In a media landscape increasingly marred by homogenised narratives, Cape Town-based muso Derek Eyden emerges with his latest protest anthem “Blood on Your Lips” – a blistering wake-up call packaged in high-octane rock.
The multi-instrumentalist’s visual accompaniment to this sonic disruption eschews the expected rock video trope in favour of something far more conceptually sharp. Rather than cast seasoned musicians to mime his instrumental work, Eyden recruits a cadre of spirited teenagers, including his son and friends, to embody the song’s rebellious energy – a clever nod to the generation most vulnerable to media manipulation.
The video opens with a powerful historical gut-punch – grainy footage and a sombre voiceover detailing “Operation Mockingbird,” the 1970s Senate Intelligence Committee investigation that revealed CIA infiltration of major American news organisations. As text on screen lists implicated media giants like CBS News, Time Magazine, The New York Times and others, we’re immediately confronted with the unsettling reality behind Eyden’s protest.
This archival evidence transitions into raw, visceral performance shots that capture a group of teens passionately delivering Eyden’s incendiary lyrics against a backdrop emblazoned with “BLOOD,” which acts as both a visual echo of the title and a stark metaphor for media culpability.
“Blood On Your Lips” forms part of a larger body of work – an EP titled Gently Bound, set for release at the end of May, followed by a celebratory performance at Café Roux in Noordhoek on 12 June 2025.
Until then, this artist’s latest offering stands as a necessary jolt of electrical current in increasingly numbed veins; one that demands we examine not just who delivers our news, but what blood might be dripping from their lips.
