“Hunger” is an anthem for anyone and everyone who has had to drag themselves through the deep doldrums of a crappy breakup. From Of Monsters and Men’s new album, Beneath the Skin, the sensational lyrics grasp a realization beyond need, loneliness or dependence. Instead, it embraces the new world that was previously clouded by a dysfunctional relationship.
The indie band from Keflavík, Iceland gained fame from peppy hit “Little Talks,” from their debut album My Head Is an Animal. The group has since strayed from their initial id, engaging with a more solemn depth. The words are extensions of a common identity, bringing us to terms with the more difficult implications of loss, namely the need to start over. Singer Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir takes us over tumultuous drum clashes and guitar distortion, “drowning” and suffocating but ultimately reaching hints of clarity: “You were just a shade of what I am, not what I’ll be.”
Through ups and downs of wild emotions and confusion, “Hunger” inspires us to search and reach out to something, not someone. It traces our hunger back to ourselves and not to the futile efforts of anyone else.