it breathe
It got cold and the serpent came grinning, whispering
“You got a lot of potential, man! You really should be working for me!”
That’s not me, no, that’s just a reflection
Everything he tells you should be called into question
You should only dare to approach with a weapon
But once he disappears, is there nothing left then?
I said “Why did you make them all leave?”
He said “That’s on you, man, it wasn’t me!”
I said “How could you lie, I was right here to see!”
“Well maybe you’re just going crazy.”
You think I’m just going crazy?
“Yeah my friend you must be crazy.
Cause it ain’t me!
I know you think
That what you’ve seen
Is all on me
Well it can’t be,
I think your story’s incomplete”
“That’s not me, no, that’s just a reflection
Seems like it might be time for you to learn your lesson
But first maybe you should learn to drop the aggression,
You knew what I was the second that I got let in.”
(You let me in)
And now it lives like a ghost inside my walls.
(Now it can begin)
It doesn’t sound like my voice at all.
(I can fix it all)
And every time I can stand up tall,
(All you have to do is…)
I always hear it whispering:
“Fall.”
Artist context
The artist has associated “The Snake” with the Ghost of Self material. Delta Empire was also discussed as having completed drums for the track.
Working interpretation · analysis
Interpretation note: This is analysis of the supplied lyrics, not an authoritative statement of authorial intent.
The snake’s arrival empties the room, then it denies responsibility and questions the narrator’s account of what happened. Both voices use “that’s not me” and “reflection,” blurring where the creature ends and the narrator begins. The narrator knows he let it in, but its voice still feels alien once it lives “inside my walls.” The last whispered “Fall” leaves the struggle unresolved; whether the snake is a part of the narrator, an influence on him, or both remains a working reading.
Themes
ghost of self, shadow self, temptation, self-deception