This was another song I wrote during those same emotionally turbulent high school years in the mid-1980s. If "Breakin' My Heart" was about the immediate shock of betrayal, "Shattered Illusions" dug deeper into the aftermath - that hollow feeling when you realize everything you believed about someone was built on lies.

The opening line "Midnight shadows, a phone that won't ring" perfectly captured those sleepless nights, waiting for someone who was never going to call. I remember writing that verse thinking about how naive I'd been, how I'd "built castles on empty words." The metaphor felt so real to me then - all those promises and dreams just crumbling down.

What I'm proud of in this song is the pre-chorus structure. Adding that extra emotional build before hitting the chorus made the impact stronger. "Shattering my world" felt like the perfect phrase to describe how completely someone could destroy your sense of reality when you're seventeen and think you know everything about love.

The bridge represents growth - moving from victim to survivor. "I'm done with your lies, done with the pain" shows that progression from hurt to empowerment that I was learning to navigate as a teenager. The outro ties it all together with "Your love was fiction, but I'll rise from this fall" - probably the most mature line I wrote at that age.

Like my other lyrics from that time, this sat dormant for decades until AI technology gave me the opportunity to finally hear these words with music. There's something magical about bringing teenage angst full circle with today's creative tools. The song now has that dramatic, emotional sound that matches the intensity I felt when I first wrote these words.

Shattered Illusions

“Hysteria Spawns” The second murder (Annie Chapman) ignites mass panic. Headlines scream, mobs whisper, and the “Cheeky Jacky” postcard fans hysteria. The song explores how fear itself becomes fuel, an energy the killer seems to feed upon. The terror begins to feel less human, as though something unseen is drawing strength from the city’s dread.

[start]

[Intro]
Ink flows fast
Titles spill like fresh wounds. 
City scans my mark,
Yet no one knows my tone. 

[Verse 1]
Morning cracks on gore and murmurs,
Her sigh blends cold into the air.
The bazaar’s hum fades into silence,
Where her form once wandered free.

[Pre-Chorus]
Each gaze — pierces the mist.
Each sound — chasing my tread.
No beat — in the gloom.
Just the silence I guard.

[Chorus]
Terror forms the throne I claim,
Fed by your trembling hands.
Streets shiver under my gaze,
Yet grasp nothing of the truth.

[Post-Chorus]
Panic… breeds in your exhale.
And thrives… where I’ve tread.

[Verse 2]
They pen tales of Cheeky Jack
Stains spread on quivering palms
They weave my name in frenzy —
But none… perceive the core.

[Pre-Chorus]
Each shade — belongs to me.
Each murmur — I’ve woven in.
You dread — the edge in the void.
My grip — remains unfinished.

[Chorus (Variation)]
Terror forms the throne I claim,
Drawn from uneasy blood.
The streets quake in my trap,
As I sharpen my domain.

[Bridge]
Mobs surge — frenzy’s wave.
I stride unseen, untouched.
Your turmoil fuels my path.
Your dread — preserves my purity.

[Breakdown]
Dread me...
Crave me...
Label me...
Sustain me! 

[Chorus (Final Variation)]
Terror forms the throne I claim,
Shaped by desperate shouts!
Streets kneel — unaware,
Darkness… takes its toll!

[Extended Final Assault]
Your fear — the altar!
 Your screams — the hymn!
 I carve — the night open!
And the night lets me in!

[Final Hit]
I am the shadow… AND I REMAIN!

Hysteria Spawns

Artist: Entity
Composers: Entity, Christopher Joel Martin
Lyricist: Christopher Joel Martin

This is not a song. It's a breakdown. Enjoy the sound of decay.
Thank you for listening.

------

I'm so depressed today
I don't know what to say
In this song
It's not like I can say
"Hey voices, go away"

Because they won't fucking listen

They won't fucking listen
They won't fucking listen
They won't
No, they won't
They won't fucking listen
Because they don't care

I'm so fucking depressed
So now I think it's best
To give up

I give up on giving a fuck

So I don't give a fuck
No, I don't give a fuck
I don't
No, I don't
Oh, I don't give a fuck
Because I give up

I'm so depressed (Today!)
I don't know what to say (In this song!)
It's not like I can say, "Hey voices, (Go away!)"
Because they won't fucking listen
I'm so fucking (Depressed!), that's why I think it's best
To give up

Now I don't give a fuck (They won't fucking listen)
Yeah, I don't give a fuck (They won't fucking listen)
I don't, no, I don't (They won't, no, they won't)
They won't
They won't fucking listen, and I don't give a fuck

You Don't Bleed For Me

Killswitch Engage