"Cockroach King" is a song by British progressive metal band Haken. It is the third song from the band's third album, The Mountain.
Curiously, the song received a single edit shortly after the release of the album but the song was never directly released as a single. The song is to date the band's most popular
song and would later go on to form the basis of the band's fifth and sixth albums, Vector and Virus, with the albums acting as an origin story for the character.
Basis
Cockroach King was written entirely by Richard Henshall. The song's lyrics have been a topic of debate since the release of the song and the band has revealed very little directly
on the meaning of the song. In recent times the band has been more lenient in revealing the song's true meaning. A theory that the song's lyrics are political in nature would be
confirmed by vocalist Ross Jennings in August 2021.
Production
Describing the song's production, the band stated "With 'Cockroach King' we allowed our eccentric side to come to the fore and wrote a song in the tradition of some of our favorite
English '70s bands like Queen, The Specials and of course - it's obviously a huge tip of the hat to Gentle Giant. There's some 8-string metal riffing in there too and of course
Jens Bogren did an amazing job with the mix, It's a blend of the old traditions and modern sounds that we jokingly refer to as 'Djentle Djiant'."
Lyrics
| "Cockroach King" lyrics [Click here] |
Tantalized by the cockroach and its promise (Blinded by a fickle fortune)
I fantasized about soaring with golden wings (Diamonds in my eyes) (Flying with golden wings)
Hypnotized by the cockroach and it's promise (Blinded by the grand illusion) (Hypnotized by)
(Tantalized by the cockroach)
I was compromised by a treasure (Golden wings to fly) (Lured by a fool's gold)
The hunnter draws closer to its prey (Ahh)
Vacantly I was gazing at the mirage
I yearned to be a apostle of the self-made man
Hopelessly I bathed in my ignorance
Desperately toking on the roach of irony
My fickle fortune beckoned
A treasure fit for fools
The hunter draws closer to it's prey
I blindly wandered down the golden path
In pursuit of a misbegotten dream
The great gatsby whispered in my ears
The road from rags to riches leads nowhere
The grand illusion beckoned
With promises of deceit
The Cockroach King sits on his throne
With the midas touch and a heart of stone
An empire build on guile and greed
A bleeding ground for those who heed
The grand illusion faded
The hunter snares it's prey
I fear and loathe the cockroach
The mirage melts away
The Cockroach King sits on his throne
With the midas touch and a heart of stone
An empire build on guile and greed
A bleeding ground for those who heed
Lured by a treasure that was fit for fools (Searching for the truth)
Lost in this labyrinth in search of the truth (With your promises of deceit)
Trapped in your kingdom built on greed and guile (Built on greed and guile)
Only to find the insects have multiplied
The Cockroach King of guile and greed
With a broken crown he's left to bleed
An empire falling to it's knees
A bleeding ground for those who heed
I longed to be a disciple of the cockroach (Blinded by the grand illusion)
I was hopelessly choking (Blackened wings to fly) (The roach of irony)
On the roach of fallacy
Thankfully when the mirage finally melted (Burning ashes of the hunter) (Thankfully when)
(Long to be a disciple)
The impurity of the cockroach was revealed to me (Scattered in the sky) (Flying with black wings)
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Personnel
Haken
- Ross Jennings - vocals
- Richard Henshall - guitars, keyboards
- Charlie Griffiths - guitars
- Diego Tejeida - keyboards
- Thomas MacLean - bass
- Raymond Hearne - drums
Production and Design
- Christian Burnett - editor, director (music video)
Quotes from the Band
"The video is also a tribute to a more innocent time before our TVs were dominated by computer animation and hi-definition; a time when things were handmade,
wholesome and fun for the whole family."
-Haken
Trivia
- Cockroach King is to date the band's most listened to song, being the only Haken song with over a million views on YouTube.
- Following the success of the song, Cockroaches would become a signature part of the band's iconography and often used as a
symbol of the band, such as on the promotional art for their 2018 tour with Leprous.
- Ross Jennings would later pay homage to the song in the music video for the song "Feelings" from his 2021 album A Shadow of My Future Self, with the Cockroach King being a boss in the music video's fictitious arcade game.
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| "Cockroach King" |
The thumbnail for the song's music video |
| Song by Haken |
| Released |
2 September 2013 (Album)
16 September 2013 (Single edit) |
| Album |
The Mountain |
| Genre |
Progressive Metal, Progressive Rock |
| Length |
8:14 (Album version)
5:58 (Single edit) |
Live Plays |
236 (#1) |
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