The Pretty Reckless rise from the shadows, confront mortality and with a thunderous new single “For I Am Death” that cements their evolution into one of rock’s most fearless torchbearers.
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Stream: “For I Am Death” – The Pretty Reckless
Some bands return from a hiatus with something safe, an easy re-entry into the spotlight.
Not The Pretty Reckless.
With the release of “For I Am Death,” their first official single since 2021, the multi-platinum hard rockers prove they are as unflinching and unpredictable as ever. It’s a fierce, theatrical, and deeply compelling comeback, one that doesn’t just reignite their flame but throws gasoline on it.
The track opens with creeping tension: A riff-heavy groove punctuated by stop-start rhythms, building an ominous atmosphere before plunging headlong into a storm of distortion and Taylor Momsen’s commanding rasp. Her voice, sultry, savage, and unrelenting, inhabits the role of death itself, whispering, snarling, and soaring through the chorus that can’t be shaken. “You can’t outrun the hand of fate / And I will wait” lands as both a curse and a confession, equal parts menace and allure.
Backed by swaggering riffs and a rhythm that pulses like a heartbeat on edge, Momsen delivers a performance that confronts life’s inescapable end while paradoxically infusing the song with raw vitality. “For I Am Death” is both a warning and a celebration: Proof that The Pretty Reckless can push themselves into fresh creative terrain without ever losing their bite.
In true Pretty Reckless fashion, the track doesn’t just play with rock archetypes; it bends them into something cinematic.
Echoes of the Sunset Strip mingle with doom-laden Sabbath riffs and the sneer of ‘70s punk attitude, yet the execution feels modern, polished, and undeniably theirs.
The accompanying music video, directed by Lewis Cater, leans fully into the song’s mythological weight. It opens with a hushed, folk-tinged prelude, “Life Evermore Pt. 2,” teasing vulnerability before ripping the ground out from under us and plunging into a surreal underworld. There, Taylor Momsen emerges as a malevolent, haunting figure, eyes burning, body writhing, swallowed by shadows and sinister forces, while intercut band performance footage burns with intensity. The result is a cinematic vision that deepens the track’s mythology and cements Momsen as both storyteller and specter, a presence you can’t look away from.
The visuals embody the persona she inhabits in the song: Death itself, stalking and unrelenting.
Intercut with fiery band performance shots, Cater’s direction elevates the narrative into something both symbolic and visceral. It’s not just a music video; it’s a cinematic short that mirrors the emotional gravity of the track.
“For I Am Death” is the beginning of a new chapter for The Pretty Reckless. Their last full album of originals, Death by Rock and Roll (2021), was a chart-topping meditation on grief, survival, and the healing power of music. With their 2022 release Other Worlds, a remix, acoustic, and covers collection, the band looked inward, stripping down their sound and honoring their influences.
This new track, however, feels like a line in the sand. It suggests a reinvention, a darker and more theatrical phase that pushes both the band’s musicianship and Momsen’s artistry into bold territory. As she told Audacy, “The meaning of music, it transforms over time… once it’s out in the world, it doesn’t belong to me anymore, it belongs to you.” That ethos permeates “For I Am Death”: The band hand the song over to the listener, inviting personal interpretation while never compromising their own creative vision.
Part of what makes The Pretty Reckless so compelling is their ability to bridge eras of rock.
They nod to the past without ever feeling retro, carrying forward the spirit of rebellion while forging their own mythology. “For I Am Death” underscores this balance. It’s chilling and sinister, yes, but it’s also exhilarating, alive, and bursting with vitality. With a song this sharp, this unapologetic, and this creatively unbound, The Pretty Reckless are proving not only that they’re still here, but that they’re entering what could be their most powerful era yet.
The message is clear: Death is inevitable, but The Pretty Reckless are immortal. As Momsen herself declares, “Rock and roll will never die.” Judging by this fearless return, neither will The Pretty Reckless.
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Stream: “For I Am Death” – The Pretty Reckless
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© Lewis Cater
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